Senior Manager, Make/Buy Strategy & Execution

Thermo Fisher Scientific is a leader in the healthcare industry, and they are seeking a Senior Manager, Make/Buy Strategy & Execution to drive global manufacturing and sourcing decisions. This role involves developing and managing the company's Make/Buy strategy, ensuring strategic decisions are backed by thorough financial and operational analysis while leading cross-functional teams to implement initiatives.

Responsibilities:

• Design, document, and deploy a standardized Make/Buy decision-making framework across divisions and product lines
• Establish and manage governance processes to ensure consistency, transparency, and alignment with corporate operations, supply chain, and technology strategies
• Continuously refine methodologies and tools based on lessons learned and evolving business needs
• Deeply understand plant and site-level P&Ls; deconstruct and rebuild financial statements that may have evolved through inconsistent reporting practices
• Reclassify and rationalize cost elements (e.g., shifting overheads to direct costs) to produce clear, accurate, and comparable financial views across sites
• Defend financial restatements and cost reallocations with site finance teams, ensuring alignment and credibility
• Connect operational decisions—capacity, headcount, sourcing, productivity—to financial outcomes and site profitability
• Develop and apply advanced financial models to identify and prioritize Make/Buy opportunities across sites, technologies, and product portfolios
• Assess total cost of ownership (TCO), capacity, capability, capital investment, risk, quality, and IP implications
• Build robust, defendable business cases—including NPV, ROI, and payback analyses—to support strategic recommendations
• Lead cross-functional project teams involving Divisional Operations, Finance, Supply Chain, R&D, Procurement, and Quality
• Partner closely with the Sr. Manager, Operations on strategy development, workshops, and executive presentations
• Translate analytical findings into clear, actionable recommendations for senior leadership decision-making
• Ensure consistent communication, documentation, and alignment across central and divisional stakeholders
• Oversee and support the implementation of approved Make/Buy initiatives across divisions and sites
• Align divisional execution with central governance and strategic objectives
• Define and track KPIs to measure the impact and value realization of Make/Buy decisions
• Conduct post-implementation reviews to capture lessons learned and refine the overall Make/Buy process
• Build trusted relationships with senior leaders in Operations, Finance, Supply Chain, R&D, and Procurement
• Serve as the subject matter expert and central point of contact for Make/Buy financial and operational insights
• Communicate strategy, progress, and outcomes in clear, concise, and compelling formats to diverse audiences
• Influence decision-making in a matrixed, global environment without direct authority

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a related field (MBA or advanced degree strongly preferred)
• At least 8 years of relevant experience in operations strategy, manufacturing finance, strategic sourcing, or supply chain management, with proven experience leading Make/Buy or network optimization initiatives
• Hands-on experience with P&L ownership, cost accounting, and financial modeling within a manufacturing or operations context
• Demonstrated success leading complex, cross-functional projects in large, matrixed, global organizations
• Expert understanding of site-level P&L structures, cost drivers, and allocation methodologies
• Strong analytical and financial modeling skills; able to distill messy data into clear, actionable insight
• Excellent communicator—able to defend analysis with confidence and influence at multiple organizational levels
• Deep understanding of manufacturing processes, sourcing strategies, and supply chain cost structures
• Proven ability to connect operational decisions to financial implications and strategic outcomes
• Strong project management skills and proficiency with standard tools
• Adaptable, self-directed, and comfortable navigating ambiguity in a dynamic environment
• Familiarity with Lean, Six Sigma, or other continuous improvement methodologies