Regional IT Director

The Regional IT Director – EMEA is a senior enterprise technology leader accountable for regional IT strategy, business enablement, portfolio governance, risk, and predictable value delivery across a complex, regulated, multi-country environment. The role operates as a peer to senior business leaders and Global BTS executives. In addition, this role serves as IT Hub Lead for Cherrywood, Ireland, a strategic Abbott technology hub, with accountability for hub maturity, talent, leadership capability, culture, and enterprise alignment. Enterprise & Business Leadership - Serves as the senior IT executive for the EMEA region with end-to-end accountability for IT outcomes. - Acts as a trusted advisor and strategic partner to regional and functional leadership. - Represents EMEA IT in enterprise governance, investment, and prioritization forums. - Provides decisive leadership during transformation, integration, and change initiatives. IT Strategy, Portfolio & Investment Governance - Defines and executes the EMEA IT strategy aligned with enterprise architecture and Global BTS roadmaps. - Owns regional demand, portfolio prioritization, and investment governance. - Drives application rationalization, landscape simplification, and technical debt reduction. - Ensures transparency, value realization, and disciplined execution of IT investments. Business Relationship Management & Value Delivery - Owns the IT business portfolio for Finance Shared Services and supported divisions. - Challenges and shapes demand using financial, operational, and risk-based insight. - Ensures business cases, roadmaps, and outcomes deliver measurable value. - Maintains senior executive relationships and technology credibility. Transformation & Delivery Oversight - Accountable for end-to-end outcomes across Plan, Build, and Run. - Sponsors complex, cross-functional transformation programs. - Ensures effective change management, adoption, and business readiness. - Enables Finance Shared Services process excellence (R2R, O2C, S2P, MDM). Quality, Compliance, Security & Risk - Executive owner of IT quality, compliance, audit, and risk posture for EMEA. - Ensures adherence to Abbott policies, global quality systems, and regulatory requirements. - Owns cyber risk governance, privacy, and data protection obligations (e.g., GDPR). - Leads audit engagement, remediation commitments, and continuous risk mitigation. Financial & Operational Accountability - Owns regional IT financial planning, budget, and cost discipline. - Ensures operational stability, service resilience, and continuity. - Oversees internal audits, performance reviews, and operational maturity. People & Organization Leadership - Leads a high-performing regional IT leadership team. - Builds succession, leadership capability, and executive readiness. - Embeds a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement. - Acts as people leader for regional and affiliate IT talent. IT Hub Leadership – Cherrywood, Ireland - Provides executive site leadership for the Cherrywood IT Hub. - Owns hub talent strategy, leadership development, and capability growth. - Champions Abbott culture, engagement, and modern ways of working. - Represents IT in site leadership and external ecosystem engagements. - Ensures hub scalability, operational excellence, and onboarding of new enterprise capabilities. Governance & Decision Rights - Chair, EMEA Regional IT Council. - Executive member, Business Advisory Committees (BAC). - Primary regional interface to Global BTS, IT Quality, Security, Finance, and Legal. Success Indicators - Successor to the Senior Director, International Operations role. - IT recognized as a strategic, trusted business partner. - Predictable delivery and value realization from IT investments. - Strong quality, compliance, and audit outcomes. - Mature demand and portfolio governance. - Engaged, high-performing IT organization. Education & Experience - Bachelor’s degree in IT, Engineering, or Business; MBA preferred. - 20+ years of progressive IT leadership experience, including regional or global scope. - Experience in regulated industries; healthcare or life sciences preferred. - Fluent English; additional European languages beneficial.