Position Purpose

The Business Human Resources Director, China R&D, serves as the strategic BHR leader for AbbVie’s China Research & Development organization and plays a critical role in advancing AbbVie’s China one R&D strategy and External Innovation (CEI) strategy.

This role partners closely with China and global R&D leaders to build the organizational, leadership and talent capabilities required to strengthen AbbVie’s R&D capabilities in China and better leverage China’s biopharmaceutical research and development ecosystem for the benefit of AbbVie.

The role is accountable for enabling the continued expansion of AbbVie’s R&D organization in China, developing world-class scientific and leadership talent, and strengthening China’s contribution to AbbVie’s global R&D pipeline and long-term innovation agenda.

Key Responsibilities

1. Advance the China External Innovation Strategy

• Partner with China and global R&D leaders to translate CEI priorities into an integrated people, organization and leadership strategy.
• Build the organizational capacity and capabilities required to strengthen AbbVie’s R&D presence and support continued expansion in China.
• Enable AbbVie to better leverage China’s biopharmaceutical research, scientific talent and innovation ecosystem in support of global R&D priorities.

2. Strategic Business Partnership

• Serve as a trusted advisor to China R&D leaders on business strategy, organization, leadership, talent and workforce matters.
• Partner with leaders to convert business priorities into clear people and organization plans, with defined outcomes and accountabilities.
• Influence strategic decisions through business understanding, data, external insights and organizational judgment.
• Anticipate people and organizational opportunities and risks associated with growth, transformation and evolving R&D priorities.
• Coach and challenge leaders constructively to strengthen decision quality, leadership impact and enterprise outcomes.

3. Organization Growth, Design & Effectiveness

• Lead strategic workforce planning and organization design to support the growth and evolution of the China R&D organization.
• Design structures, governance, operating models and ways of working that enable speed, accountability, innovation and effective global collaboration.
• Assess organizational capacity and future capability requirements, identify gaps and develop practical plans to address them.
• Lead the people and organization dimensions of transformation, integration and major change initiatives.
• Strengthen leadership team effectiveness and cross-functional collaboration across R&D, Commercial, Medical, Regulatory and other relevant functions.

4. Talent, Leadership & Succession

• Lead talent review, succession planning and leadership planning for the China R&D organization in line with global frameworks and business needs.
• Build strong internal and external pipelines for critical scientific, technical and leadership roles.
• Identify and accelerate high-potential talent and successors, with differentiated development and retention actions.
• Strengthen leadership capability and enterprise mindset, enabling leaders to operate effectively across functions, markets and geographies.
• Facilitate career development, internal mobility and global development opportunities for China R&D talent.

5. Talent Acquisition & Workforce Deployment

• Partner with Talent Acquisition and business leaders to develop proactive sourcing and hiring strategies for critical and hard-to-fill capabilities.
• Ensure talent acquisition, onboarding and workforce deployment keep pace with organizational expansion while maintaining quality and culture.
• Strengthen AbbVie’s employer proposition and reputation among scientific, technical and innovation talent in China.

6. Performance, Rewards, Engagement & Retention

• Lead annual performance, talent and compensation processes, ensuring rigor, fairness, differentiation and alignment with business priorities.
• Partner with Total Rewards to develop competitive and sustainable approaches for critical and scarce talent segments.
• Use engagement, retention and workforce data to identify organizational priorities and drive meaningful actions.
• Advise leaders on recognition, career growth, retention and employee experience during periods of growth and change.

7. Culture, Change & Enterprise Leadership

• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, inclusion, accountability, learning and high performance.
• Lead change management and stakeholder engagement for significant organization and workforce initiatives.
• Champion AbbVie’s leadership expectations and strengthen enterprise thinking beyond functional or geographic boundaries.
• Create an environment where diverse perspectives, scientific challenge and external collaboration can thrive.
• Help the organization scale without diluting AbbVie’s culture, leadership standards or ethical expectations.

8. Employee Relations, Compliance & Governance

• Provide leadership and sound judgment on complex employee relations and organizational matters.
• Ensure people decisions and HR practices comply with applicable employment laws, company policies and governance requirements.
• Promote consistent, ethical and transparent people practices across the organization.