Global Head of Planning & Resource Management

ICON is a global healthcare intelligence and clinical research organisation united by a mission to bring new medicines and treatments to patients faster.

As a values-driven organisation, integrity, collaboration, agility, and inclusion are at the heart of how we work and interact with each other, customers, patients and suppliers.

At ICON, our ability to deliver for customers depends on having the right talent, in the right place, at the right time, across one of the largest and most complex clinical research portfolios in the industry. As Global Head of Planning & Resource Management, you will define and lead the enterprise strategy that enables this outcome.

This is a highly visible executive leadership role with responsibility for workforce planning, demand forecasting, capacity management, deployment strategy, and enterprise headcount governance across a global organization of thousands of professionals spanning Project Management, Clinical Trial Management, Clinical Monitoring, Study Start-Up, Data Management, Biostatistics, Pharmacovigilance, Medical Affairs, and other critical delivery functions.

Your remit extends beyond clinical operations to encompass ICON's enterprise-wide Headcount Approval Process, serving as the executive steward of workforce investment decisions across all business units, functions, and geographies. In this capacity, you will partner directly with the Chief Executive Officer, Executive Leadership Team, Finance, and business presidents to evaluate workforce investments, balance growth ambitions with operational realities, and ensure talent decisions support the company's long-term strategic objectives.

You will lead a high-performing global organization through a team of experienced senior leaders and subject matter experts. The foundation is strong; the opportunity is to elevate the function into a world-class strategic capability. Success will require an executive who can shape enterprise thinking, drive transformational improvement, influence senior leaders across the organization, and establish workforce planning as a competitive advantage for ICON.
 

This is a role for a commercially minded executive who combines analytical rigor with executive presence, bringing a clear perspective on how workforce planning, governance, and resource deployment should operate on a global scale while influencing some of the most consequential decisions facing the business.

What You Will Do

• Define and lead ICON's global workforce planning and resource management strategy, ensuring talent investments, capacity decisions, and workforce deployment support the organization's growth ambitions, delivery commitments, operational performance, and long-term business objectives.

• Own the enterprise-wide demand forecasting, capacity planning, resource deployment, and workforce analytics framework, translating commercial forecasts, portfolio dynamics, and business priorities into actionable workforce strategies and executive decision-making insights.

• Lead ICON's global Headcount Approval Process, establishing governance standards, analytical rigor, and decision frameworks that guide workforce investment decisions across all functions, business units, and geographies.

• Serve as a trusted advisor to the Chief Executive Officer, Executive Leadership Team, Finance leadership, and business presidents, providing strategic guidance on workforce investments, organizational capacity, delivery risk, productivity, and resource optimization.

• Influence critical workforce and organizational decisions by partnering with senior stakeholders to evaluate resource requirements, challenge assumptions, balance competing priorities, and ensure alignment with enterprise objectives, delivery excellence, and financial performance goals.

• Drive the transformation of workforce planning and governance capabilities, advancing forecasting accuracy, workforce agility, operational efficiency, decision quality, and scalability through process optimization, technology enablement, automation, and advanced analytics.

• Partner closely with Finance, Human Resources, and operational leadership to evaluate the commercial and financial implications of workforce decisions, including utilization, productivity, margin performance, revenue realization, resource costs, workforce investments, and organizational efficiency.

• Lead, develop, and inspire a high-performing global organization, fostering leadership capability, succession planning, innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement while representing workforce strategy and resource management at the highest levels of the organization.

Your Profile

• Extensive executive leadership experience in workforce planning, capacity management, resource optimization, demand forecasting, and deployment strategy within large, complex, global organizations. While experience in CRO, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, consulting, or other professional services environments is advantageous, we are open to leaders from any project-based, talent-intensive business where workforce planning is critical to operational and financial success.

• Demonstrated success partnering with and influencing executive leadership teams, business presidents, and C-suite stakeholders, providing trusted counsel on workforce investments, organizational capacity, growth planning, operational risk, and strategic decision-making.

• Significant experience leading enterprise workforce governance, investment approval, resource allocation, or headcount management processes, establishing rigorous decision frameworks that improve organizational effectiveness, accountability, and business outcomes.

• A proven track record of leading high-performing global organizations through senior leaders, creating strong cultures of accountability, collaboration, innovation, succession planning, and continuous improvement within complex matrixed environments.

• Exceptional commercial and financial acumen, including a deep understanding of utilization, productivity, margin optimization, workforce investment, resource costs, revenue realization, and the operational drivers of performance within service-based organizations.

• Strong analytical, strategic, and problem-solving capabilities, with the ability to synthesize complex business dynamics, leverage workforce analytics and forecasting methodologies, and translate data into clear, actionable recommendations for executive decision-making.

• Outstanding executive presence, communication, and influencing skills, with a demonstrated ability to present complex analyses, challenge assumptions constructively, and build alignment among senior stakeholders in high-profile, high-impact business environments.

• Experience leading transformational change and building scalable workforce planning capabilities, leveraging process improvement, technology enablement, advanced analytics, and organizational leadership to improve forecasting accuracy, workforce agility, and operational efficiency.

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree in Business, Finance, Operations, Economics, Human Resources, or a related field strongly preferred.

• Ability to travel up to 10%

• Live in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland; locations in other countries will be considered.

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#LI-REMOTE

Employment with ICON is contingent upon having the legal right to work in the country where the role is based.

Rewards & Benefits

ICON offers a competitive and comprehensive total rewards package designed to support your health, wellbeing, and career development.

Benefits may include:

• Competitive base salary and performance related incentives
• Health and wellbeing programmes including medical, dental, and vision coverage where applicable
• Retirement and pension plans
• Life assurance and disability coverage
• Employee assistance programmes and wellbeing resources
• Learning and development opportunities through structured training and career pathways

Benefits may vary depending on role and location.

Visit our careers site to read more about the benefits ICON offers.

Inclusion and Accessibility

ICON is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building an inclusive and accessible workplace where everyone feels valued and supported.

If you require reasonable accommodations during the recruitment process, please let us know or submit a request here.

Are you a current ICON Employee? Please click here to apply