Principal Development Engineer I/II - R&D Combination Products Development & Drug Delivery

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas – immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and eye care – and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Tik Tok.

AbbVie is looking for a Principal Engineer to join our Drug Delivery Science & Engineering team to drive innovation efforts in support of multidisciplinary device pipeline projects. This is a key role with a direct impact on AbbVie’s exciting and rapidly growing portfolio of combination products, with a major focus on Eye Care, Neurotoxins, and Aesthetics products.

These devices enable the delivery of AbbVie’s innovative medicines targeted at difficult-to-cure diseases with the goal of making a remarkable impact on people’s lives.

As a Principal Engineer, you would be part of a multi-disciplinary team of professionals working at the intersection of engineering and biopharmaceuticals. The problems you would help to solve relate not only to the function of innovative drug delivery devices, but also to the way in which they interact with drug products, the site of administration, and the end customers and users. If you are a self-motivated person who thrives on solving compelling, complex problems and are excited by the idea of taking on the toughest health challenges, this opportunity might be for you.

The position is based in the US at either the Irvine, CA, or Lake County (North Chicago), IL sites, with an expectation of at least 3 days on-site per week. Domestic and International travel may be required, as necessary. (Up to 25%).

Responsibilities:

• Function as a principal investigator and device technical lead, generating original technical ideas, research, and development strategies.
• Execute feasibility and engineering confidence tests to determine design viability and margin
• Participate in Human Factors ethnographic research and User Needs development.
• Promote entrepreneurial thinking, and manage results with respect to quality, time, budget, and resources.
• Thoroughly document and communicate results through authorship of technical memos, reports and presentations. Author Records of Invention and documentation to build AbbVie's IP portfolio, and support Legal team in negotiating partnership agreements.
• Drive an internal culture of innovation, including application of Innovation Engineering formalisms, developing and curating a portfolio of problem statements across the portfolio, leading structured ideation sessions, and encouraging creativity.
• Lead and support device technology landscaping evaluations.
• Maintain visibility as a sought-out expert in her/his field, through regular attendance at internal and external symposia, presentations, and/or via publications.
• Collaborate with external companies/firms, maintaining and building strong relationships with key partners.
• Provide mentorship to junior team members. In time, this role may have direct supervisory responsibility of one or more individuals and accountability for the effective performance of the team/individuals.

• BS, MS, or PhD in Mechanical Engineering or related discipline
• Position will be hired based on experience:
  • Principal Engineer I minimally requires BS and 14 years, MS and 12 years, or PhD and 6 years of relevant experience
  • Principal Engineer II minimally requires BS and 16 years, MS and 14 years, or PhD and 8 years of relevant experience
• Experience developing a range of medical devices, preferably in the drug delivery space.
• Familiarity with Design Controls (CFR 820.30 / ISO 13485) and Risk Management (ISO 14971), computational analysis (FEA, system modeling, etc) and descriptive statistics, and 3D CAD modeling
• Excellent English language written and verbal communication
• Strong interpersonal and influencing skills and ability to work effectively in a diverse team setting without direct authority.
• A strong sense of urgency and ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a highly dynamic and fast-paced environment
• Design for Six Sigma experience is desired.
• Preferred qualifications:
  • A proven track record of solving challenging problems, innovating and building and cultivating a culture of innovation.
  • Demonstrated command of scientific principles and physiology/anatomy/biology relevant to localized drug delivery via the intradermal, intramuscular, and intraocular routes of administration.
  • Comfort with hands-on problem solving and rapid prototyping
  • Prior people leadership experience and a desire to mentor
  • Facility with use of technology for data and information management
  • A keen eye for identifying project risks and proactively developing mitigation plans.

Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law: ​

• The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.​

• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.​

• This job is eligible to participate in our short-term incentive programs. ​

• This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs​

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law. ​

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AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives, serving our community and embracing diversity and inclusion.  It is AbbVie’s policy to employ qualified persons of the greatest ability without discrimination against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy), physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, status as a protected veteran, or any other legally protected group status.

US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html 

US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:

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