Associate Director, Category Lead – R&D Procurement (Clinical Development)

At Bristol Myers Squibb, our employees often ask, “Who are you working for?”, a question that fuels collaboration, accountability, and urgency in our work. Our purpose-driven culture inspires us to discover, develop, and deliver innovative medicines to prevail over serious diseases. We offer uniquely interesting and meaningful work, opportunities for growth, and a supportive environment that values inclusion, wellbeing, flexibility, and comprehensive benefits. This is work that transforms the lives of patients, and the careers of those who do it.

Position Summary

The Associate Director, Category Lead – R&D Procurement (Clinical Enablement) is accountable for the strategic sourcing, supplier relationship management, and governance of clinical development services supporting BMS global R&D programs. This role carries category ownership across a broad clinical enablement portfolio, spanning central laboratory and biospecimen management, clinical imaging and diagnostics, patient recruitment and retention, site enablement services, clinical trial technology platforms, and clinical events adjudication, with accountability for strategy, value delivery, supplier performance, and inspection readiness.

This role reports to the Senior Director, R&D Procurement and operates within the Global Procurement organization, with strong matrixed engagement across Clinical Development, Quality, and Finance.

Key Responsibilities:

Category Strategy & Sourcing

Own and execute global category strategies across the full clinical enablement portfolio.

Lead strategic sourcing, competitive bids, contract negotiations, renewals, and amendments to deliver total value across cost, quality, speed, risk mitigation, and innovation

Establish and maintain preferred supplier frameworks, panel strategies, and demand management approaches across therapeutic areas, development phases, and geographies

Continuously monitor market dynamics, supplier landscape shifts, and emerging capabilities to keep category strategies current and competitive

 

Supplier Relationship Management (SRM)

Serve as the primary procurement lead for strategic and preferred suppliers across the clinical enablement portfolio, driving structured governance, performance management, and continuous improvement

Lead executive-level supplier governance forums, including QBRs, business reviews, issue escalation, and joint innovation roadmap development

Build and sustain productive, compliant supplier relationships that support BMS pipeline delivery and long-term strategic objectives

Partner with cross-functional stakeholders to resolve operational, quality, and commercial issues at pace and with accountability

 

Audit, Inspection & Quality Support

Provide procurement leadership and hands-on support for internal audits, health authority inspections, and supplier audits across all clinical enablement categories

Ensure contracts, pricing structures, governance models, and supplier documentation consistently meet BMS Quality, GxP, and inspection readiness standards

Lead or support remediation activities, CAPAs, and risk mitigation plans in close collaboration with Quality, Regulatory, Clinical Operations, and suppliers

Maintain a state of continuous inspection readiness across all category documentation and supplier governance artifacts

 

Governance, Risk & Compliance

Ensure adherence to BMS procurement policies, QMS requirements, and financial controls across all categories of activities.

Identify and proactively manage supplier, operational, and compliance risks, including supply continuity, data integrity, and biospecimen handling risks.

Support development and maintenance of audited documentation, including job descriptions, supplier records, and governance artifacts.

 

Financial & Business Partnership

Deliver value beyond savings through pricing optimization, demand aggregation, specification clarity, and commercial discipline.

Partner with Finance and study teams on budgeting, forecasting, and financial risk management for central lab services.

Act as a trusted advisor to Clinical and Development leaders on supplier strategy, trade‑offs, and risk‑based decision making.

 

Leadership & Collaboration

Lead with influence across a matrixed organization, aligning diverse stakeholders around category strategy and supplier governance priorities

Mentor and coach procurement colleagues and cross-functional partners on sourcing strategy, negotiation, and supplier management best practices

Contribute to broader R&D Procurement transformation initiatives, capability building, process standardization, and continuous improvement programs

Represent Global Procurement in cross-functional governance bodies, clinical development forums, and enterprise steering committees as needed

Qualifications:

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

Deep expertise in R&D / Clinical Development procurement with demonstrated breadth across multiple clinical enablement categories

Strong supplier relationship management, negotiation, and contract governance capabilities across both services and technology

Proven track record supporting audits, health authority inspections, and remediation activities in regulated (GxP) environments

Ability to manage complexity, ambiguity, and competing priorities across a broad category portfolio

Excellent executive communication, stakeholder management, and issue resolution skills

Strong financial acumen with demonstrated ability to drive and articulate value beyond unit cost savings

Collaborative, solutions-oriented mindset with a bias for action and accountability

Education / Experience

Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree (MBA, MS, or equivalent) preferred

Minimum of 8–10 years of progressive procurement or sourcing experience, with substantial exposure to clinical development or R&D environments

Demonstrated experience managing multiple clinical development categories or suppliers simultaneously

Prior experience with central labs, eClinical platforms, imaging vendors, patient services, or site enablement providers strongly preferred

Familiarity with GxP requirements, health authority inspection processes, and QMS frameworks required

 

Travel

Travel may be required up to 10–20%, based on business needs.

We hire for skills and capabilities, not just credentials – if this role excites you, but doesn’t perfectly match your resume, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Compensation Overview:

Warsaw - PL: zł310,465 - zł376,208


The starting compensation range(s) for this role are listed above for a full-time employee (FTE) basis. Additional incentive cash and stock opportunities (based on eligibility) may be available. The starting pay takes into account characteristics of the job, such as required skills, where the job is performed, the employee’s work schedule, job-related knowledge, and experience. The final compensation will be determined based on demonstrated experience and in accordance with pay equity principles and applicable employment laws.

How We Work

Where you work matters – because collaboration, innovation and patient impact happen in many settings. Our roles are structured across four work models: site-essential, site-by-design, field-based and remote-by-design. The model assigned to this role is based on its core responsibilities. Learn more at https://careers.bms.com/ways-of-working.

Supporting People with Disabilities

BMS is dedicated to ensuring that people with disabilities can excel through a transparent recruitment process, reasonable workplace accommodations/adjustments and ongoing support in their roles. Applicants can request a reasonable workplace accommodation/adjustment prior to accepting a job offer. If you require reasonable accommodations/adjustments in completing this application, or in any part of the recruitment process, direct your inquiries to  adastaffingsupport@bms.com . Visit  careers.bms.com/eeo-accessibility  to access our complete Equal Employment Opportunity statement.

Candidate Rights

BMS will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, pursuant to applicable laws in your area.

For roles based in Los Angeles County only:  If you live in or expect to work from Los Angeles County if hired for this position, please visit this page for important additional information:  https://careers.bms.com/california-residents/

Data Protection

We will never request payments, financial information, or social security numbers during our application or recruitment process. Learn more about protecting yourself at  https://careers.bms.com/fraud-protection .

Any data processed in connection with role applications will be treated in accordance with applicable data privacy policies and regulations.

If this posting is missing required information required by local law or incorrect, contact BMS at  TAEnablement@bms.com with the Job Title and Requisition number. Do not send application-related inquiries to this email. To check your application status, please login to your Candidate Home Account.

R1605530 : Associate Director, Category Lead – R&D Procurement (Clinical Development)