Director for Policy Planning, Strategy, and Operations

Role Summary

The Director for Policy Planning, Operations, and Strategic Initiatives is the operating backbone of the International Policy & Communications (IPC) function. The role carries three mandates: driving IPC operating plan development and implementation ensuring accountability for pull-through, leading strategic initiatives across IPC aligned with the International Vision for Growth, and overseeing operational excellence across the leadership team and IPC organization. The Director supports Jennifer Young, Head of IPC Strategy and Commercial Policy. The Director also serves as IPC's standing interface to the Office of International Business Transformation, the Office of the CEO on enterprise external engagements, and the Strategy and Consulting team supporting International Division priorities.

Role Responsibilities

1. Operating Plan

• Develop, implement, and track the IPC operating plan, synthesizing commercial and policy priorities across international markets into a coherent plan with clear milestones and owners.

• Build the cadence and tooling to monitor progress against the plan, surface risks early, and keep leadership focused on the priorities that matter.

• Translate complex, cross-market issues into executive-ready analysis and decision materials for IPC and ILT leadership—including regular (eg quarterly or semester reporting).

• Coordinate closely with IPC country and regional leads, Commercial Policy colleagues, communications colleagues, and trade policy to ensure the strategic and operating plan reflects market realities, policy priorities, communications opportunities, and cross-functional execution needs.

• Own accountability for pull-through on the IPC operating plan, ensuring the organization does not simply plan, but is effectively delivering against agreed priorities and milestones.

• Build external engagement strategies that establish new links with non-traditional stakeholders and institutions, and drive delivery of programs against critical strategic initiatives to support action in markets.

2. Strategic Initiatives to Enable the International Vision for Growth

• Ensure IPC is focused on the right strategic priorities, translating those priorities and market best practice into collective organizational excellence and delivering effectively against key priorities.

• Lead a flexible strategic initiatives portfolio designed to give IPC capacity to move quickly on special projects, emerging policy priorities, and cross-market opportunities that do not sit neatly within existing workstreams.

• Structure strategic initiatives with clear problem statements, executive sponsors, internal and external stakeholders, milestones, decision points, and measurable outcomes.

• Pilot initiatives in selected markets or workstreams where there is a clear business need, gather feedback from country and regional teams and cross-functional partners, and refine the approach before broader rollout.

• Develop practical playbooks, tools, governance pathways, and communication materials that allow successful initiatives to be adapted across markets without creating unnecessary complexity.

• Transition mature initiatives to the appropriate enduring owner once the strategy, operating model, and execution requirements are clear.

• By way of example, the existing priority strategic initiative is RWE, data, and AI policy: a horizon-shaping platform that will help IPC anticipate how evidence generation, responsible data use, and emerging AI policy will affect market access, health system engagement, external advocacy, and commercial policy priorities across international markets.

3. Operational Excellence

• Oversee implementation of IPC leadership team meetings end to end in coordination with the Senior Manager for Policy Planning, Operations, and Strategic Initiatives ensuring follow through on decisions and actions.

• Manage the IPC budget, including planning, allocation, tracking, and reporting.

• Manage and coordinate with the Senior Manager for Policy Planning, Operations, and Strategic Initiatives to oversee operational excellence across the leadership team and partner enabling functions, including leadership team meeting cadence, communities of practice, and adoption of AI-enabled tools and workflows.

Enterprise and External Interfaces

• Serve as IPC's direct interface to the Office of International Business Transformation, ensuring alignment across IPC markets and representing IPC priorities in enterprise transformation discussions.
• Serve as IPC's primary point of contact to the Office of the CEO on enterprise external engagements, including WEF, UNGA, and other priority global platforms.
• Act as IPC's interface for the Strategy and Consulting team, coordinating engagements, clarifying scope and deliverables, and ensuring the team's work advances IPC's operating plan and strategic initiatives.
• Serve as IPC's interface to the AI Law & Policy Forum, ensuring IPC perspectives are integrated into enterprise AI policy coordination and that Forum outputs are translated into market-relevant policy and external engagement strategies.
• Manage the vendor and consulting relationships that support the strategic initiatives portfolio, including scope, performance, and value.

