Director, IT Business Partner

Job Summary:

The Director, IT Business Partner serves as the primary technology strategist and partner for one or more assigned business functions. This role translates business priorities into technology solutions, owns the technology roadmap for assigned functions, manages vendor and platform relationships, and drives adoption of enterprise applications that improve operational effectiveness. This is an ownership role. The IT Business Partner sets the technology direction for their assigned functions, selects and implements platforms, manages vendor relationships, and owns the outcomes. The role is also the primary IT owner of the Enterprise Capability Maturity Model for assigned functions — partnering with domain executives to baseline current maturity, set targets tied to business milestones, and drive investment decisions through the company’s governance process. Every system the IT Business Partner owns must be implemented, operated, and maintained in compliance with applicable regulatory and corporate requirements, including GxP and SOX where the assigned scope demands it. The IT Business Partner works within the company’s validation framework and serves as the system subject matter expert during audits and inspections. The role functions as an embedded partner within the business — attending governance meetings, understanding operational milestones, and anticipating technology needs before they become requests.

This is a key position within a growing IT organization at a clinical-stage biopharma. The role reports to the VP of IT and works in close coordination with IT peers across the organization, including other IT Business Partners, Information Security and Compliance, IT Operations, End User Services, Data and Analytics, Enterprise Architecture, and any other IT functions as the team scales. Effective collaboration across these functions is central to the role.

Work Arrangement & Location: 

Hybrid - This position follows a hybrid work schedule, requiring a minimum of two (2) days on-site per week — currently designated as Tuesday and Wednesday. Additional on-site days may be required based on business needs, team priorities, or leadership direction.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Technology Strategy and Roadmap. Own the technology roadmap for assigned business functions. Evaluate, recommend, and implement technology solutions that advance business objectives. Align technology investments with organizational priorities, growth trajectory, and regulatory requirements. Present roadmap and investment recommendations to IT and business leadership.
• Capability Planning. Serve as the primary IT owner of the Enterprise Capability Maturity Model for assigned business functions. Partner with domain executives to baseline current maturity levels, set target maturity tied to business milestones, quantify gaps, and translate those gaps into prioritized technology investment proposals through the Capability Investment Board process. Keep the model current as the business evolves and ensure that technology decisions are grounded in the capability framework rather than ad hoc requests.
• Platform Governance and Administration. Serve as the IT owner for enterprise applications supporting assigned business functions. Own configuration, security, environment management, integration design, user provisioning, and vendor technical relationships for these platforms. Ensure platforms are operated and maintained in compliance with applicable regulatory requirements, including audit trail integrity, access controls, change management, and data integrity standards. Coordinate with the IT Compliance function on validation activities, periodic reviews, and inspection support for systems under ownership.
• Vendor Selection and Management. Lead vendor evaluation, selection, contract negotiation, and ongoing relationship management for technology platforms supporting assigned functions. Manage vendor performance against service level agreements. Coordinate with Procurement and Legal on contract terms and renewals.
• Partner and Third-Party Technology Oversight. Manage technology interfaces with external partners, contractors, and service providers supporting assigned functions. Ensure that partner-managed systems integrate correctly with company-owned platforms. Provide IT input to partnership agreements and data sharing arrangements. Own the company side of all cross-system data integrations within assigned scope.
• Strategic Business Partnership. Build and maintain trusted partnerships with functional leaders in assigned business areas. Attend their governance meetings. Understand their operational milestones and priorities. Translate their challenges into technology initiatives and advocate for the investments that matter most. Serve as their technology partner, not their vendor.
• Perform other duties and responsibilities as assigned

Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Life Sciences, or a related discipline; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of IT experience with at least 5 years in life sciences, pharmaceutical, biotech, or another regulated industry where systems were subject to GxP, SOX, or equivalent compliance requirements.
• Demonstrated experience as IT owner or technical lead for enterprise application platforms.
• Hands-on experience with system implementation, configuration, and lifecycle management across multiple concurrent platforms.
• Experience managing technology vendor relationships including evaluation, contract negotiation, and ongoing performance management.
• Experience at a company with fewer than 1,000 employees where the IT Business Partner operated with limited support infrastructure and broad personal accountability.
• Experience with capability maturity models, technology roadmap planning, or structured investment prioritization processes preferred.
• Experience implementing and managing enterprise application platforms in a life sciences or regulated environment.
• Experience managing technology relationships with outsourced service providers, partners, or contractors, including integration design and data sharing arrangements.
• Strategic technology thinking — evaluates systems in the context of business milestones, regulatory requirements, and company growth, not just technical specifications.
• Capability planning fluency — comfortable working within a structured maturity model to baseline current state, set targets tied to business milestones, quantify gaps, and build investment cases that connect technology spending to business outcomes.
• Cross-functional partnership — earns credibility with business leaders by understanding their work deeply enough to anticipate technology needs before they become requests.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to serve as a credible partner to clinical, regulatory, quality, and scientific stakeholders. Direct experience representing IT or participating in FDA, EMA, or other regulatory inspections and audits involving computerized systems.