Senior Specialist, Site Planning

Join AstraZeneca’s Cell Therapy Operations as Sr. Specialist, Site Supply Chain, supporting production scheduling, material planning and site operations across our Tarzana and Santa Monica, CA manufacturing facilities. Reporting to the Site Supply Chain Director, you will execute the site supply chain strategy to ensure reliable, efficient production and uninterrupted supply of cell therapy products for patients in need. Partnering closely with Manufacturing, Quality, Operations, and Global Supply Chain, you will support S&OE to optimize capacity and inventory, enable new product introductions, and embed resilient processes and digital tools across the network. If you bring deep expertise in site supply chain planning within cell therapy or advanced therapies, this is an opportunity to shape a rapidly scaling platform with meaningful patient impact. 

What you’ll do 

• Sales & Operations Execution (S&OE)

  • Partner closely with the Site Planning team to facilitate and execute the S&OE process, including management of the S&OE dashboard and key performance indicators (KPIs).

  • Collaborate with the S&OP team to align short-term and long-term product demand with available production capacity and provide planning feedback.

  SAP Management

  • Execute routine SAP transactions to support sales order and process order creation and management.

  • Create and maintain SAP master data related to process orders, including Bills of Materials (BOMs), production versions, recipes, and other relevant data.

  Production Scheduling

  • Co-manage the production schedule to ensure the efficient coordination of Manufacturing, Quality Control (QC), and Facilities & Engineering (F&E) activities.

  • Monitor schedule changes and proactively escalate potential issues to the Site Planning team.

  • Partner with Manufacturing, QC, MSAT, and F&E teams to schedule non-clinical activities within the production plan.

  Material Planning & Inventory Management

  • Co-manage material planning and procurement activities for indirect materials and general-use consumables.

  • Monitor and balance inventory levels across the Tarzana and Santa Monica facilities based on the production schedule and operational needs.

  Continuous Improvement

  • Identify, recommend, and implement process improvements to enhance operational efficiency, productivity, and overall planning effectiveness.

Essential skills and experience 

• Minimum 8+ years of experience, bachelor’s degree with 6+ years of experience in supply chain, operations, or related disciplines. 

• Direct experience in Supply Chain planning, material requirements planning and purchasing, production scheduling for manufacturing - in the pharmaceutical or biotech industry or cell therapy preferred 

• Experience using SAP for material planning, material purchasing and process order management. 

• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Smartsheet required; experience with advanced functions and data analysis. 

Desirable skills and experience 

• Knowledgeable of cGMP manufacturing and regulatory/compliance requirements for cell therapy and pharmaceutical industry 

• Strong knowledge of autologous cell therapy supply chains, including Make-to-Order and Make-to-Stock models, vein-to-vein considerations, and cell therapy capacity planning. 

• General knowledge of chemicals, reagents, and other MRO materials common to the life sciences industry preferred 

• Work closely with the global Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) team to align short-term‑ and long-term product demand with production capacity. 

• Actively seek and implement process improvements to enhance productivity and efficiency.