Associate Director, Corporate Strategy; San Diego​/Hybrid

What if the work you did every day could impact the lives of people you know? Or all of humanity? At Illumina, we are expanding access to genomic technology to realize health equity for billions of people around the world. Our efforts enable life‑changing discoveries that are transforming human health through the early detection and diagnosis of diseases and new treatment options for patients.

Working at Illumina means being part of something bigger than yourself. Every person, in every role, has the opportunity to make a difference. Surrounded by extraordinary people, inspiring leaders, and world changing projects, you will do more and become more than you ever thought possible.

Position Title:

Associate Director, Corporate Strategy Function:
Enterprise Strategy

Location:

San Diego, California (Hybrid). This is a full‑time role, Monday through Friday, with an expectation of 2-3 in‑office days per week and additional on‑site presence as needed. The individual must reside in the San Diego area and be able to commute to our corporate offices. Relocation assistance is available and should be completed within a twelve (12) month period or a mutually agreed upon time.

Reports To:

Director, Corporate Strategy FLSA Status:
Exempt

The Associate Director, Corporate Strategy is an experienced enterprise strategist who leads major analytical work streams and selected, bounded strategy engagements that inform Illumina’s long‑term direction and priority decisions. Working with a Director or Senior Director, the Associate Director translates an agreed strategic question into hypotheses, analyses, alternatives, and a clear synthesis; builds a trusted fact base; and turns complex findings into recommendations for senior leaders.

The role operates across R&D, Product, Commercial, Finance, Corporate Development, Medical, Operations, and regional leadership in a global, science‑and technology‑driven environment. The Associate Director is an individual contributor who is expected to exercise substantial judgment over methods and analysis, identify when the initial framing is incomplete, and lead cross‑functional contributors to an integrated answer without relying on formal reporting authority.

The role contributes to executive decisions but does not ordinarily serve as the sole owner of Illumina’s most ambiguous cross‑enterprise questions or the final enterprise recommendation.

• Lead major strategy work streams and bounded engagements.
• Own analytically complex work streams within cross‑enterprise projects and independently lead selected strategy engagements with a defined sponsor, decision, and scope.
• Deliver work from hypothesis and analysis through synthesis, recommendation, and decision support.
• Structure the problem and analytical approach.
• Translate an agreed strategic question into testable hypotheses, decision criteria, required analyses, data needs, and a practical workplan.
• Identify missing questions or weak assumptions and recommend changes to the Director or Senior Director when the evidence warrants reframing.
• Build and validate the fact base.
• Integrate market models, customer insights, competitive intelligence, scientific and technology perspectives, internal performance, and financial analysis.
• Distinguish evidence from opinion, document assumptions, and ensure that analyses can withstand senior review.
• Develop alternatives and implications.
• Build credible options, quantify implications for growth, investment, risk, capabilities, and opportunity cost where possible, and synthesize the evidence into a recommendation within the agreed project mandate.
• Integrate functional expertise.
• Work with functional, domain, product, and regional partners to gather relevant expertise,…