At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead a team to revolutionise pharmaceutical technology with AI and cloud solutions.
- Company: Join Sanofi, a global healthcare innovator dedicated to improving lives.
- Benefits: Enjoy competitive pay, health perks, and generous parental leave.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on drug development and patient outcomes.
- Qualifications: 15+ years in tech leadership with expertise in cloud and AI.
- Other info: Hybrid work model with opportunities for global collaboration.
The predicted salary is between 150000 - 210000 £ per year.
Location: Cambridge, MA, Morristown, NJ
About This Role
Sanofi is building the pharmaceutical industry's first AI-powered operating system—and we need a Head of Solutions Engineering (a Technology Principle) to make it happen. You'll lead a specialized team of 5-7 solution engineers while partnering directly with our Agentic AI core team to accelerate cloud transformation, modernize API frameworks, and dramatically improve infrastructure reliability across our global pharmaceutical operations. This isn't a traditional technology role. You'll build and lead a cross-functional team with full hiring authority while maintaining the technical depth to challenge specialists and drive architectural coherence. Your decisions will impact 130K+ users, 21,000 hosts, 4,000 databases, and 5,000 applications supporting life-saving medicine development worldwide.
Reporting Structure: Direct report to Global Head of Digital Technology with dotted line to Enterprise Architecture
We are an innovative global healthcare company with one purpose: to chase the miracles of science to improve people’s lives. We’re also a company where you can flourish and grow your career, with countless opportunities to explore, make connections with people, and stretch the limits of what you thought was possible.
What You'll Lead
- Build Your Technical Dream Team
- Recruit 5-7 specialized solution engineers across Cloud, API/Integration, Database, Network, and Observability
- Establish cross-domain collaboration frameworks that eliminate technical silos
- Drive professional development and career growth for high-performing technical talent
- Lead through influence and technical credibility in a matrix organization
- Partner with Agentic AI core team to design infrastructure supporting intelligent automation
- Architect cloud-native solutions optimized for AI/ML workloads with pharmaceutical compliance
- Establish real-time data pipelines enabling AI-powered drug discovery and manufacturing
- Implement API frameworks supporting agent-to-agent communication and automated decision-making
- Cloud Transformation: Lead hybrid cloud migration with AWS/Azure governance and FinOps
- API Modernization: Design an enterprise API strategy enabling seamless pharmaceutical data flows
- Database Evolution: Modernize data architecture supporting AI/ML analytics and regulatory compliance
- Observability & SRE: Implement monitoring platforms targeting 50% incident reduction, 70% MTTR improvement
- Network Security: Deploy a zero-trust architecture across global pharmaceutical operations
- Co-develop enterprise standards with Enterprise Architecture, balancing innovation and compliance
- Guide technology evaluation and vendor strategies for pharmaceutical-scale implementations
- Establish architectural decision frameworks, ensuring consistency across global operations
- Integrate GxP, SOX, and pharmaceutical regulatory requirements into all technology practices
What You Bring
Required Experience
- 15+ years enterprise technology leadership including 5+ years leading technical teams with hiring authority
- Deep expertise across 3+ domains: Cloud Architecture, API/Integration, Database, Network, and Observability
- Large-scale transformation leadership in organizations with 10,000+ users
- Regulated industry experience with GxP, SOX, HIPAA, or equivalent compliance frameworks
- AI/ML infrastructure experience, including data pipelines and cloud-native ML platforms
- Multi-platform integration and strategic technology planning at enterprise scale
Travel: 30% domestic and international travel required for global team collaboration and stakeholder engagement
Language: Fluid in English
Highly Valued Experience
- Agentic AI or intelligent automation platform implementation
- Multi-cloud expertise (AWS/Azure) with FinOps and governance
- Site Reliability Engineering with observability platform implementation
- Global technology operations across distributed teams and regulatory environments
Essential Leadership Capabilities
- Cross-Domain Technical Leadership: Guide specialists while maintaining architectural coherence
- AI-Technology Translation: Bridge AI/ML requirements with foundational technology capabilities
- Pharmaceutical Business Acumen: Understand how technology impacts drug development and patient outcomes
- Strategic Communication: Translate complex technical concepts for C-level executives
- Innovation-Compliance Balance: Drive cutting-edge adoption while maintaining regulatory adherence
Education & Credentials
Required
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, IT, Engineering, Systems Analysis, or related field;
Preferred
- Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering Management, or MBA with a technology/healthcare focus
- Cloud certifications: AWS Solutions Architect Professional, Azure Solutions Architect Expert
- Enterprise Architecture: TOGAF, Zachman Framework
- Additional certifications: DevOps, Automation (Terraform, Kubernetes), Networking, Security, AI/ML platforms
Why Choose Us?