People Leadership

• Manage the Senior Manager for Policy Planning, Operations, and Strategic Initiatives, and any additional resources supporting the portfolio, with responsibility for coaching and development.

Basic Qualifications

Candidate demonstrates a breadth of diverse leadership experiences and capabilities including: the ability to influence and collaborate with peers, develop and coach others, oversee and guide the work of other colleagues to achieve meaningful outcomes and create business impact.

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.

• 8+ years of experience required with Bachelors; 7+ years of experience required with MBA/MPH/master's degree; 5+ years of experience required with PhD or JD; experience required in policy, strategy, operations, and/or a comparable complex environment, ideally in the pharmaceutical or healthcare industry or another regulated sector.

• Demonstrated track record building and running operating plans and the operations of a senior leadership team.

• Experience managing vendors, consulting partners, and cross-functional stakeholders in a matrix organization.

• Familiarity with AI and data governance frameworks and enterprise implementation preferred.

• Experience with data, RWE, digital transformation, and AI policy, including the ability to connect technical, legal, policy, and market considerations in a regulated environment.

Required Skills

• Strategic and analytical horsepower, with the ability to synthesize complexity into clear decisions and recommendations for senior leadership.
• Strong operating discipline across planning, budgeting, and execution.

• Excellent written and verbal communication, calibrated for senior audiences.

• Ability to influence without authority across functions and markets.

• Comfort with ambiguity and change management in a fast-moving, emerging portfolio.

• Embodies Pfizer values of Courage, Excellence, Equity, and Joy.

Other Job Details:

• Last Date to Apply for Job: October 12th, 2026.
• NOT eligible for Relocation Package
• Locations: NYHQ or UK - Walton Oaks or France - Rives de Paris
• This position is hybrid and requires working onsite 2 to 3 days per week

The annual base salary for this position ranges from $162,900.00 to $271,500.00. In addition, this position is eligible for participation in Pfizer’s Global Performance Plan with a bonus target of 20.0% of the base salary and eligibility to participate in our share based long term incentive program. We offer comprehensive and generous benefits and programs to help our colleagues lead healthy lives and to support each of life’s moments. Benefits offered include a 401(k) plan with Pfizer Matching Contributions and an additional Pfizer Retirement Savings Contribution, paid vacation, holiday and personal days, paid caregiver/parental and medical leave, and health benefits to include medical, prescription drug, dental and vision coverage. Learn more at Pfizer Candidate Site – U.S. Benefits | (uscandidates.mypfizerbenefits.com). Pfizer compensation structures and benefit packages are aligned based on the location of hire. The United States salary range provided does not apply to Tampa, FL or any location outside of the United States.
This role is posted in multiple locations. If you are applying for the role in an secondary job posting location where pay transparency regulations apply, your Talent Advisor will share the local pay information with you during the first interview.

Relocation assistance may be available based on business needs and/or eligibility.

Candidates must be authorized to be employed in the U.S. by any employer.

U.S. work visa sponsorship (such as TN, O-1, H-1B, etc.) is not available for this role now or in the future.

To learn more about acceptable and prohibited uses of AI during the recruitment process, please review our candidate AI-use guidelines available on Pfizer Careers.

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A career at Pfizer offers opportunity, ownership and impact.

All over the world, Pfizer colleagues work together to positively impact health for everyone, everywhere. Our colleagues have the opportunity to grow and develop a career that offers both individual and company success; be part of an ownership culture that values diversity and where all colleagues are energized and engaged; and the ability to impact the health and lives of millions of people. Pfizer, a global leader in the bio pharmaceutical industry, is continuously seeking top talent who are inspired by our purpose to innovate to bring therapies to patients that significantly improve their lives.