Executive Director, Medical Affairs - COPD

Job Description

The Executive Director, Value & Implementation Global Medical & Scientific Affairs (V&I GMSA), Global Therapeutic Area (TA), position resides in the V&I organization, which includes GMSA as well as Outcomes Research. 

This position, referred to as TA EDMA for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), is accountable for the alignment and execution of the GMSA portion of the Global V&I Plans for their assigned TAs that is disease specific and can at times involve asset components. The TA EDMA will allocate 50% of their strategic focus to support the United States (U.S.) and the remaining 50% supporting the rest of world. The TA EDMA may also be appointed as a V&I Lead for their disease/asset area(s), which includes additional organizationally aligned responsibilities. The TA EDMA fosters relationships and engages with global scientific leaders and key decision-makers to inform the V&I priorities. The TA EDMA brings subject-matter expertise along with a global view to the role that affords them to strategically partner with internal stakeholders around Global V&I priorities. 

This position is also a team leader who effectively manages and inspires a team to achieve high performance and deliver exceptional results. The TA EDMA exemplifies our company’s leadership skills—namely, acting as a change catalyst, taking ownership and accountability, and displaying emotional intelligence—and sets these standards for their team.  

Primary Responsibilities:

• Accountable for the generation of the global strategic V&I plan, its global and regional execution, and facilitating the rollout to the countries. The V&I strategy guides the bidirectional, tactical execution of the V&I GMSA portion in partnership with Outcomes Research to guide real-world data generation. 

• Aligns with Big Country Markets. Ensures robust two-way communication with U.S., China, and Japan Executive Directors (Eds) or equivalents. Captures market-specific needs and insights to inform global strategy, while also guiding local execution in alignment with global V&I plans. Integrates into the EDMA Tandem model to foster strategic clarity and executional excellence. 

• Demonstrates enterprise leadership across geographies. Dedicates 50% of their strategic focus to the U.S., acting as a change catalyst—leading global planning while ensuring seamless integration with U.S. execution. Partners with U.S. EDMA and Health Systems EDs to align payor strategies, precision-medicine initiatives, and congress deliverables.

• Partners with the appropriate Product Development Team (PDT) and/or Asset Development Team (ADT), Global Brand, and V&I Outcomes Research leads to define clinical-development plans and brand strategies for assigned TAs. Ensures team contributes as relevant members to the PDT and/or ADT sub-teams (V&I, Value Evidence, Clinical, Commercial, Publications, and Label teams).  

• Integrates end-to-end knowledge gaps across countries and regions to better inform the GMSA portion of our Global V&I plans, enabling the countries and regions to successfully implement their country or regional priorities.  

• Applies expertise in country’s medical systems and clinical practice standards to guide Global Directors Medical Affairs (GDMAs) and/or Regional Directors Medical Affairs (RDMAs) and partners with Regional Strategy Leads (RSLs) to anticipate challenges, identify solutions, and implement actions that support adoption of new innovations. Monitors external clinical trends and scientific developments through systematic insight collection from group input meetings (GIMs), congresses, and other platforms to maintain up-to-date knowledge of emerging science, medicines, and vaccines.

• Demonstrates business acumen by guiding the team to ask insightful, elevated questions and challenge the status quo. Leverages assessments to integrate actionable medical insights from various countries and regions, informing both current and future needs of the global strategy, ultimately ensuring insights are implemented into actions and goals.

• Leads team engagement with international scientific leaders and key stakeholders—including therapeutic guideline committees, payers, public groups, government officials, and medical societies—on the company’s emerging science.

• Ensures all scientific exchange for their TA(s) is aligned with a single global scientific-communications platform. 

• Collaborates across V&I, including U.S. EDMAs, Regional Leaders, and Outcomes Research, embedding fully within PDT/ADT frameworks to provide subject-matter expertise, drive accountability, and enhance value through effective partnerships.

• Collaborates with Global Human Health (commercial) leaders to inform of the GMSA portion of V&I plans to ensure alignment, while independently leading the execution of these plans.

• Organizes regular management reviews to assess team’s activities and progress.

• Supports key countries with the development of local data-generation study concepts and protocols when requested.

• Understands and supports the Investigator-Initiated Study program in collaboration with the Executive Director Scientific Affairs (EDSA).

• Leads and develops a high-performing team focused on executional excellence, fostering a collaborative environment that supports professional growth and continuous improvement. Implements talent-management and development plans, proactively addressing challenges to enhance team.

• Demonstrates and champions our company’s Ways of Working, emphasizing innovation, medical modernization, defining team priorities, and focusing on the impact to the patient.

• Manages assigned budget with strong financial stewardship, ensuring delivery within a 3% variance. Responsible and accountable for making informed decisions when budgets change throughout the year. 

• Requires up to 30% travel, both within the U.S. and internationally.

Education:

• M.D., Ph.D., DDS/DMD or Pharm.D. (M.D. strongly preferred) and recognized medical expertise.  

Required Experience and Skills: 

• Therapeutic Area specialization and recognized scientific expertise. Training or experience in pulmonology, pulmonary critical care, or infectious disease.

• Extensive experience in medical affairs or clinical development, with a minimum of 3 years in pharmaceutical industry.

• Track record of successful team leadership and global experience.

• Strong prioritization and decision-making skills with the ability to understand how decisions fit into the broader context of corporate strategies.

• Demonstrated ability to motivate, mentor, manage and provide clear, unambiguous expectations and priorities for the teams. 

• Ability to effectively collaborate with and influence partners across divisions in a matrix environment.

• Excellent interpersonal, analytical, and communication skills (written and oral) in addition to results-oriented project-management skills. 

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• At least five years of global or U.S. medical affairs or clinical development experience with proven track record of contribution to medical or clinical-development strategies.

• Five years of leadership in the pharmaceutical industry, with teams having responsibility for scientific exchange and research support, preferably in relevant TA. 

• Demonstrated successful leadership of strategic initiatives as evidenced by a successful track record of design/creation of and accountability for implementation of strategic solutions for critical aspects of medical affairs goals and objectives.   

• Track record of successful team leadership and global experience.

• Customer expertise, especially of scientific leadership and other key stakeholders (payers, public groups, government officials, medical professional organizations), in the assigned therapeutic area. 

• Proven ability to effectively influence company life-cycle management and data generation.

• Understanding of resourcing and budgeting.

Required Skills:

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Clinical Development, Clinical Research, Enterprise Leadership, Leadership Management, Medical Affairs, Organizational Leadership, Pharmaceutical Medical Affairs, Resourcing Strategies, Scientific Communications, Strategic 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:

EEOC Know Your Rights

EEOC GINA Supplement​

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.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

The salary range for this role is

$255,800.00 - $402,700.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this 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.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

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:

No relocation

VISA Sponsorship:

Yes

Travel Requirements:

50%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

n/a

Job Posting End Date:

10/10/2026

*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.