Today, Lonza is a global leader in life sciences operating across five continents. While we work in science, there’s no magic formula to how we do it. Our greatest scientific solution is talented people working together, devising ideas that help businesses to help people. In exchange, we let our people own their careers. Their ideas, big and small, genuinely improve the world. And that’s the kind of work we want to be part of.
The Vacaville Site Head plays a pivotal role in leading one of Lonza’s largest Biologics manufacturing facilities. This role is responsible for the overall performance, strategic direction, and operational excellence of the Vacaville Site, ensuring alignment with Lonza’s global network, and delivering high-quality products to our customers. The Site Head leads a senior leadership team and oversees a workforce of over 1000 employees.
This leadership position is critical to achieving Lonza’s CDMO strategy and corporate goals. It drives the development of site capabilities, execution of CAPEX projects, integration into the global Lonza network, and implementation of innovative technologies to strengthen Lonza’s position as the partner of choice in biologics manufacturing.
Key Responsibilities
Lead the Vacaville Site to deliver business and growth initiatives safely, compliantly, and with high quality.
Ensure a culture of safety, quality, and continuous improvement across all operations.
Drive integration of the site into Lonza’s global CDMO network, aligning processes, systems, and culture.
Engage with Lonza’s global operations, commercial teams, and customers to ensure strategic alignment and flawless execution.
Coach and develop the Site Leadership Team, fostering a high-performing and collaborative environment.
Represent Lonza to external stakeholders including regulators, customers, and the local community.
Ensure compliance with industry regulations and standards (GMP, FDA, EMA, etc.).
Inspire and engage the broader organization to achieve site objectives and deliver customer value.
Key Requirements
Bachelor’s degree in a science or engineering discipline required; Master’s degree in Science or Business preferred.
Minimum 10 years of site leadership experience in pharmaceutical manufacturing, including aseptic processing and/or biologics.
Strong leadership capabilities with the ability to inspire and develop talent.
Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
Lean Certification or Master Black Belt preferred.
Proven track record of leading large-scale operations through growth and transformation.
Strong background in GMP compliance and regulatory inspections (FDA, EMA, etc.).
Experience working in matrixed, multinational organizations, and multi-site environments.
Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams and drive cultural change.
Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
Hands-on, strategic thinker with the ability to move seamlessly between tactical execution and long-term planning.
Passionate, motivational, and action-oriented leader with a problem-solving mindset.
We recognize that attracting, developing, and retaining the best talent is key to our strategy and success as a company. As a result, we aim for flexibility in structuring competitive compensation offers to ensure that we are able to attract the best candidates. As required by law in this State, the quoted salary range for this position is $273,000-$405,000.
We use broad salary ranges that reflect the competitive market for similar jobs, provide sufficient opportunity for growth as you gain experience and expand responsibilities, while also allowing for differentiation on performance. Based on the breadth of our ranges, most new hires will start at the company between the lower and the middle part of the applicable range. We tailor our offers within the range based on job-related factors, including organizational needs, internal equity, market data, geographic area and the selected candidate’s experience, education, industry knowledge, location, technical and/or communication skills and other factors that may prove relevant during the selection process. This range is only inclusive of base salary, and base pay is just one component of Lonza’s total compensation package for employees. Full-time employees are eligible to receive a performance-related bonus, as well as a comprehensive benefits package including medical and dental coverage, 401k plan, life insurance, short-term and long-term disability insurance, an employee assistance program, paid time off (PTO), and more.
Join us to lead a team that makes a meaningful difference in the world by delivering high-quality biologics efficiently and compliantly.
Every day, Lonza’s products and services have a positive impact on millions of people. For us, this is not only a great privilege, but also a great responsibility. How we achieve our business results is just as important as the achievements themselves. At Lonza, we respect and protect our people and our environment. Any success we achieve is no success at all if not achieved ethically.
People come to Lonza for the challenge and creativity of solving complex problems and developing new ideas in life sciences. In return, we offer the satisfaction that comes with improving lives all around the world. The satisfaction that comes with making a meaningful difference.
Top Skills
What We Do
At Lonza, we enable A Healthier World by supporting our healthcare customers on the path to commercialization. Our community of 16,000 talented employees work across a global network of more than 30 sites to deliver for our customers across the pharma, biotech and nutrition markets.
