About the role

Job Description Summary

Job Title: Head of Data Engineering & Factory
#LI-Hybrid
Location: Basel, Switzerland
Relocation Support: This role is based in Basel, Switzerland. Novartis is unable to offer relocation support: please only apply if accessible.

Ready to shape how data powers scientific breakthroughs? As Head of Data Engineering & Factory, you will lead the vision and evolution of a cutting-edge Data Product Factory—transforming how scalable, artificial intelligence-ready data products are built, delivered, and consumed across Biomedical Research. This is a high-impact leadership role where you will combine deep technical expertise with strategic thinking to industrialize data engineering, accelerate innovation through automation and artificial intelligence, and enable a truly data-centric organization. You will work at the forefront of modern engineering practices, driving measurable outcomes while empowering teams to build reliable, high-quality data products at scale.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities

Define and execute the vision, roadmap, and operating model for the Data Product Factory
Lead industrialization of scalable, production-grade data product engineering across Biomedical Research domains
Drive adoption of standardized engineering patterns, reusable blueprints, and contract-first design principles
Ensure all data products are artificial intelligence-ready with standardized interfaces, metadata, and controlled access mechanisms
Lead modernization of engineering practices using automation-first and artificial intelligence-native approaches
Oversee end-to-end lifecycle of data products including build, certification, deployment, and deprecation
Establish and scale continuous integration, continuous deployment, and development and operations capabilities across platforms
Embed governance, security, lineage, and policy-as-code into engineering workflows by design
Build and lead high-performing engineering teams, driving technical excellence and organizational capability growth
Partner with domain and platform leaders to align business priorities with engineering delivery outcomes

Essential Requirements

Over 10 years of experience in software engineering, platform architecture, or enterprise data infrastructure
Proven track record building and scaling enterprise data platforms or productized data systems
Strong experience leading engineering teams within complex, matrixed organizational environments
Deep expertise in continuous integration, continuous deployment, and automated testing practices in production environments
Demonstrated experience embedding governance, access control, lineage, and compliance within engineering workflows
Experience enabling artificial intelligence use cases through well-designed data products, interfaces, and metadata frameworks
Strong ability to apply automation and artificial intelligence to improve engineering productivity and operational efficiency
Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills with proven experience influencing senior leadership

Desirable Requirements

Experience designing agent-compatible interfaces, metadata frameworks, and retrieval-augmented data access patterns
Proven success mentoring multidisciplinary engineering teams across platform, data, quality, and artificial intelligence domains

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams representative of the patients and communities we serve.

Accessibility and Accommodation

Novartis is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to all individuals. If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the recruitment process, or to receive more detailed information about the essential functions of a position, please email inclusion.switzerland@novartis.com and share the nature of your request along with your contact information. Please include the job requisition number in your message.

Skills Desired

Clinical Trials, Data Architecture Development, Data Governance, Data Integration, Data Management, Data Products, Data Quality, Data Science, Data Strategy, Drug Development, Global Project Management, Operations, People Management

Skills & Tags

data

Aplyr's read

Novartis is a Swiss-based global healthcare leader, known for its focus on innovative medicines and commitment to addressing patient needs through diverse roles.
Synthesized from recent postings & public sources

What's promising

•Novartis invests heavily in research and development, driving innovation in pharmaceuticals.
•The company offers a wide range of global career opportunities across various fields.
•Strong focus on cutting-edge therapies, including gene therapy and AI-driven solutions.

What to watch

•Regulatory challenges can impact the speed of drug approval and market entry.
•High competition in the pharmaceutical industry requires constant innovation to maintain market position.
•Complex organizational structure may slow decision-making processes.

Why Novartis

•Novartis has a robust pipeline of innovative medicines, setting it apart in the healthcare sector.
•The company emphasizes a diverse and inclusive workplace culture across its global operations.
•Novartis is a leader in digital transformation within pharmaceuticals, integrating AI and data science.

Aplyr’s read is generated by AI from public sources. Was it useful?

About Novartis

Novartis

novartis.com

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Novartis is a global healthcare company based in Switzerland that provides solutions to address the evolving needs of patients worldwide. It focuses on innovative medicines, generics, and eye care.