Head of Supply Chain Transformation Life Scientific | Dublin (Global Scope)
About Life Scientific
Most companies treat supply chain as a back-office function.
We're not most companies.
Life Scientific operates at the heart of a $250 billion global crop protection market. Founded in 1996 on the campus of University College Dublin, we've built something genuinely rare: a science-led, asset-light business that reverse engineers off-patent crop protection products - molecule for molecule - and gets them registered fast, across Europe and beyond.
Nearly thirty years of regulatory expertise. A portfolio of own-brand products sold in more than twenty markets. Backed by InVivo, Europe's largest agricultural cooperative. Led by Nicola Mitchell, EY Entrepreneur of the Year.
We've grown from a contract research company to a business on a revenue trajectory from €120m to €270m by FY31.
We are entering the United States. We are doubling the business. And we need a supply chain that can take us there.
The Opportunity
Here's the honest picture.
Our supply chain supports a portfolio of 50 registered products across 19 markets, delivered through a virtual model, leveraging a network of external manufacturing and logistics partners rather than owned infrastructure.
We have grown revenue 123% over the past five years and delivered a complex multi-jurisdictional portfolio through a virtual model. But planning, sourcing, logistics, regulatory and commercial sit closer to parallel tracks than to one connected system.
As we scale into North America and double the business, that gap becomes the single largest constraint on margin and speed.
This is the role that closes it.
The Head of Supply Chain Transformation will build the operating model, the technology infrastructure and the cross-functional relationships that turn supply chain into a genuine competitive advantage for Life Scientific.
Not support the business. Not service the business. Drive it.
This Role Is For You If You…
You don't just run supply chains. You reimagine them.
You've spent your career proving that supply chain is a source of competitive advantage - and you're looking for the mandate, the scope and the backing to do it at scale.
You think in margin, trade-offs and business impact - not just operational metrics.
You see how the parts connect. You build the whole.
You are equally comfortable in a boardroom conversation about commercial strategy and a detailed S&OP review. You move between them naturally - because you understand that the two are inseparable.
You ask:
Where is the margin we're leaving behind?
What concentration risks are we one disruption away from?
Are we building a supply chain for where we are - or where we're going?
What would this look like if it were genuinely world-class?
You bring clarity and process where they don't yet exist. You build trust across functions quickly. You are hands-on. You solve problems - you don't just describe them.
And you are energised by the idea of building something that will still be running and compounding in value long after the transformation phase is done.
What You'll Do
Connect the System
Design and implement an integrated supply chain operating model that ties external partners, internal functions and commercial decision-making into one coherent system - one set of numbers, one cadence, clear accountability
Define processes, accountabilities and ways of working that scale with the business
Establish robust change introduction governance covering any meaningful change to production, product specification, quality, tollers, co-formulants or packaging - not just new product launches
Drive Cross-Functional Integration
Act as the primary integrator across commercial, finance, regulatory and operations
Ensure supply chain is embedded in pricing decisions, product launches, market entry and portfolio planning - not consulted after the fact
Build the operating rhythms that make cross-functional alignment the default, not the exception
Shift from Reactive to Predictive
Build demand planning, scenario thinking and forward visibility so the business sees opportunity earlier and moves faster to capture it
Establish a structured S&OP process that creates a regular cross-functional rhythm connecting commercial, supply and finance planning
Drive Margin Improvement
Optimise suppliers, inventory, logistics and network decisions through supplier consolidation and renegotiation, formulation and packaging optimisation, logistics network design and working capital management
Manage inventory as a working capital lever - ensuring stock supports commercial agility without tying up disproportionate capital
Find the value. Capture it. Prove it.
Build Sourcing Resilience
Structure the supply network to withstand disruption - through dual sourcing, geographic diversification and supply continuity planning
Proactively identify concentration risks across tollers, raw materials and logistics routes
Build mitigation strategies before they become crises
Leverage Technology and AI
Build a supply chain that uses the best available tools - modern planning platforms, the right ERP and data architecture, and AI where it earns its place
Actively seek out and deploy technology that creates competitive advantage, rather than defaulting to what already exists
Strengthen External Partnerships
In a virtual supply chain model, partner relationships are the supply chain
Make Life Scientific the partner of choice for the toll manufacturers, formulators and logistics providers we depend on - turning those relationships into a genuine source of competitive advantage
Unlock Portfolio and Pipeline Value
Work closely with commercial and regulatory teams to maximise returns on existing product assets through lifecycle thinking, cost-of-goods optimisation and active portfolio prioritisation
Engage upstream at ideation and pipeline selection - bringing sourcing intelligence and supply feasibility into the conversation before commitments are made
Where sourcing blocks exist, find solutions. Where timelines between registration and launch can be compressed, drive that acceleration
Lead and Develop the Team
What You Bring
You bring a track record of transformation - not just management.
Essential:
Demonstrated success transforming or significantly improving a supply chain, not just running one
Proven ability to work effectively across commercial, finance and operations functions
Experience designing or running a structured S&OP process in a multi-market environment
Experience with change introduction governance covering changes to tollers, co-formulants, packaging and product specification
Experience managing inventory as a working capital lever with full visibility of cost, risk and shelf life
Experience building sourcing resilience - dual sourcing, geographic diversification, supply continuity planning
Experience building or developing a supply chain team
Exposure to international or multi-market supply chain operations
Desirable but not essential:
Experience operating in a virtual or asset-light supply chain model
Background in a regulated manufacturing environment - agrochemicals, pharma, specialty chemicals, or any sector where sourcing is constrained by registrations, specifications and compliance, not just price and lead time
Familiarity with supply chain technology, planning tools and AI applications
Experience contributing to portfolio optimisation and product lifecycle decisions, including engaging upstream at pipeline selection and ideation stages
Mindset and track record matter most.
What Success Looks Like
Within 12–18 months, you will have:
Established a clear operating model connecting supply chain with commercial and finance functions
Built trusted relationships with key internal stakeholders and external partners
Introduced a structured S&OP process that creates genuine cross-functional planning rhythm
Introduced demand planning and forward visibility that enables the business to capture opportunity faster - particularly into the US ramp
Identified and begun capturing material margin improvement, including measurable improvement in landed cost and OTIF performance
Assessed and begun addressing sourcing concentration risks across the supply network
Put in place the data and KPI framework that drives visibility and accountability
Introduced technology and AI tools that meaningfully improve speed and precision
Established NXI governance across the full scope of production, specification and quality
Built a supply chain team with clear direction, capability and commercial ambition
Established a visible presence in portfolio and pipeline discussions from the earliest stages
Why Join Life Scientific?
We have built something rare.
A science-led, asset-light, growth-stage business with a clear strategic runway, a strong shareholder base, and the discipline to execute. A business that has gone from a UCD campus start-up to a global operation in thirty years - and is now entering its most ambitious chapter yet.
Supply chain is the lever we have not yet fully pulled.
This role sits at the centre of that shift - with direct impact on group profitability, commercial agility, operational resilience, and our ability to scale into new markets and new product lines.
The mandate is real. The backing is there. The runway is long.
If you have spent your career proving that supply chain can be a source of competitive advantage - this is where you do it at scale.
And that matters.
