GlaxoSmithKline LLC Posted July 15, 2026

Senior SME - Drug Product (Small Molecule)

Zebulon, United States Full time
Manufacturing & CMC Senior

GlaxoSmithKline LLC is the source of truth for this posting and owns the application process. We surface normalized context and market comparison you won't find on the original listing.

About this opportunity

Position Summary

You will be the senior subject matter expert for drug product small molecule supply with external manufacturing partners. You will lead technical transfers, ensure product and process robustness, and support regulatory readiness across the product lifecycle. You will work closely with cross-functional teams including MSAT, Quality, R&D, Procurement and external CMOs. We value clear problem solving, practical scientific judgement, and collaborative leadership. This role offers growth, meaningful impact and the chance to help GSK unite science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together.

This role will provide YOU the opportunity to lead key activities to progress YOUR career. These responsibilities include some of the following:

Act as the single technical point of contact for small molecule drug product activities with external manufacturers.

Lead and deliver technology transfers to contract manufacturing organizations, including transfer packages, training and readiness reviews.

Define and maintain product control strategies, technical risk assessments, and acceptance criteria to support right-first-time product qualifications.

Manage process validation, continued process verification and change management to maintain product robustness and compliance.

Lead cross-functional investigations, root cause analysis, and corrective actions for complex deviations and quality events.

Provide technical input for regulatory filings, inspection readiness, and post-approval activities as required.

Why You?

Basic Qualification

We are seeking professionals with the following required skills and qualifications to help us achieve our goals

Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Science, or related technical field.

Minimum 8 years’ experience in pharmaceutical drug product development, manufacturing, MSAT, or technical support roles.

Demonstrated experience with technology transfer to external CMOs and supplier management.

Practical knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and regulatory expectations for drug product manufacture.

Experience in process validation, continued process verification, and application of risk assessment tools

Preferred Qualification

If you have the following characteristics, it would be a plus

Strong written and verbal communication skills and proven ability to work effectively with multi-disciplinary teams.

Flexibility to support and collaborate with international teams across varying time zones.

Advanced degree (MSc, PhD) in a relevant scientific or engineering discipline.

Hands-on experience with oral solid dose drug product manufacturing, scale-up, or qualification activities.

Experience with Quality by Design, statistical process control, and lifecycle management tools.

Track record of leading complex technical investigations and implementing sustainable corrective actions.

Experience supporting regulatory filings and inspections with external manufacturing partners.

Proven ability to lead improvement projects that deliver measurable technical or operational value.

Work Arrangement

This role is hybrid. You will be expected to visit external manufacturing sites and internal manufacturing sites as required.

Fully remote or permanent home-working arrangements are not available.

What success looks like

Smooth, timely technology transfers to external partners with clear acceptance criteria met.

Robust product control strategies that maintain product quality through scale-up and commercial supply.

Timely resolution of technical issues with clear root cause analysis and sustainable preventive actions.

Strong collaborative relationships with internal teams and external manufacturers built on trust and clarity.

We welcome applications from people with a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. If this role aligns with your skills and career goals, please apply. Tell us how your experience would help the team and what you hope to achieve at GSK. We look forward to hearing from you.

#LI-GSK

Skills

CMC Strategy, Data-Driven Decision Making, Data Integrity, Debate Moderation, Digital Fluency, GxP Regulations, Lean Management, Problem Solving, Process Optimization, Project Leadership, Risk Awareness, Scientific Writing, Technology Transfer

Please visit  GSK US Benefits Summary to learn more about the comprehensive benefits program GSK offers US employees.

Why GSK?

Uniting science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together.

GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together. We aim to positively impact the health of 2.5 billion people by the end of the decade, as a successful, growing company where people can thrive. We get ahead of disease by preventing and treating it with innovation in specialty medicines and vaccines. We focus on four therapeutic areas: respiratory, immunology and inflammation; oncology; HIV; and infectious diseases – to impact health at scale.

People and patients around the world count on the medicines and vaccines we make, so we’re committed to creating an environment where our people can thrive and focus on what matters most. Our culture of being ambitious for patients, accountable for impact and doing the right thing is the foundation for how, together, we deliver for patients, shareholders and our people.

