Job Title
Life Sciences DeltaV Practice Leader
Role Overview
This role is responsible for building and scaling an organic Life Sciences DeltaV automation practice. The position is designed for a senior leader who can establish a new capability from the ground up, starting with initial talent acquisition and growing into a high‑performing team and standalone "mini business."
The successful candidate will lead technical delivery, shape best practices, support client growth, and take ownership of developing a sustainable DeltaV life sciences offering within a broader engineering and technology organization.
This is a highly entrepreneurial role that combines deep technical expertise, people leadership, and commercial accountability.
Key Responsibilities
Practice & Team Development
- Build and scale an organic Life Sciences DeltaV capability, starting with initial hires and expanding into a dedicated delivery team.
- Recruit, mentor, and develop DeltaV and automation engineers, setting standards for quality, delivery, and utilization.
- Establish scalable delivery models, including reusable libraries, templates, and methodologies to accelerate team productivity.
- Serve as the senior technical authority for DeltaV‑based life sciences automation work.
Technical & Delivery Leadership
- Lead complex life sciences automation projects, including greenfield, brownfield, and major DeltaV upgrade initiatives.
- Provide subject‑matter expertise in DeltaV batch automation and S88 concepts (recipes, phases, unit operations, equipment modules).
- Oversee the full automation lifecycle: URS, FDS/DS, configuration, FAT, SAT, commissioning, and support through IQ/OQ/PQ.
- Interface with adjacent systems such as MES, historians, data platforms, skids, and clean‑utility controls.
Client Engagement & Growth
- Act as a trusted advisor to client stakeholders across engineering, manufacturing, quality, and global SME teams.
- Support pre‑sales efforts, including technical solutioning, LOE development, scope definition, and client presentations.
- Help grow client relationships from initial engagements into multi‑site or long‑term programs.
Commercial & Entrepreneurial Ownership
- Take accountability for delivery performance, margins, utilization, and overall practice health.
- Contribute to scoping, SOW development, pricing awareness, risk management, and change‑order control.
- Operate with an ownership mindset, comfortable building from a low base and scaling responsibly over time.
Required Experience & Background
Core Experience
- 10-15+ years of experience in life sciences manufacturing environments, including biologics, sterile/aseptic, vaccines, or high‑potency facilities, with a strong GMP track record.
- 8-10+ years of hands‑on Emerson DeltaV experience in pharma or biotech, with progression from engineer to technical lead or manager.
- Recent experience delivering complex DeltaV projects (greenfield, brownfield, or major upgrades).
Leadership & Prior Roles
- Previous roles may include DeltaV Lead, Automation Manager, Senior Manager, or Associate Director within a pharma site, CDMO, or life‑sciences‑focused system integrator.
- Demonstrated experience managing technical teams and external vendors, including performance management and development.
- Proven ability to hire and build high‑quality automation teams and define what "good" looks like for billable DeltaV engineers.
Technical Expertise
- Deep understanding of batch automation and S88 architecture applied to biologics and aseptic manufacturing.
- Experience across the full validation lifecycle, including IQ, OQ, and PQ support.
- Familiarity with the broader automation ecosystem supporting regulated manufacturing environments.
Desired Attributes
- Maintains a strong professional network of DeltaV engineers, batch specialists, and control system SMEs that can be leveraged to build a team within 6-12 months.
- Comfortable creating standards, templates, and delivery frameworks that enable junior engineers to become productive quickly.
- Strong communicator who can work effectively with both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.
- Naturally entrepreneurial, motivated by building teams, capabilities, and long‑term value.
Location
- US‑based, preferably located in or near a major life sciences hub such as Boston/Cambridge, NYC/Northern NJ, Philadelphia, RTP, the Bay Area, Chicago, or the MD/DC corridor.
