AbbVie Posted September 10, 2026

Associate Director, QA

North Chicago, IL Full-time
Quality Associate Director
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AbbVie is the source of truth for this posting and owns the application process. We surface normalized context and market comparison you won't find on the original listing.

About this opportunity

Company Description

About AbbVie

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at  www.abbvie.com . Follow @abbvie on  LinkedIn,   Facebook ,  Instagram ,  X  and  YouTube.

Job Description

* This role could be based in any of our hub locations (North Chicago, IL/Cambridge, MA/Worcester, MA/Florham, NJ/Irvine, CA/San Francisco, CA) in US

Leads and develops a team of Clinical Auditors, based in the Americas, in the development and execution of all clinical audit types.  Build a strategic, high-performing team that operates cross functionally to build-in quality to AbbVie processes from the outset.

As part of the Clinical Audit Leadership Team, contributes to the development of the global Clinical Audit strategy while driving this at an Americas level.

Provides leadership and strategic insight to the risk-based clinical audit program, execute more complex audits and work with auditees to resolve any non-compliance(s) identified.

Leads and delivers innovative quality strategies and solutions through collaboration with business partners and other GxP RDQA functions to support effective and timely solutions to compliance issues and/or questions.

Drives development/continuous improvement of necessary quality and clinical systems by leading and/or supporting implementation of initiatives to assure compliance to regulations and corporate policies.

Analyses and evaluates processes that support clinical development in order to assure quality and compliance.

Drives for results for self and staff by providing clear direction, establishing stretch goals/assignments and is able to communicate expectations and objectives in a clear and well-planned manner. Maintains two-way dialogue with others related to work assignments and results; brings out the best in people.

Provides expert advice and support on clinical regulations, guidance and expectations to RDQA and business colleagues.

Provide strategic input to the inspection support model and actively support GCP inspections onsite or remotely if needed

Promotes continuous education on quality and clinical guidelines and regulations for self and other AbbVie staff.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in science (physical, life, health), a health care profession (e.g., nursing or pharmacy) or equivalent experience

7+ years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry in the fields of clinical development, clinical trials regulatory affairs and/or quality assurance supporting those areas, or with a regulatory authority.

Detailed knowledge of quality systems and auditing standards.

Extensive knowledge of worldwide clinical regulatory requirements and industry best practices, quality management principles, including global and regional regulations and internationally recognized standards (e.g. ICH, ISO).

Excellent communication skills, including superior negotiation and influencing skills. Acute listening skills to gain understanding or to solve a problem and the ability to recognize the difference. Ability to manage difficult conversations and seek alignment.

Ability to manage complex issues and distil information. Strong analytical skills and the ability to proactively identify, rapidly assess, and effectively manage business and compliance risks.

Significant experience leading cross-functional and multi-location teams through complex projects with demonstrated flexibility to adapt to changing assignments and ability to effectively prioritize.

Ability to think strategically and communicate effectively with colleagues at all levels, including senior management.

Well-developed leadership competencies to deliver team objectives and projects.

Willingness and ability to perform domestic and international travel

Additional Information

Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law: ​

The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of thisposting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location,and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future. ​

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.​

This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs. ​

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission,incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless anduntil paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law.​

AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community.  Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.

US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit  https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html

US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:

https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html

Job details

Seniority
Associate Director
Function
Quality
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
North Chicago, IL
Employment type
Full-time

How this role compares

Computed from every other active Quality role in our database, not just this employer's listings.

We currently track 334 comparable Associate Director Quality roles across 84 biopharma companies.

334Comparable roles tracked
312Currently active
84Companies hiring similar roles
37Countries represented

Salary context

89 of 334 peers report a salary range (USD, annualized)

Peers share this role's job function and a matching or adjacent seniority level -- not necessarily the same therapeutic area or country.

This roleSubject $141,500/yr – $268,500/yr
Lowest disclosed · Senior Stability Associate · Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. $39,000/yr – $88,000/yr
Peer group range $63,500 – $208,845 (median $158,050)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 334 comparable roles

United States141
China27
Ireland18
India18
Singapore13
Germany12

+ 31 more countries

Seniority mix

334 of 334 peers have a known seniority level

Manager161
Senior129
Associate Director44

Therapeutic area mix

0 of 334 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

No peers with a known therapeutic area yet.

Similar opportunities

The closest matches from our peer group, ranked by how similar they are, not how well you'd qualify for them -- treat this as market context, not a guaranteed shortlist; a weak match is labeled as one below.

60%similar
Gilead Sciences, Inc. Foster City, United States Associate Director
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Boehringer Ingelheim Ridgefield, Connecticut, United States Associate Director
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Biogen Cambridge, United States Associate Director
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Lilly Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, United States of America Associate Director
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (US) Boston, United States Associate Director
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (US) Boston, United States Associate Director
Same function Same seniority Same country

Notify me about similar jobs

Get an email when we spot other openings like this one – same job function, comparable seniority, roles you'd actually want to see.

How we calculate "similar"

No black box, no LLM guesswork: a deterministic score built from four normalized attributes. Here's this role's own peer group at different match levels, so you can see the mechanism, not just the result.

Every comparison starts from the same 100-point budget: 25 for working in the same function, 40 for the same therapeutic area, 20 for the same or adjacent seniority, 15 for the same country. A dimension we can't confirm on both sides contributes nothing, never a guess, never a free pass.

60%
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Gilead Sciences, Inc. · Foster City, United States · Associate Director
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
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Biogen · Cambridge, United States · Associate Director
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Associate Director, Shift Quality Operations (Cell and Genetic Therapies)
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (US) · Boston, United States · Associate Director
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Associate Director, GMP Quality CGT Personalized Medicine
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (US) · Boston, United States · Associate Director
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
Unmatched or unknown dimensions score exactly the same: 0 points, never a partial guess. A role we know almost nothing about beyond its function bottoms out at 25%; it never inflates to 100% just because there's little to compare against. Seniority uses a defined ladder (Associate → Manager → Associate Director → Senior → Principal → Director → Senior Director → Executive/VP) so "Director" and "Senior Director" count as adjacent, but "Director" and "Executive/VP" do not.