Associate Director Statistics

At AstraZeneca, we pride ourselves on crafting a collaborative culture that champions knowledge-sharing, ambitious thinking and innovation – ultimately providing employees with the opportunity to work across teams, functions and even the globe.

Recognizing the importance of individualized flexibility, our ways of working allow employees to balance personal and work commitments while ensuring we continue to create a strong culture of collaboration and teamwork by engaging face-to-face in our offices 3 days a week. Our head office and BlueSky Hub in downtown Toronto are purposely designed with collaboration in mind, providing space where teams can come together to strategize, brainstorm and connect on key projects.

Our dedication to sustainability is also central to our culture and part of what makes AstraZeneca a great place to work. We know the health of people, the planet and our business are interconnected which is why we’re taking ambitious action to tackle some of the biggest challenges of our time, from climate change to access to healthcare and disease prevention.

The Statistical Science Associate Director may work as a lead statistician
• For a project or indication in clinical or preclinical therapeutic areas
• Leading the delivery and oversight on a multiple studies/indication within a project, potentially as a Global Project Statistician for a standard drug project
• Contributing to statistical methodological advances

The accountabilities for supporting projects directly include:
• Lead the statistical thinking and contributions to the delivery of studies, development plans, regulatory strategy, health technology assessment and/or commercial activities
• Direct project work, including statistical staff and/or CRO partners, to ensure delivery to standards, quality and time
• Develop design options and provide high quality decision support to enable the business to make informed decisions about a study or project
• Quantify the benefit, risk, value and uncertainty of the emerging asset/product profile
• Investigate and apply novel statistical approaches, for relevant statistical issues and/or regulatory guidance and/or value demonstration, including modelling and simulation
• Mentor/coach and support the education and training of statistics staff
The accountabilities for supporting statistical methodological advances include:
• Ability to consult across project teams within area of expertise
• Application of expert skills to investigate, apply novel statistical approaches, for relevant statistical issues and/or regulatory guidance and/or value demonstration, including modelling and simulation
• Produce pragmatic solutions, often within a tight time scale where the emphasis will be to deliver first, then refine and develop solutions thereafter
• Contribute to/or lead the development of a process improvement and/or capability area within the department
• Establish and improve standards and best practice, apply novel statistical approaches to increase effectiveness and efficiency
• Interact with external scientists and represent AstraZeneca Biometrics externally via publications and presentations on novel statistical approaches and best practice
• Mentor/coach and support the education and training of statistics staff in the technical arena

Education, Qualifications, Skills and Experience

• MSc/PhD in Statistics, Mathematics (containing a substantial statistical component), or recognised equivalent to stats MSc
• Strong knowledge of programming in R and/or SAS
• Knowledge of the technical and regulatory requirements related to the role
• Excellent communication skills and ability to build strong relationships
Technical:
• Usually PhD in Statistics or a relevant topic
• Experience of independent research
• Delivering innovative statistical solutions in an applied environment

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Are you interested in working at AZ, apply today!

AstraZeneca is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion and providing a workplace that is free from discrimination. AstraZeneca is committed to accommodating persons with disabilities. Such accommodation is available on request in respect of all aspects of the recruitment, assessment and selection process and may be requested by emailing AZCHumanResources@astrazeneca.com.

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorisation and employment eligibility verification requirements.