Operational Excellence Leader, R&D

Job Title:

Operational Excellence Leader

Location:

Morristown, NJ

Sanofi R&D is undergoing a significant transformation to accelerate innovation, increase productivity, and deliver breakthrough medicines to patients faster. To enable this ambition, Sanofi is establishing R&D Transformation, a new organization strategic modernization team within R&D Operations, designed to drive enterprise-level changes through disciplined execution, operational excellence, and sustainable value realization. R&D Transformation acts as a catalyst for change across the R&D organization, bridging strategic priorities with operational execution to ensure rapid adoption and lasting impact.

Led by the Global Head of R&D Transformation, the organization is structured around three core pillars:
Execution of strategic modernization initiatives:
Translating R&D strategic priorities endorsed by the R&D Leadership Team into actionable, end-to-end execution plans, ensuring speed, coherence, and seamless integration into business as usual. Operational excellence:
Designing, simplifying, and continuously improving high-impact R&D processes to maximize productivity, reduce complexity, and enable organizational agility. Post-merger integration:
Leading R&D-wide integration efforts to unlock scientific, cultural, and organizational value from M&A transactions. The R&D Operational Excellence Leader is a key member of the R&D Operations Transformation team, serving as a trusted advisor to optimize end-to-end functionality across the value chain. This role focuses on partnering with R&D stakeholders to identify, design, and deliver high-impact performance solutions that drive organizational effectiveness and productivity.

Success in this role means enabling R&D Functions to achieve process excellence through strategic advisory support and expert guidance on priority initiatives. As an R&D Operational Excellence Leader, you will serve as a strategic partner and change catalysts, advising R&D functions on performance improvement opportunities and guiding the selection and execution of optimal deployment approaches (i.e., booster, digital, end-to-end). You will design tailored solutions, manage multiple client engagements simultaneously, and deliver measurable, sustainable results that match stakeholder expectations.

Join the engine of Sanofi’s mission where deep immunosenescent meets bold, AI-powered research. In R&D, you’ll drive breakthroughs that could turn the impossible into possible for millions.

Solution Design & Delivery:
Facilitate cross-functional workshops with R&D Functions and stakeholders to map, streamline, and standardize processes, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities. Develop comprehensive project plans, deliverables, and success metrics for each consulting engagement. Design and implement change management strategies that ensure stakeholder buy‑in and sustainable adoption. Provide expert guidance on digital/IA solution selection, deployment, and optimization to maximize value realization.

Stakeholder Engagement & Communication:
Communicate effectively across all organizational levels, translating complex concepts into actionable insights for diverse audiences. Facilitate alignment of improvement initiatives with R&D strategic priorities through structured stakeholder engagement. Present findings, recommendations, and progress updates to senior leadership and steering committees. Navigate matrix organizations to influence decision‑making and drive consensus among diverse stakeholder groups.

Performance Monitoring & Value Realization:
Develop and track key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure operational efficiency and demonstrate consulting impact. Monitor engagement progress, proactively identify and remove roadblocks, and challenge teams to achieve breakthrough results. Conduct post‑implementation reviews to validate value delivery and identify continuous improvement opportunities. Document lessons learned and best practices to enhance consulting methodologies and organizational knowledge.

Knowledge Transfer & Capability Building:
Coach and mentor R&D staff on lean…