At Roche you can show up as yourself, embraced for the unique qualities you bring. Our culture encourages personal expression, open dialogue, and genuine connections, where you are valued, accepted and respected for who you are, allowing you to thrive both personally and professionally. This is how we aim to prevent, stop and cure diseases and ensure everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Join Roche, where every voice matters.

The Position

In Roche’s Pharmaceutical Research and Early Development organization (pRED), we make transformative medicines for patients in order to tackle some of the world’s toughest unmet healthcare needs. At pRED, we are united by our mission to transform science into medicines. Together, we create a culture defined by curiosity, responsibility and humility, where our talented people are empowered and inspired to bring forward extraordinary life-changing innovation at speed.

About the program

The Strategy Portfolio Career Kickstart (SPOCK) program provides an exciting opportunity to explore pRED at Roche. This two-year rotational program is designed to develop and accelerate early career high potential leaders with strong strategic capabilities. We seek individuals from a wide range of educational and professional backgrounds to strengthen Roche’s talent pool. Throughout the program, you will be mentored by a member of the pRED Leadership Team who will support you in your development. You will also have access to the Strategy, Portfolio, & Operations group leaders as well as the alumni of the SPOCK program.

Year One

In the first year, you will primarily work within the Strategy, Portfolio & Operations group, which is responsible for optimizing the pRED portfolio through objective insights and quality decision-making to maximize R&D productivity. You will also have opportunities to collaborate with teams across other pRED functions to explore various career paths.

First year key responsibilities may include:

• Performing business analyses in support of strategic cross-portfolio projects.

• Planning, coordinating, and overseeing the successful completion of projects within their defined scope and timeline.

• Supporting project teams working on molecules in early development, preparing for governance decisions and creating key deliverables.

• Collaborating with leaders across pRED to identify potential focus areas for your second-year rotation.

• Drive workstreams of the annual pRED strategy review conducting portfolio, capability, and strategy analytics

• Leading and managing the development of a specific molecule project as project manager, coordinating cross-functional teams, and ensuring project milestones are met within scope, timeline, and budget.

• Oversee governance meetings as meeting managers from molecule selection in discovery to pivotal trial decisions, and collaborate developing governance guidelines and feedback strategies in close collaboration with senior leaders.

Year Two

You will be able to choose where you make your mark on pRED by contributing on high visibility projects and senior level challenges. pRED will benefit from your leadership skills and innovative mindset throughout your second year rotation.

Examples of previous SPOCK rotations include:

• Oncology Insights - Supporting the oncology strategy review and implementation, as well as the organization's efforts to identify external innovation trends and assets.

• Finance enterprise partner for the Discovery Leaders Committee - Responsible for delivering on the pRED research portfolio within affordable capacity limits.

• Product owner of core scientific technology platforms - Developing the framework for a new scientific organization to enable broader access to cutting-edge technologies.

• Therapeutic/Disease Area Strategy and Portfolio - Developing strategic insights to lead efforts in enhancing understanding of the therapeutic or disease area direction, while ensuring alignment with overall pRED objectives.

• Global Function Strategy and Portfolio - Driving strategic safety, toxicology and biomarker initiatives to increase the technical probability of success of our portfolio while reducing cycle time.

• Business development - Supporting the way the partnering organization accesses external innovation and bringing in assets for pRED

Your profile

• Education: Master’s or equivalent degree in life sciences or data sciences (PhD/MD and/or MBA desirable, but not essential).

• Experience: 1–4 years of relevant work experience in the medical, pharmaceutical, consulting, or scientific industries (Time of PhD / doctoral studies not included)

• You show a strategic and analytical mindset with a demonstrable ability to integrate and synthesize findings from multiple sources to enable informed strategic decision-making.

• You demonstrate excellent communication and presentation skills, you can explain your ideas and demonstrate new approaches to problems

• You are collaborative, proactive and show flexibility to compromise, while bringing your critical thinking and insights. You are proactive, solution-oriented and have the ability to see the bigger picture.

• An experience of influencing in a matrix organization is a real asset for this role.

• You have a nimble mindset, are open to new ideas, demonstrate curiosity, and have a thoughtful understanding of how previous experiences have shaped your attitudes, beliefs and behavior.

We seek individuals who view this position as a learning experience with the potential to open doors to various opportunities within Roche.

Please include a cover letter outlining why you want to work with us, your specific interest in our program, and how you would contribute to our success.

Closing date for applications: 10th of October 2025

There will be optional drop-in sessions for an introduction to the program and an outline of the application process. You can sign up for the drop in session through this form .

Please note recruitment will be conducted on a rolling basis and we encourage applying as early as possible in the recruitment period. We’d like to let you know that our recruitment process includes multiple stages: an online assessment, a virtual interview and a virtual half-day assessment center. Please note that the evaluation period for these stages may vary depending on the number of candidates being assessed.

Planned start date: Q1 or Q3 2026

The position is temporary for two years.

Our commitment

Roche commits to recognising talent and aptitude. We prioritize encouraging and supporting our employees in their personal journeys by providing a safe, creative space to help them reflect, make decisions and grow in their career.

We are confident that we find the most innovative solutions by gaining different perspectives, asking and answering hard questions, and challenging the status quo. Roche embraces diversity and equal opportunity in a serious yet enthusiastic way; we are devoted to building a team that represents a range of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens at the end of the 2-year programme?

The objective of this programme is to attract and develop early-stage high-potential leaders at Roche. While it is up to each participant to secure a role, they receive strong support from their mentor and the network built during rotations. Notably, previous cohorts were successfully hired into roles within Roche, highlighting the programme’s effectiveness in launching careers.

How will I develop during the SPOCK programme?

The SPOCK programme is highly focused on your development. We provide a structure to support you in creating a development plan for your time in the programme, to help you achieve your goals and ensure your work is in line with your interests. This includes having a SPOCK buddy, and a SPOCK sponsor. Your pRED Leadership Mentor will also work with you on developing your leadership skills and make sure you are exposed to opportunities in your areas of interest.

How are rotations determined in the SPOCK programme?

In your first year you will be based in the Program and Project Management Excellence (PPME) and the Strategy and Portfolio (S&P) teams, which provide a great overview of the key initiatives across all of pRED, so that you can find an assignment you are passionate about - whether in PPME, S&P, or beyond. You will also have time to explore opportunities for your second rotations.

What kind of exposure will I have to senior leadership at Roche?

During your onboarding, you will have the unique opportunity to meet 1:1 with the members of the pRED leadership team, and choose one of the members as your mentor. Your mentor will open doors for you to work on exciting, high-visibility projects, as well as coach you on your leadership development journey.

How many SPOCK positions are available?

There are 8 SPOCKs positions available at one time, with 4 senior SPOCKs in their second year, and 4 junior SPOCKs in their first year. That means that we hire 4 new SPOCKs every year starting in 2-2 split with 6 months from each other.

Who we are

A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100’000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.

Let’s build a healthier future, together.