Why choose AstraZeneca Spain?
AstraZeneca Spain is a rising force in our global business. With headquarters in Madrid and our global hub in Barcelona, we’ve become an important international centre of excellence in the fight against critical disease. Boasting vibrant universities and business schools, the Barcelona ecosystem is a place where scientists can thrive. We attract a diverse workforce from across the globe, shining a beacon for innovation in a country that’s committed to clinical development.
We invite you to bring your talents to Barcelona where our respiratory medicine R&D and Global Marketing centre offers opportunities in R&D, IT, Commercial and HR. Or join us in Madrid and shape our growth in our BUs (Respiratory, Oncology & CVRM ), and a range of Corporate functions. Additionally, you can find sales roles throughout the country. Together, we’re contributing to a world-leading pipeline of therapeutics and delivering life-changing medicines to patients.
Who do we look for?
Calling all tech innovators, ownership takers, challenge seekers and proactive collaborators. At AstraZeneca Spain, breakthroughs born in the lab become transformative medicine for the world's most complex diseases. Alongside technical expertise, colleagues have the resilience, energy and collaborative mindset to change lanes, work with different teams and start projects from scratch.
Here, diverse minds and bold disruptors can meaningfully impact the future of healthcare using cutting-edge technology. Whether you join us in Madrid or Barcelona, you can make a tangible impact within a global biopharmaceutical company that invests in your future. Join a talented global team that's powering AstraZeneca to better serve patients every day.
Success Profile
Ready to make an impact in your career? If you're passionate, growth-orientated and a true team player, we'll help you succeed. Here are some of the skills and capabilities we look for.
Diverse collaborators
This is a speak-up culture that values collaboration. You’ll proactively bring your unique perspectives, experiences and skills to the table and seek the same from others. With our international team composition and the need for fast-paced collaboration, you’ll always be building new connections with colleagues.
Cutting-edge innovators
When you join us, you’ll be part of a team that embraces digital technology and data to transform the way we work and the work we do. Every day, you’ll help make history, empowered to ignite your creativity and build something enduring.
Resilient trailblazers
Here, the answers aren’t always available. So, you’ll need to bring a fearless, self-starter mindset to navigate uncharted territories. You’ll harness your ceaseless energy to discover and make the necessary connections with colleagues to shape the future and achieve maximum impact.
Agile movers
Seize ownership and excel with autonomy to enjoy the constant rush of ground-breaking discovery. Your ability to anticipate sudden shifts and adapt swiftly will prove critical as you make your mark in an environment that rewards initiative and resilience.
Responsibilities
Introduction to role
Are you ready to tackle the most exciting and challenging AI and optimization engineering problems in the pharmaceutical industry? As a Senior Optimization and ML Engineer at AstraZeneca, you will design, develop, and support end-to-end optimization and AI systems across a wide range of business problems. You will work within a global team of deeply technical AI engineers, data scientists, scientists, and software developers. Your contributions will transform how AstraZeneca operates at scale, making us more efficient in our mission to improve the lives of millions of patients worldwide.
About the Operations IT team
Operations IT is a global capability supporting the Global Operations organization across Pharmaceutical Technology Development, Manufacturing & Global Engineering, Quality Control, Sustainability, Supply Chain, Logistics, and Global External Sourcing and Procurement. We operate from key hubs in the UK, Sweden, the US, China, and our Global Technology Centers in India and Mexico. Our work directly impacts patients by transforming our ability to develop life-changing medicines, combining cutting-edge science with leading digital technology platforms and data.
Accountabilities
- Contribute to the design and development of end-to-end mathematical optimization or AI solutions for the business.
- Visualize complex datasets and model outputs using the latest front-end technologies.
- Mentor AI scientists, plan and supervise technical work, and collaborate with stakeholders.
- Work within an agile framework and in cross-functional teams to align AI solutions with business goals.
- Engage internal stakeholders and external partners for the successful delivery of AI solutions.
- Continuously monitor and optimize AI models to improve accuracy and efficiency (scalable, reliable, and well-maintained).
- Document processes, models, and key learnings & contribute to building internal AI capabilities.
Key Projects:
- AI Powered Drug Development - Develop and deploy AI models to optimize drug development processes.
