Job Description
The Senior Business Analyst – Automation, Analytics & AI (Sr. BA - AA & AI) operates at the country level within GCTO RRO to identify, design, and deliver technology-enabled solutions that improve clinical trial operations efficiency, quality, and compliance. The role leads the intake, assessment, and delivery of local automation, analytics, and AI initiatives, creates compelling business cases, builds or oversees development of country tools, and scales fit-for-purpose solutions to other countries or the Region when applicable.
The Sr. BA – AA & AI reports to the Clinical Research Director (CRD) and partners closely with country, regional and headquarters roles and teams, such as: Regions Operational Excellence (ROE), regional/country stakeholders, Automation/Analytics/AI partners and, as needed, IT. As needed, the Sr. BA – AA & AI may also support initiatives driven by Regional Operations teams, such as GSA, GTO, GSBP and EDM. The role ensures adherence to ICH GCP, company policies, and local regulations, and drives measurable impact through robust KPIs and change enablement.
Extent of Travel: Up to 10-20% of working time
Key Responsibilities:
Strategy & intake:
- Partner with the CRD, country leadership team, and the RRO Automation Analytics & AI Lead (RAAI Lead) to surface priority pain points and high-value opportunities for automation, analytics, and AI.
- Lead development of business cases including problem definition, options analysis, solution scope, resource/cost estimates, benefits/KPIs, risks, and compliance considerations.
- Align local opportunities with RRO/GCTO priorities; verify with relevant GCDI/central repositories and teams if there are for similar tools to avoid duplication; summarize reuse opportunities and recommendations for the RAAI Lead.
Solution design & delivery:
- Lead and drive the end-to-end delivery of country-level tools and solutions (e.g., dashboards, workflow automation, Robotic Process Automation (RPA), AI-assisted processes) using appropriate platforms and methods.
- For multi-country or regional solutions, co-lead with the RAAI Lead to ensure harmonization, scalability, and governance alignment.
- Responsible for escalation to centralized assessment when project requirements exceed local capability or scale.
- Translate business requirements into functional/technical specifications and oversee build, testing, validation, and controlled deployment; ensure security, privacy, and quality.
- Conduct life cycle management of the developed solutions, including rollout, maintenance and disposal, as required.
Data, analytics & reporting
- Develop or oversee development of analytics and visualization (e.g., operational dashboards, performance metrics) to drive data-informed decision-making.
- Define and track success metrics (e.g., time-to-deploy, cycle-time reduction, accuracy/data quality, adoption/satisfaction, cost avoidance/FTE savings) and embed learning loops for continuous improvement.
Governance, compliance & change
- Ensure solutions comply with ICH GCP, Company policies, and local regulations; partner with Compliance/Legal as needed.
- Maintain project tracking and provide periodic updates to CRD, RAAI Lead, and relevant governance forums; support RRO governance processes.
- Lead change management for local deployments, including training plans, communications, and stakeholder engagement; contribute to capability uplift in data literacy and digital ways of working.
Collaboration & scaling
- Serve as the primary country liaison with the RAAI Lead, Automation/Analytics/AI partners, and when required, IT and external vendors for integration and support.
- Share learnings and reusable assets with other countries and regional teams; assess and adapt regional/global tools for local use.
Qualifications, Skills & Experience
Educational Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree in a life science discipline, business analytics, computing science, engineering, or related field.
Required Experience:
- 5 years of relevant experience in data/analytics, process improvement, or technology-enabled transformation within life sciences/healthcare or a comparable regulated environment which includes: *Successfully designing and delivering automation/analytics/AI-enabled solutions (e.g., dashboards, RPA/workflow automation, AI/ML pilots) that produced measurable improvements.
- Experience coordinating cross-functional stakeholders, with hands-on project management in a matrix environment.
- Business process modeling and requirements techniques: e.g., process mapping, user stories, acceptance criteria, functional specifications.
- End-to-end product and solution ownership mindset: with accountability for value delivery across the full solution lifecycle (ideation, MVP, rollout, scaling, maintenance, and retirement).
- Data literacy and analytics: ability to translate business questions into metrics; hands-on with BI tools (e.g., Power BI/Tableau) and data querying basics (SQL or equivalent).
- Automation/AI awareness: practical experience with workflow automation/RPA platforms; exposure to AI/ML use cases and constraints in clinical operations.
- Program/project management: planning, prioritization, risk/issue management, and delivery at pace; comfortable with Agile/Lean practices.
- Communication & influence: excellent English communication; ability to influence across functions and present technical topics to non-technical audiences.
- Change enablement: stakeholder engagement, training, and adoption support.
- Problem-solving & critical thinking: structured analysis, hypothesis-driven approach, and pragmatic delivery mindset.
Preferred Experience:
- Experience working across multiple countries or in regional programs.
- Exposure to integrations with IT/data science teams and vendor coordination.
- Familiarity with clinical trial processes and operational metrics.
- Compliance/regulatory: understanding of ICH GCP and applicable quality and data protection requirements.
**Required Skills: **
Business Process Modeling, Clinical Trials Operations, Cross-Cultural Awareness, ICH GCP Guidelines, Process Automations, Project Management Tracking, Robotic Automation, Stakeholder Communications
**Preferred Skills: **
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Effective September 5, 2023, employees in office-based positions in the U.S. will be working a Hybrid work consisting of three total days on-site per week, Monday - Thursday, although the specific days may vary by site or organization, with Friday designated as a remote-working day, unless business critical tasks require an on-site presence.This Hybrid work model does not apply to, and daily in-person attendance is required for, field-based positions; facility-based, manufacturing-based, or research-based positions where the work to be performed is located at a Company site; positions covered by a collective-bargaining agreement (unless the agreement provides for hybrid work); or any other position for which the Company has determined the job requirements cannot be reasonably met working remotely. Please note, this Hybrid work model guidance also does not apply to roles that have been designated as “remote”.
The salary range for this role is
$117,000.00 - $184,200.00
This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.
The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.
You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.
San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance
Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance
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**Employee Status: **
Regular
Relocation:
No relocation
VISA Sponsorship:
No
Travel Requirements:
25%
Flexible Work Arrangements:
Remote
Shift:
Not Indicated
Valid Driving License:
No
Hazardous Material(s):
N/A
Job Posting End Date:
05/14/2026
***A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date. **