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Assoc. Dir, Operations Orchestration job at Merck. Durham, NC.

We're seeking an experienced candidate to join our Operations Orchestration team in an Associate Director level role, supporting digital transformation across our global manufacturing shop floors. This role provides senior execution and technical leadership for industrial data platforms, helping translate product direction into scalable, reliable solutions delivered through a global team model. Pharmaceutical manufacturing experience is strongly preferred.

In this role, you will act as a senior execution leader and technical authority, working closely with manufacturing, automation, and IT stakeholders across regions while partnering with established delivery and support teams worldwide.

Your leadership will enable consistent, trusted shop-floor data that improves quality, productivity, and decision-making, helping accelerate the delivery of life-changing healthcare solutions to patients worldwide.

Partner closely with the Operations Orchestration Product Manager to execute the product vision and roadmap, providing technical input, delivery leadership, and operational oversight.

Lead complex deployments and upgrades of the data historian and visualization stack, including AVEVA PI Data Archive, PI-AF, PI Notifications, PI Vision, PI Interfaces, and related components.

Provide senior level, hands on troubleshooting and resolution support for incidents impacting industrial data platforms, working directly with manufacturing, automation, and IT partners to diagnose complex issues, restore service, and prevent recurrence in coordination with global support teams.

Work closely with operations and support services to understand shop-floor data needs and translate them into practical, scalable technology solutions that improve day-to-day manufacturing efficiency and effectiveness.

Collaborate with process engineers and key users to define and maintain company-wide manufacturing assets, process-data requirements, and standard templates.

Provide day-to-day technical oversight and leadership for application support teams, actively supporting incident investigation, root cause analysis, and resolution, and identifying opportunities to optimize system management and supportability.

Coordinate execution across a distributed, global team model, working closely with delivery and support teams across regions to ensure alignment, timely decision-making, and effective escalation handling.

Partner with automation and application leads to define and maintain robust data and system integration standards.

Drive continuous improvement of the Data Enablement product's processes, governance, and best practices.

Contribute to SDLC and computer validation practices where applicable.

8-12+ years of experience in manufacturing; pharmaceutical manufacturing experience strongly preferred.

A minimum of 5 years in automation or Information Technology.

Experience leading delivery and operation of enterprise industrial data platforms within complex, multi-site environments.

Deep, hands‑on experience with AVEVA PI Systems, including architecture, PI‑DA, AF, Analysis, Notifications, PI Vision, DAS, PI Interfaces, and integrations with larger data platforms.

Ability to design and explain different PI architectures (on-prem, virtualized, hybrid) and integration patterns.

Extensive exposure to manufacturing control systems (DeltaV, PLC/SCADA, etc.) and common manufacturing analytics use cases.

Good working knowledge of IT infrastructure considerations that affect data systems (networking, virtualization, storage).

Experience with SDLC methodology and computer validation concepts.

Familiarity with modern manufacturing data ecosystems and relevant Industry 4.0 concepts (e.g., IoT platforms, data brokers, OPC UA technologies, edge solutions) as they relate to industrial data integration.

Self‑driven with strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder‑management skills, with the ability to influence across functions and geographies.

Bachelor's degree in engineering, Computer Science, or a related discipline preferred.

Merck