Director, AIRx External Partnership Management Lead

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Job Description

Takeda Research is constructing a Lab of Tomorrow built on AI, automation, new ways of working, and talent with the singular vision of delivering differentiated medicines to the clinic at speed and cost. To catalyze these efforts, Takeda is creating two complementary units: AI Research Accelerator (AIRx) and Lab Automation & Transformation (LAT).  

AIRx will consist of a dedicated group of experienced drug hunters with the autonomy of a biotech and the resources of a leading pharmaceutical company. It is designed to incubate the future AI-powered operating models and deliver candidates to the clinic at industry leading speed and success rates. 

Role Purpose 

AIRx executes the majority of its wet-lab work externally — its speed, cost, and quality targets all depend on CROs operating as a true extension of the team. The Director, AIRx CRO & External Partnerships is the single accountable owner of all CRO relationships for AIRx. 

This is not a contracting role. CROs must be actively managed with clear expectations, frequent direction-setting, real-time performance management, and direct accountability for milestones and quality. This role drives this through daily coordination with CRO teams, regular on-site presence at key partners (including periodic visits to domestic and international CROs), and tight integration with AIRx scientific leads. 

This role owns the full external execution lifecycle — partner identification, contracting, data specification, and ongoing performance management — and ensures CRO outputs feed AIRx data systems in a format ready for AI/ML decision-making. The ideal candidate brings deep CRO landscape knowledge, an established external network, and the operational rigor to run multiple parallel partnerships at AIRx's pace and quality bar. 

Accountabilities 

Active CRO management 

• Manage CROs with active oversight — not arm's-length vendor management. Set expectations, drive cadences, and hold partners directly accountable for milestones and quality. 

• Maintain regular on-site presence at key CRO partners, including periodic visits to critical domestic and international partners; use site time to deepen relationships, resolve issues directly, and reinforce AIRx ways of working. 

• Drive daily and weekly coordination between CRO teams and AIRx scientific leads to ensure tight execution against shared milestones. 

• Identify performance issues proactively — at the working level, before they become escalations — and resolve in real time to protect program timelines. 

Partner selection & contracting 

• Identify and evaluate CRO partners for chemistry, biology, DMPK, and other capabilities required by