Vice President, General Manager, Cruiserath

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Position Summary

The General Manager of the Cruiserath Biologics and Drug Product Manufacturing site is the senior leader accountable for the end-to-end performance, compliance, and strategic direction of a major biologics drug substance (DS) and sterile/biologics drug product (DP) manufacturing facility.

This role oversees all site operations – from cell culture biologics production to fill-finish drug product manufacturing – with full responsibility for talent development, safety, quality, regulatory compliance, supply reliability, and cost management.

The General Manager leads a high-performing, multifunctional, digitally enabled, and engaged team across Operations, Quality, Engineering and maintenance, Supply Chain, MS&T, Finance, EHS, Digital, B&IT, and HR, ensuring these functions work in unison toward the site’s objectives.

The General Manager drives the translation of enterprise strategy into site execution, aligning the Cruiserath site with BMS pipeline of new biologic, aseptic modalities and ensuring the site is prepared to rapidly industrialize new products from late-stage development to commercial launch. A critical focus of this role is leading digital transformation and advanced technologies with reimagined ways of working and future focused processes – including automation, robotics, data analytics, and AI – to establish “smart factory” capabilities that deliver sustainable competitive advantage.

The General Manager also serves as the primary representative of the Cruiserath site both within the global manufacturing network (driving adoption of world-class standards and sharing best practices across BMS’s network of manufacturing sites) and externally (engaging with regulatory authorities, government officials, industry partners, and the local community to uphold the Company’s reputation and advance strategic initiatives).

This position is pivotal in ensuring that the Cruiserath site remains a world-class, innovative manufacturing hub that reliably delivers life-saving sterile DP, biologic medicines to patients at top profitability while continuously evolving to meet future business and pipeline needs.

Organization: ~690 employees, 7 direct reports

Key Responsibilities
 

In this role, the General Manager will provide strategic, technical, and operational leadership across a broad range of functional domains. Key responsibilities include: 

