Senior Director, Data Project Leadership

We're

building a connected, end-to-end

Enterprise AI

engine - uniting data foundations, AI technology, process reinvention, and business-facing AI to accelerate results across the whole value chain.

Success depends on being exceptional connectors

:

you'll

actively

leverage

existing capabilities, celebrate and promote reuse, export breakthrough ideas across geographies and functions, and obsess over scaling impact rather than building in isolation. If you thrive in high-collaboration environments where your role is to turn complex, cross-functional problems into reusable, enterprise-wide capabilities - and where the measure of success is adoption and scale, not just innovation - you'll have the platform (and sponsorship) to make it real.

Introduction to the role

The

Senior Director, Data Project Leadership

unifies enterprise delivery,

governance

and value realisation for priority data initiatives. The role leads a portfolio that delivers secure,

scalable

and

high

‑

quality

data capabilities; aligns on shared outcomes with platform,

domain

and compliance teams; and ensures adoption and benefits are achieved—turning enterprise data strategy into measurable business impact without

over

‑

emphasising

any single programme. The role holds enterprise decision rights for programme prioritisation, portfolio

trade

‑

offs

and

cross

‑

platform

dependency resolution, ensuring coherent delivery across regions and functions.

Scope of accountability:

You will lead the Data project leadership pillar within Enterprise Data Programmes:

Data project leadership:

Lead all aspects of delivery of enterprise data projects and capabilities (e.g., expansion of enterprise data products,

standards

and controls enablement), ensuring

timely

,

on

‑

budget

,

high

‑

quality

outcomes

and measurable value realisation.

Portfolio governance and prioritisation:

Establish and chair portfolio governance; set prioritisation criteria, arbitrate investment

trade

‑

offs

and ensure “compliance by design” through partnership with Compliance, Data Privacy, Quality and (where applicable)

GxP

; proactively manage dependencies with enterprise platforms, domain product teams and the Data change management and Data automation pillars.

Operating model and teams:

Define roles and ways of working for

cross

‑

functional

delivery teams; staff programmes and manage partner/vendor ecosystems;

maintain

integrated plans, critical

paths

and release calendars across regions. Accountable for the allocation of internal capacity and external partner budgets across the portfolio, including vendor selection and performance management.

Key accountabilities:

Strategic leadership:

Develop and present delivery visions, directional

proposals

and business cases for enterprise data initiatives; articulate value, stakeholder alignment, resources and milestones to secure investment and go/

no

‑

go

decisions, including a clear benefits hypothesis, delivery

plan

and value realisation approach.

You have o

wn

ed

a

m

ulti

‑

year

enterprise delivery roadmap with clear annual OKRs spanning platforms, data products,

st

andards

a

nd controls enablement; align with Enterprise Data Programmes strategy and broader AZ

ob

jectives

.

Evaluate and recommend delivery approaches and emerging practices that balance speed, quality,

risk

and cost; translate internal and industry trends into executable delivery strategy.

Align delivery approaches to enterprise risk appetite and control frameworks, ensuring pace without compromising assurance.

Programme execution and governance:

Establish and chair portfolio governance; ensure “compliance by design” with privacy, security and

GxP

(where applicable) and adherence to enterprise standards.

Codify and enforce a delivery framework (stage gates, quality gates, design reviews, readiness criteria) that is

audit

‑

ready

and consistently applied across programmes.

Define operating models,

roles

and ways of working for

cross

‑

functional

delivery; staff programmes and manage partner/vendor ecosystems, including performance and commercial oversight.

Plan and execute

end

‑

to

‑

end

delivery for enterprise data projects,

maintaining

scope, schedule and budget discipline through codified gates and checkpoints.

Proactively manage

inter

‑

dependencies

across initiatives and with enterprise platforms and domain product teams;

maintain

integrated plans and critical paths; resolve conflicts and remove blockers.

Own executive escalations and decisions to remove

cross

‑

functional

blockers; resolve conflicts of priority across domains and platforms.

Implement robust risk, issue,

change

‑

control

, quality and benefits tracking processes; run performance reviews, readiness

assessments

and

post

‑

implementation

evaluations.

Value realisation,

change

and culture:

Define value hypotheses and success metrics from pilot through scale; track benefits (e.g., adoption, cycle time, data quality defect rates, reduction in compliance findings,

productivity

and cost avoidance) and

course

‑

correct

to deliver outcomes.

Lead a short,

time

‑

bound

assignment to advance priority AI and data use cases in clinical and human data, ensuring locally initiated work connects into global data,

governance

and delivery pathways for scale (including alignment with enterprise platforms). Use insights to refine

local

‑

to

‑

global

interfaces and

demonstrate

how outcomes can be delivered across regional and organisational boundaries.

Make benefits

and value

realisation evidence a gate for

scale

‑

up

and transition to

steady

‑

state

operations.

Partner with the Data change management pillar to lead stakeholder mapping, communications,

readiness

and reinforcement; embed behaviours using agreed incentivisation structures and behavioural

science

‑

informed

interventions.

Coordinate with Finance to plan and track budgets,