- Autonomous Manufacturing - Implement AI-driven solutions to enhance manufacturing efficiencies.
- Self-healing Supply Chain - Apply AI techniques to improve supply chain management and logistics.
Essential Skills/Experience
- Bachelor's in operations research, mathematics, computer science, or related quantitative field.
- Advanced expertise in Python and familiarity with database systems (e.g., SQL, NoSQL, Graph).
- 5+ years of experience and demonstrable technical skills in developing mathematical optimization solutions for complex real-world problems.
- Proven, hands-on coding experience, knowledge of software development best practices and deployment practices such as CI/CD, testing, version control.
- Demonstrated experience using mathematical optimization software such as CPLEX, Gurobi, XPRESS or OR-Tools.
- Experience with heuristic and meta-heuristic algorithms as an alternative to the above software.
- A working knowledge of optimization concepts.
- 5+ years of experience developing high-quality optimization tools. Ideally including Python.
- A track record of understanding and translating complex business problems into engineering problems.
- Creative, collaborative, & product-focused.
- Proficiency in ML libraries sklearn, pandas, TensorFlow/PyTorch.
- Experience productionizing ML/Gen AI services and working with complex datasets.
- Strong understanding of software development, algorithms, optimization, and scaling.
- Excellent communication and business analysis skills.
Desirable Skills/Experience
- Master’s or PhD in a relevant quantitative field.
- Cloud engineering experience (AWS cloud services).
- Snowflake.
- Software development experience (e.g., React JS, Node JS).
When we put unexpected teams in the same room, we unleash bold thinking with the power to inspire life-changing medicines. In-person working gives us the platform we need to connect, work at pace and challenge perceptions. That's why we work, on average, a minimum of three days per week from the office. But that doesn't mean we're not flexible. We balance the expectation of being in the office while respecting individual flexibility. Join us in our unique and ambitious world.
At AstraZeneca, our work has a direct impact on patients by transforming our ability to develop life-changing medicines. We empower the business to perform at its peak by combining cutting-edge science with leading digital technology platforms and data. Join us at a crucial stage of our journey in becoming a digital and data-led enterprise. Here you can innovate, take ownership, and explore new solutions in a dynamic environment that values diverse minds working inclusively together.
Ready to make a difference? Apply now!
AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.
Reasons to Join
Thomas Mathisen
There are many things I enjoy when working at AstraZeneca, mainly the Speak up culture, the great colleagues that are in my teams, the great products that AstraZeneca provides to our patients and the challenging conversations I have around our medicines.
Christine Recchio
Working at AstraZeneca has impacted my life in such a positive way. I now have an improved work-life balance through creating my own schedule and time management, I feel a balance that I didn’t have before.
Stephanie Ling
There are a lot of reasons why I enjoy working in AstraZeneca, my colleagues being one of them. My team members and the managers have provided a great deal of guidance in helping me to be more confident in my daily work.
What we offer
We're driven by our shared values of serving people, society and the planet. Our people make this possible, which is why we prioritise diversity, inclusivity, balance and sustainability. Discover what a career at AstraZeneca could mean for you.
An award-winning company
We're passionate about being a great place to work, and 84% of our employees would recommend us as an employer. We've been recognised as a Top Employer in Spain, an EFR Family Responsible Business, and we achieved third place in Forbes Spain's Top 50 Best Places to Work list.
Inclusive environment
Diversity and inclusion are embedded in everything we do, and our different views, experiences and strengths enrich our culture. There's no salary gap at AstraZeneca, and the number of female employees has increased by four per cent over the last three years. We've also made all positions fully accessible.
Work-life balance
Your wellbeing means a lot to us, and we're here to support you through all of life's ups and downs. That's why we offer an unpaid leave policy, annual leave, reduced-hours timetables and a host of benefits, including a retirement plan, long service award, and health and travel insurance.
Sustainability initiatives
We're committed to harnessing the power of science to become a more sustainable business. We've reduced our carbon footprint by over 9,000 kg of CO2 over the last two years, and we lead the European GoGreen Project, which aims to introduce environmentally friendly options in our fleet of corporate vehicles.
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