Therapeutic Area Thought Leader Liaison 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 Thought Leader Liaison Lead plays a pivotal role leading a team of Thought Leader Liaisons who will establish and foster strategic relationships with key opinion leaders (KOLs) and healthcare professionals (HCPs) supporting the commercial portfolio efforts in NNI Rare Disease. The focus includes leading a team dedicated to HCP activation through education and awareness, fostering KOL partnerships, and cultivating lasting relationships with established and emerging leaders in Rare Bleeding Disorders., this position contributes to enhancing NNI's reputation and credibility in the Rare Disease space while supporting the overall strategic objectives of the commercial portfolio in Rare Bleeding Disorders.

Relationships

This role reports to the Commercial Strategy and Marketing Head and is a key contributor to the Rare Disease Marketing team. Responsible for providing interface with key internal and external stakeholders. Collaborates with cross-functional teams, including Field Sales, Marketing, Strategic Partnership and Engagement, Medical Affairs, Market Access and Public Affairs (MAPA), Customer Engagement and Integrated Solutions, Commercial Excellence, Legal, Regulatory Affairs, Compliance and other relevant NNI departments to ensure alignment of therapy area objectives and strategies. This role will oversee a team of Therapeutic Area Thought Leader Liaisons.

Essential Functions

• Thought Leader Engagement Strategy
  • Build the Thought Leader Liaison capability to expand footprint and market impact in Rare Bleeding Disorders
  • Identify, engage, and cultivate relationships with KOLs and other relevant stakeholders
  • Formulate and communicate the overarching strategy and comprehensive approach for engaging thought leaders, aligning with the objectives of the Rare Disease business unit
  • Ensure coherence between Rare Disease's objectives and the priorities of thought leaders within the Rare Disease community, fostering strategic alignment
  • Translate the external engagement strategy into actionable tactical plans for the thought leader liaison teams, ensuring a clear and effective implementation of the engagement approach
  • Develop strategies for HCP education aimed at optimizing the impact of HCP advocacy and support initiatives
  • Monitor and assess the impact of thought leader engagement activities, analyzing metrics such as thought leader engagement, KOL endorsements, and contributions to scientific publications and conferences to gauge effectiveness and influence
• Insight Gathering
  • Provide insights on market trends, KOL perspectives, and patient needs to inform strategy development
  • Contribute customer and market insights to the marketing team, facilitating informed decision-making and strategy development
  • Stay updated on advancements in the therapeutic area and communicate relevant information to internal teams
  • Enterprise Collaboration and Scientific Exchange
  • Collaborate across medical, training, marketing, and sales teams to develop aligned external engagement strategies, fostering knowledge exchange, innovation, and scientific advancement among thought leaders and internal stakeholders
  • Enable knowledge exchange and collaboration between thought leaders and internal stakeholders, encompassing R&D, medical affairs, marketing, and market access teams, to drive innovation, scientific advancement, and strategic coherence
  • Coordinate closely with the sales and medical team to ensure seamless alignment with engagement plans, fostering a coordinated approach to external interactions
  • Organize and participate in scientific exchange meetings, advisory boards, and other events to foster relationships and gather insights
  • Cultivate a culture of collaboration and coordination among team members and cross-functional partners, facilitating regular team meetings, sharing best practices, and ensuring alignment on key initiatives and messaging
  • Ensure compliance with all regulatory and company policies while interacting with external stakeholders

• Team Leadership and Excellence
  • Spearhead the leadership, management, and development of a team of thought leader liaisons, overseeing their engagement with Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) in the Rare Disease space
  • Fosters a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement
  • Drives a culture of change agility and adaptability
  • Responsible for building a high-performing commercial team, providing mentorship and guidance to ensure individual and team success
  • Responsible for the development and coaching of general management / end to end management of Thought Leader Liaisons
  • Fosters the professional growth and strategic acumen of the Rare Bleeding Marketing organization, guiding them to navigate market complexities and achieve targeted business objectives
  • Responsible for setting and communicating clear individualized role expectations for each report based on position, skills, talents, and objectives
  • Ensures compliance regulations are understood and adhered to consistently
  • Recruit, build and lead a highly effective organization
  • 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 Rare Bleeding marketing organization

Physical Requirements

60-80% domestic travel.

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
• Rare Disease experience preferred
• Demonstrated leadership skills
• A minimum of twelve (12) years of work experience in one or more of the following: field sales, product marketing, or medical / clinical experience within the pharmaceutical / biotech industry
• 5+ years of people management experience required, with a proven track record of development and coaching
• Focus on hemophilia or bleeding disorders preferred with a strong understanding of the hemophilia treatment landscape, including therapies and patient care considerations
• Proven ability to build and maintain relationships with KOLs and healthcare professionals
• Deep understanding of people and an ability to build mutually beneficial relationships
• Ability to assemble and lead cross-functional teams toward a shared vision of success
• Ability to present ideas effectively to individuals or groups, targeting presentation to the needs of the audience
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to present complex information clearly
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills to interpret insights and inform decision-making
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Excellent team management skills, with the ability to inspire and motivate others
• Ability to execute against strategic and tactical plans under tight timelines
• Ability to travel to meetings/trainings/programs as necessary
• Work within label, and regulatory and legal compliance guidelines

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.