Associate Director, Lab Asset Management

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Job Description

Are you looking for a patient-focused, innovation-driven company that will inspire you and empower you to shine? Join us as a Associate Director, Lab Asset Management in our Cambridge office.

At Takeda, we are transforming the pharmaceutical industry through our R&D-driven market leadership and being a values-led company. To do this, we empower our people to realize their potential through life-changing work. Certified as a Global Top Employer, we offer stimulating careers, encourage innovation, and strive for excellence in everything we do. We foster an inclusive, collaborative workplace, in which our global teams are united by an unwavering commitment to deliver Better Health and a Brighter Future to people around the world.

Here, you will be a vital contributor to our inspiring, bold mission.

Role Purpose:

This role offers the opportunity to provide strategic and operational leadership for laboratory asset maintenance and service coverage across Takeda’s U.S. R&D sites. The successful candidate will partner closely with Takeda stakeholders and oversee the on-site third-party asset management vendor responsible for coordinating preventative maintenance, calibrations, and corrective repairs for laboratory equipment. This role will define, monitor, and improve key performance indicators for the on-site vendor and help drive performance expectations for OEM and third-party service providers across contracted and time-and-materials service models. As a key partner to scientific, finance, and procurement teams, this leader will develop data-driven service coverage strategies that maximize uptime for critical lab assets, strengthen asset lifecycle management, manage budgets, and demonstrate measurable cost savings and financial impact for Takeda.

How you will contribute:

Third-Party Vendor Oversight and Service Delivery

You will play a key part in ensuring reliable, high-quality laboratory asset support across US R&D sites. You will lead vendor oversight, strengthen service delivery processes, and partner across scientific and operational teams to help ensure critical lab equipment remains available, compliant, and ready to support research priorities.

• Lead day-to-day and strategic oversight of the on-site third-party lab asset management vendor responsible for coordinating preventative maintenance, calibrations, corrective repairs, and break/fix services across US R&D sites.
• Define clear expectations, governance routines, escalation pathways, and performance standards that enable consistent, responsive, and high-quality service delivery.
• Monitor vendor performance against service level agreements, key performance indicators, response times, completion rates, customer satisfaction, documentation quality, and financial expectations.
• Serve as a trusted escalation partner for service issues, equipment downtime, vendor performance concerns, and complex cross-functional challenges that may impact scientific operations.
• Partner with the on-site vendor to establish and improve performance goals for OEM and third-party service providers, across both contracted and time-and-materials service models.

Asset Coverage Strategy and Operational Excellence

You will help shape a practical, data-driven approach to laboratory asset coverage that balances reliability, risk, cost, and scientific need. You will evaluate service models, strengthen maintenance planning, and drive operational improvements that reduce downtime and improve the overall scientist experience.

• Develop asset coverage strategies that align maintenance approach to asset criticality, utilization, risk, warranty status, age, service history, and scientific need.
• Partner with stakeholders to determine the appropriate service model for each asset, including OEM contracts, third-party coverage, time-and-materials support, preventative maintenance plans, or other fit-for-purpose solutions.
• Ensure accurate tracking of maintenance coverage, calibration requirements, service history, repair activity, and asset status to support reliable operations and data-driven decisions.
• Identify opportunities to reduce downtime, improve equipment reliability, standardize workflows, and enhance the scientist experience.

Financial Stewardship and Cost Savings

You will support disciplined financial management of laboratory equipment maintenance and service spend. You will work across Finance, Procurement, vendors, and site teams to improve cost visibility, strengthen contract value, and deliver measurable savings while maintaining reliable support for critical lab assets.

• Identify, quantify, and deliver cost savings through right-sized service coverage, contract optimization, vendor consolidation, warranty utilization, and repair-versus-replace analysis.
• Partner with Finance and Procurement to develop and manage budgets for maintenance, calibrations, preventative maintenance programs, service contracts, and repair activity.
• Review service spend, quotes, invoices, entitlements, contract terms, and vendor recommendations to ensure Takeda receives appropriate value and avoids unnecessary spend.
• Develop dashboards, reports, and business cases that communicate service performance, budget status, spend trends, financial impact, risk areas, and savings opportunities to leadership.

Cross-Functional Collaboration and Change Leadership

You will serve as a collaborative partner across scientific, operational, technical, and business teams. You will help lead process adoption, strengthen governance, and support continuous improvement efforts that make lab asset services easier to use, more consistent, and better aligned to research priorities.

• Act as a trusted partner to scientists, Lab Operations, Facilities, EHS, IT, Finance, Procurement, and site leadership to ensure maintenance practices support business continuity and research priorities.
• Lead change management efforts related to new processes, vendor operating models, system enhancements, reporting routines, and service coverage strategies.
• Promote consistent processes, clear accountability, and strong governance across US R&D sites.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives that simplify service request pathways, improve data quality, strengthen compliance, and enhance the customer experience.

Expected skills to be successful in role: 

To be successful in this role, you will bring a strong blend of operational leadership, analytical thinking, vendor management, and stakeholder engagement. You thrive in a complex, fast-paced environment where scientific needs, service quality, vendor accountability, and financial discipline must be balanced. You are comfortable influencing across functions, solving ambiguous problems, and using data to drive decisions that improve laboratory asset performance and service outcomes.

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in life sciences, engineering, operations, business, supply chain, or a related field; advanced degree or relevant certifications are a plus.
• Significant experience in laboratory operations, lab asset management, scientific equipment maintenance (vendor or customer side), vendor management, or related operational functions, ideally within pharmaceutical, biotechnology, life sciences, or other highly regulated environments.
• Strong working knowledge of laboratory equipment service models, including preventative maintenance, calibration, break/fix support, service contracts, vendor coordination, and performance management.
• Demonstrated ability to use data, metrics, and operational insights to drive cost savings, improve service quality, increase efficiency, and support informed business decisions.
• Experience partnering with Procurement, Finance, scientific teams, and business stakeholders on contract strategy, spend analysis, sourcing activities, budget management, and supplier performance.
• Excellent communication, influencing, stakeholder management, and escalation management skills, with the ability to build trusted relationships across scientific, operational, technical, and business audiences.

Takeda is proud in its commitment to creating a diverse workforce and providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, parental status, national origin, age, disability, citizenship status, genetic information or characteristics, marital status, status as a Vietnam era veteran, special disabled veteran, or other protected veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws, and any other characteristic protected by law

This position is currently classified as “hybrid” in accordance with Takeda’s Hybrid and Remote Work policy. 

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Takeda Compensation and Benefits Summary

We understand compensation is an important factor as you consider the next step in your career. We are committed to equitable pay for all employees, and we strive to be more transparent with our pay practices.

For Location:

Boston, MA

U.S. Base Salary Range:

The estimated salary range reflects an anticipated range for this position. The actual base salary offered may depend on a variety of factors, including the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, specific and unique skills, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job. The actual base salary offered will be in accordance with state or local minimum wage requirements for the job location. 

For information about our benefits, please click here.

EEO Statement

Takeda is proud in its commitment to creating a diverse workforce and providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, parental status, national origin, age, disability, citizenship status, genetic information or characteristics, marital status, status as a Vietnam era veteran, special disabled veteran, or other protected veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws, and any other characteristic protected by law.

Locations

Boston, MA

Worker Type

Employee

Worker Sub-Type

Regular

Time Type

Full time

Job Exempt

Yes

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.