Associate Director, Global Vaccines, Infectious Disease & New Products

Job Description

Position Overview

 

The Associate Director, New Products plays a key role within our company Global Vaccines and Infectious Disease (GVID) organization, with responsibility spanning in-market brand leadership and pipeline commercial strategy.

 

This individual will serve as the Commercial Lead for our global Ebola vaccine, leading global commercial strategy and execution and partnering across the organization to maximize the product’s public health impact. Responsibilities include brand planning, forecasting, investment and budget management, supply planning, global health partnerships, as well as engagement with external organizations including customers, governments and public health organization.

 

In parallel, the Associate Director will serve as Commercial Lead for multiple early-stage vaccine and infectious disease programs. The role will shape commercial strategy throughout development, including target product profiles, priority indications and populations, market opportunity assessments, positioning, forecasting, and evidence requirements. The individual will also partner with Research and Business Development to evaluate new targets, external partnerships, and potential acquisitions.

 

This is a highly cross-functional role requiring the ability to translate complex scientific, commercial, operational, and external-partner considerations into clear strategies and decisions. The successful candidate will be comfortable both setting strategy and owning execution, operating effectively in ambiguous environments and influencing stakeholders across functions and geographies.

 

Reporting to the Director of Pipeline Strategy, this role provides broad exposure across Global Vaccines and Infectious Disease and the opportunity to shape both an established global-health brand and our company future portfolio.

 

Primary Responsibilities:

Global Commercial Leadership

• Serve as Global Commercial Lead for our global Ebola vaccine, leading global brand strategy, annual planning, forecasting, investment prioritization, and commercial execution.
• Lead cross-functional execution in partnership with Manufacturing, Medical Affairs, Policy, Market Access, Finance, Forecasting, Communications, and regional/country teams.
• Support engagement with USG, UNICEF, CEPI, and other global health partners, including contract negotiations, partner governance, and delivery of commercial commitments in partnership with relevant internal functions.
• Partner with Manufacturing and Supply to align demand forecasts, external commitments, and short- and long-term supply requirements.

 

Portfolio & New Products:

• Serve as Commercial Lead for select pipeline assets, developing early commercial strategies including TPPs, priority indications/populations, positioning, market opportunity assessments, and forecasts.
• Support broader GVID portfolio and new-target strategy, bringing commercial, customer, competitive, and market perspectives to pipeline investment and development decisions.
• Provide commercial assessments for business development, partnerships, and due diligence, evaluating market opportunity, differentiation, strategic fit, and commercial potential.
• Partner across Research, Clinical Development, Manufacturing, Forecasting, Access, Policy, regions and countries to develop recommendations and represent the Commercial perspective in key governance forums.

 

Required Education:

• Bachelor's Degree BA/BS.

Preferred Education:

• Scientific background in either undergraduate or graduate studies (life sciences, engineering, epidemiology, MD, RPh, or Pharm D, etc.).
• Masters Degree in Business Administration.
• Masters in Public Health; Health Policy or Healthcare Economics and related disciplines.

Position Qualifications:

• Minimum five (5) years of relevant experience across areas such as global or regional marketing, new products, market access, pricing/reimbursement, health economics, commercial strategy, alliance management, sales or marketing support.
• Demonstrated commercial and business acumen, with the ability to integrate customer, market, financial, scientific, and operational considerations into clear business recommendations.
• Experience developing and executing product or brand strategies, including the ability to translate strategy into priorities, resources, and execution plans.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex cross-functional initiatives through influence, particularly when decision rights are distributed across multiple functions or stakeholders.
• Strong strategic thinking, problem solving, project management, and operational execution capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to synthesize complex information and communicate clear recommendations to senior stakeholders.
• Ability to operate effectively in ambiguous situations, make sound recommendations with incomplete information, and adapt strategy as scientific, market, competitive, or external conditions evolve.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• Global brand or product ownership experience, including forecasting, budget/investment management, brand planning, and cross-functional execution.
• Experience with government, global health, or public-private partnerships, or comparable external stakeholders.
• Experience supporting contract negotiations, alliance management, or contractual governance involving multiple internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience working across Manufacturing and Supply, including translating forecasts and external commitments into supply considerations.
• New Product or clinical-development experience, including development of Target Product Profiles, indication strategies, commercial assessments, and evidence-generation priorities.
• Experience developing product strategies and presenting recommendations in senior leadership governance forums
• Business development, due diligence, licensing, or acquisition-assessment experience.
• Competitive scenario planning, simulation exercises, or global business strategy development.
• Global, regional, or country marketing experience, particularly in Emerging Markets.
• Demonstrated experience operating at the intersection of commercial objectives and public health impact.

Travel:

• Yes 10-15% of time.

Work Location

• Hybrid, with Upper Gwynedd or Philadelphia as the primary location. Relocation assistance will be supported, as appropriate.

Required Skills:

Brand Strategy, Business Acumen, Commercial Acumen, Communication Strategy Development, Cross-Functional Leadership, Customer-Focused, Global Product Strategy, Marketing Analytics, Pharmaceutical Sales Marketing, Pipeline Strategy, Production Strategy, Product Management, Product Management Leadership

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

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The primary location for this posting is:

USA - Pennsylvania - North Wales (Upper Gwynedd)

Where required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.

The salary range for the primary location of this role is:

$142,400.00 - $224,100.00

This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs. The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

Additional location(s): Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

n/a

Job Posting End Date:

11/6/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.