Bring the miracles of science to life alongside a supportive, future-focused team. Discover endless opportunities to grow your talent and drive your career, whether it’s through a promotion or lateral move, at home or internationally. Enjoy a thoughtful, well-crafted rewards package that recognizes your contribution and amplifies your impact. Take good care of yourself and your family, with a wide range of health and wellbeing benefits including high-quality healthcare, prevention and wellness programs and at least 14 weeks’ gender-neutral parental leave.
Sanofi Inc. and its U.S. affiliates are Equal Opportunity employers committed to a culturally inclusive workforce. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race; color; creed; religion; national origin; age; ancestry; nationality; marital, domestic partnership or civil union status; sex, gender, gender identity or expression; affectional or sexual orientation; disability; veteran or military status or liability for military status; domestic violence victim status; atypical cellular or blood trait; genetic information (including the refusal to submit to genetic testing) or any other characteristic protected by law.
Head of Solutions Engineering in Cambridge employer: Sanofi
Contact Detail:
Sanofi Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Solutions Engineering in Cambridge
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to your connections in the industry, attend relevant meetups, and engage with professionals on LinkedIn. The more people you know, the better your chances of landing that dream job.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for interviews by researching the company and its culture. Understand their products and services, especially how they relate to AI and cloud technology. This will help you tailor your responses and show you're genuinely interested.
✨Tip Number 3
Showcase your leadership skills! Be ready to discuss your experience in building and leading teams, especially in tech environments. Highlight specific examples where you've driven innovation or improved processes.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets noticed. Plus, we love seeing candidates who take the initiative to connect directly with us.
We think you need these skills to ace Head of Solutions Engineering in Cambridge
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your Application: Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter for the Head of Solutions Engineering role. Highlight your experience in leading technical teams and your expertise in cloud architecture, API integration, and database management. We want to see how your skills align with our mission!
Showcase Your Leadership Skills: This role is all about leading a team and driving innovation. Use your application to demonstrate your leadership capabilities, especially in cross-domain collaboration and strategic technology governance. Share specific examples of how you've successfully led teams in the past.
Be Clear and Concise: When writing your application, clarity is key! Avoid jargon and keep your language straightforward. We appreciate a well-structured application that clearly outlines your qualifications and experiences relevant to the role.
Apply Through Our Website: We encourage you to submit your application through our website. It’s the best way to ensure it gets into the right hands. Plus, you’ll find all the details about the role and our company culture there!
How to prepare for a job interview at Sanofi
✨Know Your Tech Inside Out
As a Head of Solutions Engineering, you'll need to demonstrate deep expertise across multiple domains like Cloud Architecture and API/Integration. Brush up on the latest trends and technologies in these areas, and be ready to discuss how you've applied them in past roles.
✨Showcase Your Leadership Style
This role requires leading a cross-functional team, so be prepared to share your leadership philosophy. Think about examples where you've successfully built and developed teams, and how you foster collaboration across different technical domains.
✨Prepare for Strategic Conversations
You'll need to translate complex technical concepts for C-level executives. Practice explaining your past projects and decisions in a way that highlights their business impact, especially in terms of drug development and patient outcomes.
✨Understand Compliance and Innovation Balance
With a focus on AI-powered pharmaceutical innovation, be ready to discuss how you can drive cutting-edge technology while ensuring compliance with regulations like GxP and SOX. Prepare examples of how you've navigated this balance in previous roles.