Job Description
General Summary:
We are seeking a strategic, influential, and Data/Technology/AI-savvy Senior Director, HR Business Partner to partner directly with the Chief Digital & Information Officer (CDIO) and lead the people agenda for Vertex’s Data, Technology & AI organization. This role ensures the operating model, leadership capability, and enterprise talent strategy
are in place to execute the Data/Tech/AI roadmap as AI transforms how work is delivered.
• This is a senior individual contributor role that leads through influence and serves as the primary people strategist for the Data/Tech/AI function. The role owns talent strategy and organizational effectiveness across the enterprise, driving transformation through change leadership, organizational design, and strategic workforce planning.
• In close collaboration with Data/Tech/AI leadership, this HR Business Partner identifies and delivers strategic and operational people solutions across workforce planning, talent development, performance management, organizational effectiveness, and HR programs and policies.
• The ideal candidate is a modern, business-focused thought leader who thrives in a fast-paced, complex environment and brings both strategic perspective and a hands-on mindset. This role requires strong business acumen, industry insight, and the ability to build trust and credibility with leaders at all levels.
Knowledge and Skills:
Strategic HR Partner: Serve as the primary HR partner to the CDIO and Data/Tech/AI leadership team, translating business, technology, and AI strategy into a prioritized, integrated people and organizational agenda, and influencing executive decisions through clear options, tradeoffs, and data-backed recommendations tied to delivery outcomes. Ensure disciplined execution of the annual people operating cadence through leaders (goal setting, performance and talent reviews), with an emphasis on quality, fairness, and business relevance.
Transformation Leadership: In partnership with the CDIO, lead change to embed and mature the Data/Tech/AI operating model across the enterprise by maintaining a durable case for change, activating sponsors and stakeholders, enabling leaders, and using adoption measures to sustain new decision rights, governance, and ways of working.
Organizational Architect: Act as the chief architect for Data/Tech/AI organizational design and effectiveness, leading the evolution of structure, role clarity, spans and layers, leadership interfaces, and operating mechanisms that reduce friction, improve delivery velocity, and strengthen accountability in a rapidly changing environment.
Talent Strategist: Own the talent strategy for Data/Tech/AI capability and job families enterprise-wide maintaining the role architecture, skills expectations, selection standards, development pathways, and succession depth so critical capabilities scale consistently across Vertex.
Strategic Workforce Planning: Drive strategies to attract, develop, and retain high-quality technical and leadership talent, proactively closing capability gaps through targeted build/buy/borrow approaches, internal mobility and upskilling/reskilling pathways as roles evolve with AI, and location strategies that expand access to scarce talent while balancing cost, speed, and business needs, supported by focused retention actions for critical roles.
Executive Coach and Developer: Elevate leadership and team performance by coaching the senior leaders, designing and facilitating a structured leadership team journeys that strengthens cohesion, decision quality, prioritization, and accountability, and leading rigorous talent reviews and succession planning that build continuity and deepen pipelines for critical roles.
Culture Champion: Champion a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning where people thrive while sustaining delivery demands, strengthening employee feedback loops, improving organizational health, and reinforcing sustainable performance norms in a fast-moving environment.
AI and Analytics Enabled HR Leader: Generate strategic talent intelligence from data and analytics to shape strategy and action plans, define measures that track the impact and effectiveness of talent interventions over time, and leverage AI to accelerate execution, automate workflows, improve throughput, and raise the quality of outcomes.
Education and Experience:
Experience partnering with Data, Technology, Engineering, Product, AI/Analytics, Cybersecurity, or other highly technical organizations in complex, fast-moving environments.
• Strong understanding of Data/Technology/AI operating models and the organizational implications of AI-driven transformation, evolving skills, and changing delivery models.
• Demonstrated ability to leverage data, analytics, and AI to identify trends, inform decisions, drive accountability, and improve outcomes.
• Proven experience applying AI within HRBP workflows to enhance decision support, streamline processes, and improve productivity and quality of work.
• Advanced expertise in organizational effectiveness, change leadership, culture shaping, and organization design.
• Deep experience in strategic workforce planning, including capability development, succession planning, and long-term talent strategies.
• Track record of developing and implementing forward-thinking, enterprise-level HR strategies with broad organizational impact.
• Bachelor’s degree required; 12+ years of progressive HR experience (or equivalent), including significant partnership with senior leaders in complex, technology-enabled organizations.
Personal Attributes:
Recognized strategic HR business partner with a proven ability to influence senior executives, shape function-wide priorities, and connect people decisions to measurable business outcomes (delivery, quality, risk, operational effectiveness).
• Strategic and execution-oriented leader who moves effectively from vision to implementation, driving adoption through disciplined program and project management.
• Strong business acumen with the ability to translate organizational and talent decisions into impact on speed, quality, risk management, and results.