• Strategic & Enterprise Leadership: Develop and execute the site’s long-range strategy in alignment with BMS’s global manufacturing network and pipeline plans. Ensure Cruiserath’s capabilities evolve in step with enterprise needs, including readiness for new therapeutic modalities and ensuring smooth transitions from process development to commercial manufacturing for pipeline products. Represent the Cruiserath site in Product Development and Supply (PDS) governance forums, and Factory Level Optimized Work (FLOW) (e.g. best practice standardization), and as well as long-term infrastructure investments. Anticipate industry trends and build site-level strategies and contingency plans to maintain a competitive edge and support BMS’s growth objective as well as current products. 
• Manufacturing Operations & Technical Excellence: Oversee all drug substance and drug product manufacturing operations on site, ensuring the reliable supply of high-quality biologics to meet commercial demand and clinical pipeline needs. Provide leadership for both large-scale biologics (drug substance) production and sterile drug product (fill-finish) operations, maintaining rigorous standards for safety, quality, and efficiency. Ensure robust technical capabilities and next-generation biologics processes. Drive effective technology transfer and scale-up of new processes from Product Development to commercial scale, enabling rapid industrialization of new biologic therapies while minimizing risk and optimizing time-to-market. 
• Quality, EHS & Regulatory Compliance: Champion a world class safety and quality culture at the Cruiserath site. Ensure full compliance with global GMP standards, environmental health & safety (EHS) regulations, and all regulatory requirements across multiple product modalities and manufacturing processes. Serve as the site’s executive sponsor during regulatory inspections and audits, maintaining a state of constant inspection readiness and successfully navigating complex regulatory expectations (including those for novel modalities and accelerated approvals). Implement advanced digital quality systems and data analytics to support real-time release, data integrity, and robust quality oversight. Model and enforce behaviors that prioritize patient safety, product quality, and a safe working environment, aiming for zero safety incidents and highest levels of regulatory confidence. 
• Digital Transformation & Innovation: Lead Cruiserath’s journey toward becoming a smart, digital-enabled manufacturing site. Drive the adoption of AI/ML, lighthouse, simulation technologies and predictive analytics, and Industry 4.0 technologies – including automation, robotics, digital twins, and advanced process control – to improve manufacturing efficiency, agility, and reliability. Champion AI and advanced analytics for predictive maintenance, yield optimization, and proactive deviation management, enabling data-driven decision making on the shop floor. Partner with BMS Digital and IT teams to pilot and implement enterprise digital initiatives in pursuit of Factory Level Optimized Work (FLOW) at the site and network. Ensure that the workforce is trained and adaptable to new digital tools and that digital innovations and continuous improvement projects (such as digital tiered management and Lean Six Sigma initiatives) deliver measurable performance gains. 
• Capital Projects & Operational Excellence: Spearhead the planning and execution of major capital expansion projects and technical upgrades at the Cruiserath campus. This includes building new manufacturing suites or facilities to support current operations and future pipeline growth. Integrate modular facility design, single-use technologies, and state-of-the-art automation into expansions to increase flexibility and throughput. Oversee operational readiness for new facilities and equipment – from commissioning to validation and ramp-up – ensuring new capabilities are delivered on-time without disrupting ongoing commercial supply. Continuously improve operational processes through a Lean and Six Sigma approach, driving productivity improvements, shorter cycle times, cost reduction, and waste elimination while protecting product quality and supply consistency. 
• Talent & People Leadership: Foster a high-performance, inclusive culture that attracts, develops, and retains top talent. Build an agile and adaptive work environment. Build site culture driven by acceleration and transformation expertise. Lead and mentor the site’s multi-disciplinary leadership team, ensuring all functional areas (Manufacturing Operations, Quality, MS&T, Supply Chain, Engineering/Maintenance, EHS, Finance, HR, regulatory, etc.) work towards common goals. Set a clear vision and high standards for performance, accountability, and ethical behavior. Implement robust talent management and succession planning to build a future-ready workforce with strong technical expertise in biologics and digital proficiency. Act as a role model for BMS’s values and leadership behaviors, promoting cross-functional collaboration, open communication, continuous learning, and a culture of innovation. Works across GBU and PDS (Product Development and Supply) network to help synchronize operations, capabilities and ways of working to create enterprise value. Ensure that the organizational structure is effective, with well-defined roles and responsibilities, and that all employees understand how their work contributes to site and enterprise success. 
• Financial & Business Accountability: Manage the site’s P&L and financial performance, ensuring that operations are run cost-effectively while meeting all output and quality goals. Develop and oversee the annual operating budget and long-range financial plans for the site, setting ambitious yet achievable targets. Optimize manufacturing costs (cost of goods, productivity targets) without compromising quality or safety, and drive value through efficiency initiatives. Rigorously track the return on investment (ROI) for capital projects and digital innovations, ensuring that new technologies and processes deliver expected business benefits. Ensure robust financial controls and forecasting, and prepare the site to meet its business and customer service commitments on time and within budget. 
• External Engagement & Stakeholder Management: Serve as the key liaison between the Cruiserath site and external stakeholders. Represent the company’s interests with government officials, regulatory agencies, industry associations, and the local community. Proactively engage with health authorities (e.g., HPRA, EMA, FDA inspectors) to build trust and ensure open communication, especially during significant inspections or regulatory submissions. Champion BMS’s reputation in the community by supporting corporate social responsibility initiatives, local outreach, and by upholding high standards of environmental stewardship and ethical operation at the site. Ensure effective management of relationships with external partners and contractors (including contract manufacturers or service providers), protecting BMS’s interests and ensuring that all third-party activities at the site meet our quality, compliance, and performance standards. 

Qualifications & Experience

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Life Sciences, Pharmacy, Biochemistry or a related field is required. An advanced degree (M.S., Ph.D., or MBA) is strongly preferred, especially with specialization in biotechnology, pharmaceutical sciences, or business management.  

