Associate Director, Chemical Technical Operations

MSD

Technical Lead in Chemical Technical Operations for drug substance tech transfer and commercial manufacturing. Collaborating with strategic partners in North America for product supply excellence.

Posted 4/23/2026full-timeRahway • California, Iowa, New Jersey, Pennsylvania • 🇺🇸 United StatesSenior💰 $142,400 - $224,100 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Operate independently on priorities established with assigned External Partners
Foster proactive partnerships with External Partners to meet business goals, identify and mitigate risks, and continuously enhance performance
Maintain a strong focus on compliance and Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) to drive supply excellence
Serve as the primary technical contact for assigned External Partners while coordinating with impacted company sites and External Partners
Collaborate with internal teams to ensure seamless product supply with an end-to-end mindset
Initiate and drive change controls to completion
Provide rapid support to External Partners to resolve manufacturing challenges and minimize supply disruptions
Collaborate with Research Laboratories groups during New Product Introductions/Tech Transfers and new technology development
Provide on-site support at External Partners as required, proactively identifying risks and supporting all phases of execution
Conduct technical due diligence assessments and provide expert consultation on chemical manufacturing matters
Review process change requests and deviation reports while ensuring regulatory compliance
Perform Proactive Process Monitoring to enable robust manufacturing operations & early detection of process issues

Requirements

What you’ll need

Bachelors in a technical field (Chemical Engineering, Biochemical Engineering, Chemistry, or Pharmaceutical Sciences)
Minimum 7 years of relevant pharmaceutical industry experience; or Master’s with minimum 5 years of relevant experience; or PhD with minimum 3 years of relevant experience
Experience in manufacturing, specifically in Small Molecule API process production, development, optimization, and tech transfer
Ability to travel up to 50%
Exceptional organizational skills and the ability to work independently
Proven leadership attributes including a global mindset, an end-to-end supply chain perspective, and strong collaborative abilities across functions and geographies
Demonstrated capacity to solve complex technical challenges, lead project teams, and influence stakeholders effectively
A solid understanding of small molecule pharmaceutical manufacturing processes
Strong technical communication skills with proven ability to tailor communications for various levels of the organization inclusive of leaders and peers.

Benefits

Comp & perks

medical
dental
vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family)
retirement benefits, including 401(k)
paid holidays
vacation
compassionate and sick days

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

Chemical EngineeringBiochemical EngineeringChemistryPharmaceutical SciencesSmall Molecule API process productionprocess developmentprocess optimizationtech transferProactive Process Monitoringtechnical due diligence assessments

Soft Skills

organizational skillsindependent workleadership attributescollaborative abilitiesproblem-solvinginfluencing stakeholderstechnical communicationglobal mindsetend-to-end supply chain perspectivecapacity to solve complex challenges