Leading the operating capabilities of AstraZeneca's UK Oncology Business Unit is the core of this role, enabling its performance. Reporting to the Oncology Business Excellence Director, the Business Operations Lead will guide a multidisciplinary team to make performance drivers visible and actionable, strengthen customer engagement, integrate information systems, and build scalable working methods. This influential leadership position involves collaborating with senior leaders across various functions to translate strategic ambition into practical delivery and shape the business's future operations. The role suits a leader who thrives on breadth, navigates ambiguity, and is driven to enhance business performance through people, process, data, and technology.
Responsibilities
Set clear direction across a diverse portfolio of specialist teams
Create alignment around priorities for business performance
Build a high-performing, accountable, and inclusive culture
Develop leaders and specialists while ensuring their work contributes to a coherent Business Operations strategy
Prioritise investment, resources, and focus across competing demands
Partner with senior leadership to interrogate performance, find opportunities, and influence business decisions
Use insight, customer engagement understanding, and commercial judgement to guide business priorities
Bring clarity to complex challenges and translate them into actionable plans
Connect strategy, data, technology, processes, and organisational capability to improve outcomes
Support the business to maximise in-line performance, prepare for launches, and sustain long-term growth
Shape the evolution of the OBU operating model and go-to-market approach
Sponsor and integrate transformation across commercial effectiveness, business excellence, data, and digital capabilities
Drive adoption of future-fit ways of working that are scalable, sustainable, and measurable
Maintain momentum across multiple large-scale initiatives, ensuring delivery and impact
Partner with Global and EUCAN teams to employ established strategies and accelerate local execution
Provide leadership and direction across Commercial Effectiveness, Data Operations, Digital Transformation, Business Excellence, Business Planning, and Meetings & Events
Retain overall accountability for critical operational capabilities including business planning, customer engagement enablement, segmentation and targeting, incentive operations, launch readiness, and Key Account Management evolution
Ensure clear ownership, effective governance, and measurable outcomes across the portfolio
Requirements
Significant experience leading multidisciplinary teams, major organisational initiatives, and broad business-critical portfolios
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Demonstrated ability to create clarity, alignment, and momentum in complex environments
Strong judgement and decision-making in situations where information is incomplete or evolving
Proven track record to develop people, set high standards, and drive accountability
Resilience, adaptability, and a track record of delivering through change
Strong commercial judgement and experience influencing business performance, customer engagement, or go-to-market decisions
Experience connecting organisational strategy with operational execution
Strong understanding of pharmaceutical business performance, launches, customer engagement, and cross-functional working
Ability to identify underlying business challenges and determine the right combination of people, process, data, and technology to solve them
Experience leading business transformation from concept through implementation and adoption
Credibility and confidence working with senior leaders across multiple functions
Experience in commercial leadership, franchise leadership, business excellence, or transformation roles
Candidates from Business Excellence or transformation backgrounds should demonstrate substantial commercial decision-making experience and clear accountability for business outcomes
Executive-level communication and stakeholder management skills
Ability to challenge constructively, influence without authority, and build alignment around difficult decisions
Comfortable moving between strategic conversations and practical delivery detail
Strong organisational awareness and stakeholder judgement
Equally comfortable challenging senior leaders, developing high-performing teams, shaping strategy, and ensuring execution follows through
Nice to have:
Leadership experience across multiple functions, therapy areas, or markets
Experience in Oncology, Speciality Care, or another complex healthcare environment
Experience working within both promotional and non-promotional healthcare functions
Experience introducing or scaling data, automation, AI, or digital capabilities within a business environment
Important Details
Schedule: minimum of three days per week from the office
Application deadline: 2nd October 2026
About the Company
AstraZeneca UK is committed to accelerating the UK's position as a global centre of excellence in life sciences, redefining healthcare through fast and equitable access to effective medicines and high-quality care, and delivering sustainable leadership. Its head office in Pancras Square allows it to transform the lives of patients as the country’s leading biopharmaceutical company, fostering collaboration within the UK healthcare environment and the wider AstraZeneca footprint. The company is on a journey to bring life-saving medicines to patients, shaping the future by identifying scientifically-led commercial opportunities and operationalising them to make an impact at every step of the patient journey.