• Experience: Approximately 15+ years of progressive experience in pharmaceutical/biopharmaceutical manufacturing, with significant leadership in large-scale biologics (drug substance and drug product) operations. This should include hands-on experience with biological drug substance production (e.g., cell culture/fermentation) and sterile drug product (fill-finish) manufacturing including complex DP presentation (e.g. LAI). Experience in introducing and scaling up new modalities (such as monoclonal antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, bispecifics or other complex biologics) from late-stage development into full commercial production is highly desirable. A track record of driving innovation and managing change (e.g., implementing new technologies, processes, or organizational transformations) is required.  

• Technical & Compliance Knowledge: Deep knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and regulatory requirements (e.g., FDA, EMA and other global health authorities) is essential, as is familiarity with EHS regulations and best practices for high-potency and biologics manufacturing environments. Proven experience hosting or leading regulatory inspections and interacting with regulatory agencies is expected. Experience with large capital project planning and execution, including facility expansions or introduction of new production lines, is required, as well as strong understanding of financial management processes and P&L responsibility for a manufacturing site or business unit.  

• AI/ML implementation experience in manufacturing operations, digital twins and/or simulation technologies and predictive analytics experience. Implementation of Automatics, robotics and digital twins.  

• Leadership: Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional, multicultural teams and develop well-integrated, high-performing organizations. Excellent leadership qualities are needed, including strategic thinking, results-driven decision making, and the ability to influence across executive levels and functions. Exceptional communication skills and stakeholder management capabilities (including engagement with external partners, government officials, and regulatory bodies) are critical. The ideal candidate will have experience managing multi-site or large sites and a strong grasp of the legal, cultural, and organizational nuances of leading in a global, matrixed environment. The role demands a leader who exemplifies an enterprise mindset, high accountability for performance, scientific and technical curiosity, a passion for innovation and digital advancement, and the ability to inspire and transform organizational culture.  

If you come across a role that intrigues you but doesn’t perfectly line up with your resume, we encourage you to apply anyway. You could be one step away from work that will transform your life and career.

Uniquely Interesting Work, Life-changing Careers
With a single vision as inspiring as “Transforming patients’ lives through science™ ”, every BMS employee plays an integral role in work that goes far beyond ordinary. Each of us is empowered to apply our individual talents and unique perspectives in a supportive culture, promoting global participation in clinical trials, while our shared values of passion, innovation, urgency, accountability, inclusion and integrity bring out the highest potential of each of our colleagues.

On-site Protocol

BMS has an occupancy structure that determines where an employee is required to conduct their work. This structure includes site-essential, site-by-design, field-based and remote-by-design jobs. The occupancy type that you are assigned is determined by the nature and responsibilities of your role:

Site-essential roles require 100% of shifts onsite at your assigned facility. Site-by-design roles may be eligible for a hybrid work model with at least 50% onsite at your assigned facility. For these roles, onsite presence is considered an essential job function and is critical to collaboration, innovation, productivity, and a positive Company culture. For field-based and remote-by-design roles the ability to physically travel to visit customers, patients or business partners and to attend meetings on behalf of BMS as directed is an essential job function.

Supporting People with Disabilities

BMS is dedicated to ensuring that people with disabilities can excel through a transparent recruitment process, reasonable workplace accommodations/adjustments and ongoing support in their roles. Applicants can request a reasonable workplace accommodation/adjustment prior to accepting a job offer. If you require reasonable accommodations/adjustments in completing this application, or in any part of the recruitment process, direct your inquiries to adastaffingsupport@bms.com. Visit careers.bms.com/eeo-accessibility to access our complete Equal Employment Opportunity statement.

Candidate Rights

BMS will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, pursuant to applicable laws in your area.

If you live in or expect to work from Los Angeles County if hired for this position, please visit this page for important additional information: https://careers.bms.com/california-residents/

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R1599672 : Vice President, General Manager, Cruiserath