(Sr.) Director, Innovation Lead

The rapid advancement of AI and digital healthcare technology (DHT) has opened unprecedented opportunities for an R&D organization to transform both what we deliver for patients in need and how we work smarter and faster. The Innovation Lead is a senior leadership role accountable for shaping and driving the innovation agenda in R&D China — connecting bold 0-to-1 ambition with disciplined execution. The role provides senior leadership through influence, strategic partnership, and SME depth.

In this role, you will work across a shifting set of collaborators — AI scientists, innovation product managers, innovation catalysts, clinical SMEs, TA strategy leads, external vendors, and academic experts — to translate organizational and TA strategy into a prioritized portfolio of AI opportunities. You will personally drive the design and scaling of an enterprise-level AI Accelerator and the delivery of novel Agentic AI solutions that measurably impact clinical development through daily workflow transformation. You will serve as a trusted strategic partner and senior SME to TA Heads, clinical leadership, Health Authority stakeholders, and senior external collaborators, and will be accountable for the innovation agenda’s business value, quality, compliance, and cultural adoption.

[Typical Accountabilities]

Strategic Leadership

• Partner with TA Heads, China disease and compound clinical leads, and TA strategy leads to translate organizational strategy into a clear, prioritized AI opportunity portfolio.

• Shape the medium-to-long-term innovation roadmap, including investment thesis, selection criteria, and measurable outcomes for both 0-to-1 novel solution development and AI-enabled workflow transformation.

• Assess and prioritize AI use cases based on business value, feasibility, data readiness, regulatory risk, and strategic fit.

• undefined

Enterprise AI Accelerator

• Drive the end-to-end operating model for the enterprise-wide Innovation Camp / AI Accelerator — from theme design and selection, through governance and scaled release, to continuous improvement.

• Catalyze multi-level adoption of Agentic AI across the organization; design and lead initiatives to systematically elevate AI/Agentic AI literacy, safe-use awareness, and a “safe-to-experiment, fast-iterate” culture.

• Orchestrate cross-team collaboration to identify, refine, and amplify internal strengths, positioning the Accelerator as a high-leverage mechanism for scaling the organization’s AI capabilities.

 

Delivery Excellence

• Accountable for the end-to-end progression of the innovation agenda — connecting the path from discovery and MVP through prototyping, testing, scaled release, and steady-state operations, in partnership with product managers, catalysts, and project teams.

• Champion effective business processes, quality assurance procedures, and risk/issue management across the portfolio, including accuracy, traceability, human review, and responsible/trustworthy AI practices.

• Lead selection, negotiation, and delivery oversight of technology partners; set joint success metrics and integration plans; drive scope, quality, timeline, and knowledge transfer.

• Ensure capture of reusable methods, components, standards, and lessons learned to compound organizational capability over time.

Technical Leadership

• Serve as senior SME bridging clinical development know-how with AI/Agentic AI capability;  shape business analysis, solution architecture, and integration with AI technologies working with internal and external partners.

• Maintain sharp insight into frontier AI technologies; translate emerging technology into business opportunity and risk-informed decisions.

• Define and uphold standardized, reproducible evaluation frameworks for AI models and agents, including benchmarks, datasets, and acceptance criteria.

 

Stakeholder Engagement

• Lead communication and engagement with senior internal stakeholders, Steering Committees, and external collaborators — establishing a transparent cadence to surface progress, trade-offs, and value delivered.

• Proactively address concerns, secure ongoing sponsorship, and drive change management to realize benefits at scale.

• Represent R&D China innovation externally with academic networks, Health Authorities, and strategic technology partners.

 

Capability Mentorship

• Provide senior mentorship and technical/strategic coaching to starting AI scientists, innovation product managers, innovation catalysts, and other collaborators across projects.

• Cultivate a candidate, learning, stimulating, and inspiring culture in the project teams you work with; sponsor the growth of junior colleagues through influence and example.

[Education, Qualifications, Skills and Experience]

·        Education and experience: Advanced degree in a science-related field; MD and/or PhD strongly preferred, with senior experience launching and scaling innovation, AI, or digital programs from concept to steady-state operations—ideally in pharmaceutical R&D, clinical AI, or other regulated environments.

·        AI and technology expertise: Strong knowledge of generative AI, agentic AI, workflow design, AI/ML lifecycles, risk management, compliance, and responsible AI. Hands-on experience applying agentic AI to real-world business challenges is strongly preferred.

·        Clinical R&D knowledge: Deep understanding of the clinical R&D value chain, including strategic decision-making, study design, trial execution, clinical operations, data analysis, results interpretation, and Health Authority engagement.

·        Strategic problem-solving: Ability to translate complex and ambiguous business needs into prioritized opportunities, data requirements, solution architectures, and practical, impact-focused delivery plans, with strong learning agility.

·        Leadership and influence: Proven ability to lead cross-functional initiatives and influence executives, Steering Committees, Therapeutic Area Heads, and external partners without direct line authority. Excellent written and spoken English and Chinese.

·        Partnership and delivery: Experience selecting, negotiating with, and managing AI and technology vendors and partners, including integration planning, governance, and shared success measures.

·        Global operating experience: Experience working in a complex, global, matrixed organization, with the resilience and adaptability to manage ambiguity across geographies and stakeholder groups.

Date Posted

12-11月-2026

Closing Date

30-3月-2027

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.