• Highly effective communicator and influencer, providing clear, pragmatic guidance and coaching leaders through ambiguity and transformation.
• Demonstrates leadership presence and credibility to partner collaboratively with executives, HR peers, and employees at all levels.
• Agile, forward-thinking, and quick to synthesize complex, rapidly changing information into sound decisions and actions.
• Collaborative, high-energy leader who operates with confidence and humility, adapts across leadership styles, and works effectively in team-based environments.
• Brings grit, resilience, sound judgment, integrity, curiosity, and emotional intelligence, aligned with Vertex’s mindset of continuous improvement, innovation, and change.
Pay Range:
$227,200 - $340,800Disclosure Statement:
The range provided is based on what we believe is a reasonable estimate for the base salary pay range for this job at the time of posting. This role is eligible for an annual bonus and annual equity awards. Some roles may also be eligible for overtime pay, in accordance with federal and state requirements. Actual base salary pay will be based on a number of factors, including skills, competencies, experience, and other job-related factors permitted by law.
At Vertex, our Total Rewards offerings also include inclusive market-leading benefits to meet our employees wherever they are in their career, financial, family and wellbeing journey while providing flexibility and resources to support their growth and aspirations. From medical, dental and vision benefits to generous paid time off (including a week-long company shutdown in the Summer and the Winter), educational assistance programs including student loan repayment, a generous commuting subsidy, matching charitable donations, 401(k) and so much more.
Flex Designation:
Hybrid-Eligible Or On-Site EligibleFlex Eligibility Status:
In this Hybrid-Eligible role, you can choose to be designated as:
1. Hybrid: work remotely up to two days per week; or select
2. On-Site: work five days per week on-site with ad hoc flexibility.
Note: The Flex status for this position is subject to Vertex’s Policy on Flex @ Vertex Program and may be changed at any time.
#LI-Hybrid
Company Information
Vertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation.
Vertex is committed to equal employment opportunity and non-discrimination for all employees and qualified applicants without regard to a person's race, color, sex, gender identity or expression, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, marital status, or any characteristic protected under applicable law. Vertex is an E-Verify Employer in the United States. Vertex will make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with known disabilities, in accordance with applicable law.
Any applicant requiring an accommodation in connection with the hiring process and/or to perform the essential functions of the position for which the applicant has applied should make a request to the recruiter or hiring manager, or contact Talent Acquisition at [email protected]
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree
- 12+ years of progressive HR experience (or equivalent), including significant partnership with senior leaders in complex, technology-enabled organizations
- Experience partnering with Data, Technology, Engineering, Product, AI/Analytics, or Cybersecurity organizations
- Strong understanding of Data/Technology/AI operating models and organizational implications of AI-driven transformation
- Demonstrated ability to leverage data, analytics, and AI to inform HR strategy and measure outcomes
- Proven experience applying AI within HRBP workflows to enhance decision support and streamline processes
- Advanced expertise in organizational effectiveness, change leadership, culture shaping, and organization design
- Deep experience in strategic workforce planning, capability development, succession planning, and enterprise talent strategies
- Track record of developing and implementing enterprise-level HR strategies with broad organizational impact
- Strong business acumen and ability to influence senior executives and lead through influence
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Vertex Pharmaceuticals and has not been reviewed or approved by Vertex Pharmaceuticals.
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Parental & Family Support — Policies provide 12 weeks of 100% paid bonding leave for all U.S. parents with additional fully paid time for birth parents. Family-forming supports include adoption and surrogacy assistance, fertility options like IVF and egg cryopreservation, breast‑milk shipping, subsidized childcare, backup care, and a DCFSA match.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time off includes roughly four weeks of vacation, 13 holidays, sick time, and two companywide shutdowns (summer and year‑end). Some roles also include flexible or unlimited time off and paid volunteer time.
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Retirement Support — Programs include a 401(k) plan with employer contributions and an employee stock purchase plan. Filings describe employer contributions occurring in company stock, supporting long‑term ownership.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Insights
What We Do
Vertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation to create transformative medicines for people with serious and life-threatening diseases. We discovered and developed the first medicines to treat the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis (CF), a rare, life-threatening genetic disease. In addition to clinical development programs in CF, Vertex has more than a dozen ongoing research programs focused on the underlying mechanisms of other serious diseases. Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, our corporate headquarters is now located in Boston’s Innovation District, and our international headquarters is in London, United Kingdom. We currently employ approximately 3,500 people in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia and Latin America with nearly two-thirds of our staff dedicated to research and development. Vertex is consistently recognized as one of the industry’s top places to work by Science Magazine, The Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal and the San Diego Business Journal. Our research and medicines have also received esteemed recognitions, including the Robert J. Beall Therapeutics Development Award, the French Prix Galien and the British Pharmacological Society awards.
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