Head of Strategic Execution, Sanofi Intrépide US

Job Title: Head of Strategic Execution, Sanofi Intrépide US

Location: Cambridge, MA

About the Job

Are you ready to shape the future of medicine? The race is on to speed up drug discovery and development to find answers for patients and their families. Your skills could be critical in helping our teams accelerate progress.

Aligned with Sanofi's vision to become an immunology powerhouse, Sanofi Intrépide Research Laboratories represents a transformative initiative in our global R&D organization. This strategic endeavor aims to modernize operations, enhance productivity, and revolutionize our pipeline delivery through a dynamic, startup-inspired approach. Operating across China and the US, the initiative combines the Intrépide Core Team's strategic and operational expertise with specialized Research Laboratories focused on breakthrough science. By leveraging global ecosystems and maintaining lean, agile operations, Intrépide aims to accelerate cutting-edge innovation, validate novel concepts, and drive strategic investment decisions that advance Sanofi's research portfolio.

The Head of Strategic Execution will be a transformative leader who architects and implements innovative operational frameworks that merge entrepreneurial agility with pharmaceutical excellence. This role demands exceptional strategic vision to manage a diverse therapeutic portfolio while optimizing resources and fostering cross-functional synergies. The ideal candidate will pioneer new metrics for innovation assessment, develop adaptive operational systems, and provide strategic guidance to the Intrépide Board. Success in this position requires demonstrated ability to translate scientific vision into practical execution while nurturing a culture that balances operational excellence with breakthrough innovation.

We are an innovative global healthcare company with one purpose: to chase the miracles of science to improve people’s lives. We’re also a company where you can flourish and grow your career, with countless opportunities to explore, make connections with people, and stretch the limits of what you thought was possible. Ready to get started?

Main Responsibilities:

Organizational Leadership & Operations

• Establish and implement US-based Intrépide Research Labs using an entrepreneurial model

• Design and implement an agile operating framework that maximizes innovation potential

• Develop strategic financial mechanisms with key stakeholders to drive value creation

• Build and manage cross-functional partnerships (Finance, IP, Legal, Procurement, etc.)

• Oversee lab inception and dynamic resource allocation to ensure operational excellence

• Lead a streamlined scientific operations team supporting core laboratory functions and external ecosystem interactions

Strategic Programs Management

• Create comprehensive program frameworks with clear value propositions and metrics

• Establish and maintain a centralized digital platform to capture ideas from Therapeutic Areas, Research Platforms and external partners, with clear submission guidelines and evaluation criteria

• Implement a structured three-stage evaluation process (initial screening, expert assessment, Intrépide Board review) with standardized evaluation metrics and regular feedback loops to ensure high-quality program entries and data-driven decision making

• Implement agile evaluation systems for research laboratories

• Monitor whole Intrépide program and portfolio progression, KPIs, and resource utilization

• Establish efficient onboarding and operational protocols

• Provide experience and guidance to Intrépide Research Laboratories, which represents multiple disciplines and different Theratpeutic Areas or Platforms across Research, on strategic thinking and agile execution

• Minimize administrative overhead while maintaining program integrity

Partnership & Ecosystem

• Design and lead the execution of strategic events (scientific workshops, innovation pitches, networking forums) to strengthen Intrépide Research Labs' position as an innovation hub both within Sanofi and externally

• Build and nurture a high-value innovation ecosystem through targeted partnerships with key academic institutions, CROs, biotech companies and VCs, aligned with Research Laboratories' strategic priorities

About You

QUALIFICATIONS

• Ph.D. in life science

• MBA highly desired

• 15+ years drug discovery experience in Biotech, Biopharma or Pharma companies

COMPETE