Strategic Partnership and Engagement Lead

About the Department

The Strategy & Rare Disease (STARS) organization drives the long-term strategic direction of Novo Nordisk Inc. (NNI)/North America Operations (NAO) and leads all US commercial efforts for Novo Nordisk’s Rare Disease portfolio. The mandate of STARS is to facilitate the development and to coordinate the execution of the long-term strategy, defining a sustainable business model in US beyond a 5-year time horizon. This department serves as the insiders of the US market when informing and help shaping upstream decisions around future investments and assets. The Rare Disease portfolio includes products in the hemophilia and growth disorders therapeutic areas, new products in the pipeline, and products acquired through business development efforts in existing and new areas. The STARS team collaborates and partners with groups across NAO, Research & Early Development, Development, innovation hubs across NN, other affiliates, and global. We’re looking for individuals who are enterprise thinkers, inclusive leaders, and strong collaborators, as we embark on shaping our future.

The Position

The Strategic Partnerships & Engagement Lead is responsible for leading the National Rare Disease field organization focused on ensuring intentional partnerships are established with the Sickle Cell community, while elevating our presence and approach in the Rare Bleeding, Rare Endocrine and Rare Renal communities.

This role will establish and build capabilities and oversee leaders of teams that will progress our Novo Nordisk leadership in Rare Bleeding and advance our collaborations in communities across Rare Disease that have the potential to transform lives.

Relationships

This role reports to the Head of the Rare Disease Business Unit and works closely with the RD Commercial Strategy and Marketing Head, Hemaglobinopathies Head, Rare Disease Field Sales Lead, Business & Commercial Excellence Lead as well as the Senior Directors for Medical Affairs to ensure a unified and cohesive approach to external engagement. In addition, this role will closely partner with Legal, Compliance and Privacy. This role will serve as a member of the Rare Disease Leadership team and oversee, Community Liaison teams and Strategic Collaboration roles.

Essential Functions

• Strategic Partnerships
  • Establish a partnerships strategy across the entirety of the NNI Rare Disease external ecosystem
  • Develop and implement engagement strategies that align with the Rare Disease business unit's strategic priorities, including setting objectives, defining tactics, and allocating resources
  • Facilitate collaboration and knowledge exchange between internal stakeholders and external partners, including thought leadership, patient advocacy, and joint initiatives to address unmet needs in the community
  • Work with all external-facing Rare Disease leadership roles to ensure a unified and cohesive approach towards external engagement that prioritizes robust partnerships with different external stakeholders (e.g. CS&M, Field Sales and Medical)
  • Allocate resources effectively to support outreach goals and objectives
  • Set KPIs and metrics of success for engaging and tracking progress towards objectives
  • Build Community Liaison capability in Sickle Cell to establish our footprint, presence and impact and support our future portfolio
  • Advance Community Liaison capabilities in Rare Bleeding Disorders to support our current and future portfolio
  • Oversee efforts to foster strong partnerships with advocacy organizations across the Tas
  • Build strong relationships with external customers
  • Align field force efforts with marketing strategies partnering on implementation, training and execution of pull through activities
  • Ensure Strategic Partnership and Engagement organization shares robust insight generation to advance strategic approach
• Drives Performance:
  • Build and lead a high-performing commercial team, providing mentorship and guidance to navigate market complexities, achieve targeted business objectives and ensure individual and team success
  • Ensure key performance indicators are achieved and exceeded
  • Ensure relevant teams develop comprehensive business, account and customer plans and implements associated tactics
  • Ensure that all staff have sufficient training, management coaching and resources to successfully reach their targets
  • Implement target lists, call planning and other key metrics for the field organization as appropriate and ensure consistent execution of agreed upon metrics
  • Oversee the development of high-quality business plans to ensure appropriate sales planning and drive profitability targets
  • Understand customer needs and ensure that there is a clear plan to incorporate the needs into successful brand strategies
  • Evaluate appropriate use of resources to ensure attainment of profitability goals

• Team Leadership:
  • Foster a culture of accountability, innovation, adaptability and continuous improvement as well as coaching and transparency
  • Develop a clear, concise and compelling vision that is aligned with the strategy of the Rare Disease BU
  • Create a CEO mentality with a high degree of accountability by leaders and members of the Strategic Partnership and Engagement team
  • Responsible for the development and coaching of general management / end to end management
  • Responsible for setting and communicating clear individualized role expectations based on position, skills, talents, and objectives
  • Ensure reporting personnel have strengths-based development plans (IDP), with annual goals and measurements that are consistent with the priorities of the business
  • Recruit, build and lead a highly effective organization
  • Develop and monitor performance against budgets
  • Oversee implementation and monitor adherence to resource and system utilization as well as all policies and procedures
  • Provide clear direction, inspiration and motivation of the Strategic Partnerships & Engagement team
  • Ensures compliance regulations are understood and adhered to
  • Create a highly engaged, inclusive organization where diver.se perspectives are recognized, and everyone feels a sense of belonging while fostering a customer-centric culture
  • Continually provide meaningful contributions as part of the Rare Disease leadership team, working well with colleagues, cross functional partners and acting as a role model in the organization

Physical Requirements

50-60% overnight travel required.

Development Of People

Supervisory. Ensure that reporting personnel have individual development plans (IDP), with annual goals and measurements that are consistent with the priorities of the business, and that interim reviews are held so that their work is focused on those priorities, and they understand their level of accountability for results and the measurement process.  Ensure that the IDP forms include completed learning and aspiration plans and are in place for all reporting personnel to enable the achievement of goals and capability to assume increased levels of responsibility. Manage the application and communication of all Novo Nordisk policies, procedures, and Novo Nordisk Way.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required.
• At least 10 years of proven experience in sales and marketing, strategic partnerships, community engagement or related roles in the life sciences industry.  This experience is strongly preferred to be in rare diseases.
• Minimum of 5 years previous people management experience to include 3 years experience at the director level management or equivalent required
• Cross-functional experience in multiple functions is strongly preferred (e.g., Marketing, Sales, Operations, Strategic Partnerships, etc).
• Demonstrated track record of successfully developing and managing strategic partnerships that drive business growth and value creation
• Deep understanding of people and possess an ability to build mutually beneficial relationships
• Ability to assemble and lead cross-functional teams toward a shared vision of success
• Strong negotiation, communication/executive presence, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence and collaborate effectively with internal and external stakeholders
• Strategic thinker with the ability to identify opportunities, anticipate challenges, and develop innovative solutions
• Results-oriented mindset with a high sense of urgency, focus on achieving measurable outcomes and driving continuous improvement
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment and effectively manage multiple priorities and projects simultaneously
• A proven enterprise leader, with ability to coordinate and activate people across multiple functions, without formal reporting lines

We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.

At Novo Nordisk we recognize that it is no longer good enough to aspire to be the best company in the world. We need to aspire to be the best company for the world and we know that this is only possible with talented employees with diverse perspectives, backgrounds and cultures. We are therefore committed to creating an inclusive culture that celebrates the diversity of our employees, the patients we serve and communities we operate in. Together, we’re life changing.

Novo Nordisk is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by local, state or federal laws, rules or regulations.

If you are interested in applying to Novo Nordisk and need special assistance or an accommodation to apply, please call us at 1-855-411-5290. This contact is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.