Associate Director, Tech@Lilly MQ Site Leader - Seishin (Japan)

About the role

Lilly's Tech@Lilly Manufacturing and Quality (MQ) team at the Seishin site in Kobe, Japan is looking for an Associate Director to lead its Manufacturing IT team. As Site Leader, you will align the global Tech@Lilly MQ digital strategy with the site's operational and manufacturing strategy, drive major site initiatives, implement and sustain global and local solutions, build a digital culture and steward the IT organization's assets. The role reports directly to the MQ Tech@Lilly Vice President for Device Assembly & Packaging and has a dotted line to the Seishin Site Head.

Key responsibilities

• Lead and coach the site IT team of 7-10 employees, establish a safety culture, and handle hiring, pay, promotion and succession planning
• Deliver and sustain global and local solutions including MES, paperless manufacturing, EWM and SAP integration, next-generation QC lab systems, and IT/OT convergence
• Turn manufacturing data into actionable information through digital, analytics and AI, and manage the full lifecycle of IT systems
• Keep IT compliant with GMP, quality and data integrity requirements, run inspection readiness and computer system validation, and manage cybersecurity and vendor contracts
• Develop a five-year IT plan, partner with regional and global leaders, and adapt to Japanese regulatory expectations

Required profile

• Experience in IT, automation or engineering in a manufacturing environment, including MES and/or SAP
• Professional experience in a GMP-regulated environment
• People management experience (3+ years) and project and vendor management experience
• Bilingual Japanese and English, or willingness to develop them
• Bachelor's degree in IT, Computer Science, Engineering or a related field, or equivalent experience

Required skills

• GMP, data integrity and computer system validation
• S95 (ISA-95) architecture and IT/OT convergence (preferred)
• Lean Six Sigma and continuous improvement (preferred)
• Advanced analytics, machine learning and emerging technologies (preferred)