Director, Technology & Engineering for Software and Workflows

Overview

Lead Technology & Engineering for Software and Workflows within Novartis Biomedical Research Data & Digital Software & Workflows. Shape the design, delivery, and execution of high-quality, AI-enabled software solutions across scientific workflows and laboratory processes.

What you'll do

• Set a clear direction for technology and engineering, connecting team priorities and technical choices to scientific impact and organizational strategy.
• Encourage curiosity, experimentation, constructive challenge, learning from outcomes, urgency, trust, clarity, and shared ownership.
• Lead, coach, and develop engineering managers, technical leaders, and AI engineering capabilities.
• Champion the responsible integration of AI tools and agents into modern engineering frameworks and practices.
• Advance scalable architecture, DevOps, continuous integration and delivery, test automation, observability, and operational excellence.
• Align engineering approaches with enterprise strategy, architectural standards, security, compliance, and responsible AI governance.
• Build trusted relationships across organizational boundaries and communicate complex technical topics to enable timely, informed decisions.
• Partner with delivery, architecture, operations, security, compliance, enterprise technology teams, and software vendors to reach clear decisions and coordinated action.
• Own engineering execution across a broad portfolio of initiatives, delivering high-quality solutions predictably within agreed scope, budget, and timelines.
• Manage dependencies, risks, resources, and trade-offs as priorities and technologies evolve.

What you'll need

• Significant experience leading technology functions, engineering managers, technical leaders, and multidisciplinary software teams in a global, matrixed environment.
• A strong learning mindset and curiosity, with the ability to explore emerging technologies, seek diverse perspectives, and turn new insights into practical action.
• Strategic agility—the ability to connect long-term direction with near-term priorities, simplify complexity, and adapt decisively as circumstances evolve.
• A track record of leading large-scale SaaS, commercial, custom-built, on-premises, and cloud-based software solutions with measurable business or scientific impact.
• Deep understanding of modern AI-enabled software engineering practices, including DevOps, continuous integration and delivery, test automation, and Agile or Lean delivery.
• Experience integrating AI models, agents, or other AI-enabled capabilities into production software and engineering workflows.
• Demonstrated success leading complex, time-bound initiatives and improving delivery predictability, quality, and operational performance.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, including the ability to engage senior leaders and translate technical complexity into clear choices and recommendations.
• A leadership style grounded in integrity, empowerment, accountability, collaboration, and genuine commitment to developing others.
• The courage to challenge the status quo, take thoughtful risks, learn quickly, and help teams turn uncertainty into progress.

Nice to have

• Experience in the pharmaceutical industry, life sciences, research, or another highly regulated environment.
• Experience leading globally distributed teams and collaborating across scientific, technical, vendor, and enterprise functions.
• Evidence of building inclusive, high-performing cultures in which people learn from one another and achieve more together.

Details

• Location: Hyderabad.