If you require an accommodation or other assistance to apply for a job at GSK, please contact the appropriate Recruitment Staff by emailing us at -  [email protected]

GSK is an Equal Opportunity Employer. This ensures that all qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity, and sexual orientation), parental status, national origin, age, disability, genetic information (including family medical history), military service or any basis prohibited under federal, state or local law.

Important notice to Employment businesses/ Agencies

GSK does not accept referrals from employment businesses and/or employment agencies in respect of the vacancies posted on this site. All employment businesses/agencies are required to contact GSK's commercial and general procurement/human resources department to obtain prior written authorization before referring any candidates to GSK. The obtaining of prior written authorization is a condition precedent to any agreement (verbal or written) between the employment business/ agency and GSK. In the absence of such written authorization being obtained any actions undertaken by the employment business/agency shall be deemed to have been performed without the consent or contractual agreement of GSK. GSK shall therefore not be liable for any fees arising from such actions or any fees arising from any referrals by employment businesses/agencies in respect of the vacancies posted on this site.

Please note that if you are a US Licensed Healthcare Professional or Healthcare Professional as defined by the laws of the state issuing your license, GSK may be required to capture and report expenses GSK incurs, on your behalf, in the event you are afforded an interview for employment. This capture of applicable transfers of value is necessary to ensure GSK’s compliance to all federal and state US Transparency requirements. For more information, please visit the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) website at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/

Job details

Seniority
Senior
Function
Manufacturing & CMC
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
Zebulon, United States
Employment type
Full time

How this role compares

Computed from every other active Manufacturing & CMC role in our database, not just this employer's listings.

We currently track 373 comparable Senior Manufacturing & CMC roles across 53 biopharma companies.

373Comparable roles tracked
344Currently active
53Companies hiring similar roles
20Countries represented

Salary context

175 of 373 peers report a salary range (USD, annualized)

Peers share this role's job function and a matching or adjacent seniority level -- not necessarily the same therapeutic area or country.

This roleSubject Not listed on this posting
Lowest disclosed · Senior Scientist II – CMC Developmental Sciences · AbbVie $0/hr – $0/hr (≈ $0–$0/yr)
Peer group range $0 – $222,900 (median $142,325)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 373 comparable roles

United States267
India37
Ireland10
Singapore10
Netherlands7
Switzerland6

+ 14 more countries

Seniority mix

373 of 373 peers have a known seniority level

Senior250
Principal79
Associate Director44

Therapeutic area mix

0 of 373 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

No peers with a known therapeutic area yet.

Similar opportunities

The closest matches from our peer group, ranked by how similar they are, not how well you'd qualify for them -- treat this as market context, not a guaranteed shortlist; a weak match is labeled as one below.

60%similar
Lilly San Diego, California, United States of America Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Merck Rahway, New Jersey, United States of America Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Seagen Inc Washington – Bothell, United States Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Pfizer Groton, United States Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
AbbVie North Chicago, IL Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
AbbVie North Chicago, IL Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country

How we calculate "similar"

No black box, no LLM guesswork: a deterministic score built from four normalized attributes. Here's this role's own peer group at different match levels, so you can see the mechanism, not just the result.

Every comparison starts from the same 100-point budget: 25 for working in the same function, 40 for the same therapeutic area, 20 for the same or adjacent seniority, 15 for the same country. A dimension we can't confirm on both sides contributes nothing, never a guess, never a free pass.

60%
Sr. Scientist - Lab Automation Scientist
Lilly · San Diego, California, United States of America · Senior
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Senior Scientist, Process Development
Pfizer · Groton, United States · Senior
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Senior Scientist, Biologics Purification II
AbbVie · North Chicago, IL · Senior
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Senior Electrical Engineer, Combination Product Development
AbbVie · North Chicago, IL · Senior
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
Unmatched or unknown dimensions score exactly the same: 0 points, never a partial guess. A role we know almost nothing about beyond its function bottoms out at 25%; it never inflates to 100% just because there's little to compare against. Seniority uses a defined ladder (Associate → Manager → Associate Director → Senior → Principal → Director → Senior Director → Executive/VP) so "Director" and "Senior Director" count as adjacent, but "Director" and "Executive/VP" do not.