Territory Account Specialist (Oncology), Cape Town

ABOUT ASTRAZENECA

 

AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven Biopharmaceutical business that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines for some of the world’s most serious disease. But we’re more than one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies. At AstraZeneca we’re dedicated to being a Great Place to Work. Where you are empowered to push the boundaries of science and unleash your entrepreneurial spirit. There’s no better place to make a difference to medicine, patients and society. An inclusive culture that champions diversity and collaboration. Always committed to lifelong learning, growth and development. Our strategic priorities reflect how we are working to deliver our strategy and achieve our Purpose. As a workforce, we are the catalyst for our values: we are entrepreneurial; we do the right thing; we play to win; we put patients first and we follow the science. As a company we appreciate and take great pride in each team member where every person is brought together through shared values, that underpins a shared purpose. There’s no better place to feel inspired and energised.
At AstraZeneca, we’re dedicated to being a Great Place to Work. Where you are empowered to push the boundaries of science and unleash your entrepreneurial spirit. Join the fastest-growing pharmaceutical in our markets, set up to fuel further growth. Be part of our shared ambition and pride: our strong heritage, our turnaround story, and early investment and commitment in International markets. There’s no better place to feel inspired and energized.

ABOUT OUR ONCOLOGY TEAM

 

Our Oncology team is united by a bold ambition: to transform cancer care, improve patient access to innovative treatments and make a meaningful difference in the lives of people living with cancer.

We are a high-performing, agile and customer-centric team with a winning mindset and an unwavering commitment to excellence. We believe that success starts with truly understanding our customers, anticipating their needs and building trusted partnerships that deliver meaningful value.

As we evolve towards a more integrated, account-focused engagement model, we are breaking down traditional brand silos to deliver a seamless, personalised customer experience across our oncology portfolio. By combining scientific expertise, deep customer insights, innovative digital engagement and strong cross-functional collaboration, we aim to create solutions that address real customer challenges and ultimately improve patient outcomes.

What truly sets our team apart is not just what we know, but how we think and act. We embrace a growth mindset, continuously challenging ourselves to learn, innovate and raise the bar. We are resilient, adaptable and action-oriented, empowered to take ownership, make bold but informed decisions and challenge conventional thinking to achieve meaningful results. Our culture is built on trust, collaboration, accountability and a shared determination to succeed. We actively learn from one another, embrace diverse perspectives and invest in personal and professional development.

Above all, we believe that every customer interaction is an opportunity to make a difference. Through disciplined execution, entrepreneurial thinking and an uncompromising focus on customer and patient needs, we turn ambition into action and strategy into sustainable impact.

 

 

What you’ll do?

As a Territory Account Specialist within our high-performing Oncology team, you will take full ownership of dedicated oncology accounts across Cape South, delivering a seamless, personalised and customer-centric experience across our innovative oncology portfolio.

You will develop a deep understanding of each account’s unique needs, priorities and challenges, building trusted, long-term partnerships with oncologists, multidisciplinary teams and key practice stakeholders. Through strategic account planning and tailored omnichannel engagement, you will deliver relevant, meaningful interactions that create value for customers and ultimately improve patient care.

Working collaboratively with cross-functional teams, you will identify opportunities, co-create innovative solutions and address barriers to patient access. You will leverage customer insights, scientific knowledge and commercial acumen to drive portfolio growth while ensuring efficient resource utilisation and coordinated engagement without duplication.

You will be empowered to take ownership of your business, challenge conventional thinking and translate customer insights into decisive action. Your success will be measured not only by commercial performance, but also by the strength of your customer partnerships, the quality of your execution and the value you create for customers and patients.

Typical Accountabilities will include:

Individual & Interpersonal Effectiveness

• Recognizes and modifies own communication approach when working with colleagues and customers.
• Demonstrates versatility when working with a variety of contacts within the customer organisation.
• Works cross-functionally, sharing information that will help address the needs of individual accounts and decision makers.
• Is innovative in the generation of new ideas and solutions to problems.
• Can influence complex decision-making processes.

Selling Skills

• Develop a deep understanding of the customer and account.
• Derives insights from understanding how both the wider and local healthcare environment influences decision-making.
• Demonstrates an understanding of the patient journey, disease progression and impact of different treatment choices upon the patient.
• Understands and gathers insights regarding the customer’s role in the decision-making unit, their personal style, preferences, and situation.
• Can articulate how the call fits within a series of calls to achieve a commercial objective and captures this in a pre-call plan. Establishes the Unmet Need.
• Opens the call with impact, articulating the insight for portfolio in alignment with customer agenda and brand strategy, linking back appropriately to previous calls.
• Establishes and aligns with the customer on an unmet need relating to specific patients or groups of patients.
• Creates positive tension by appropriately challenging customers’ current views based on high levels of insight. Listens & Drill Down on All Feedback.
• Demonstrates active listening skills, to enable greater understanding of the customers values and viewpoints.
• Uses a range of questioning techniques to elicit information relating to the unmet need and treatment options and to maintain positive tension.
• Seeks and confirms partial agreements. Personalizes the Message and Handles Objections.
• Delivers a compelling personalized message to highlight how the clinical benefits of the AZ brands or portfolio will address the unmet need.
• Leverages a high level of brand and disease area knowledge relevant to portfolio.
• Acknowledges, clarifies, and handles objections and evaluates the customer’s response (ACHE)Closes with Actions.
• Seeks commitment and actions in line with commercial objectives for single brand or portfolio and with needs of customer and patients.
• Updates appropriate records and profile information and communicates relevant information to cross-functional team.

Results Driven

• Effectively prioritizes accounts using data and tools available.
• Sets SMART customer objectives.
• Effectively determines the key stakeholders in the account.
• Sets SMART account objectives.
• Identifies opportunities and strategies to improve positioning of AZ's Oncology portfolio.
• Drives cross-functional collaboration to fully leverage AZ's account management capabilities.
• Shares information, insight, and expertise with sales team members.

Drives the Business

• Builds and adapts sales plans to ensure business impact and goal achievement in a timely manner.
• Takes decisions and actions to adapt current approach in response to market changes.
• Seeks to identify opportunities and actions that will help to achieve more strategic objectives.
• Drives sales performance by ensuring sales targets are met or exceeded and budgets are managed.
• Drives successful implementation of key account strategies and business plans.
• Drives a process that pulls on cross-functional resources to deliver the targeted account insight and outcome.

Business Acumen

• Understands the wider business environment and incorporates this into their territory action plans.
• Applies knowledge of business principles e.g., SWOT analysis, to support sales efforts.
• Analyses appropriate internal/external data to develop their sales strategy.
• Positions relevant market access solutions in the context of AZ's value proposition (including where appropriate cost of diagnostic testing).
• Demonstrates detailed knowledge of the issues stakeholders & accounts face with reimbursement and budgeting, in the interconnected specialist ecosystem.

Knowledge: Healthcare Environment

• Shows detailed knowledge of their healthcare ecosystem for their therapeutic area.
• Understand how broader healthcare issues / trends will affect their customer decision making.
• Keeps abreast of the latest developments in the industry and new regulations.
• If appropriate, understands the Diagnostic environment, i.e., companion diagnostics, and potential barriers to effective treatment.

Customer

• Understands the local healthcare environment, patient pathway and individual HCPs role and situation.
• Understands individuals within the decision-making unit and their key drivers and objections.
• Understands customer's personal profile, style, and attitude.
• Develops and manages long-term external relationships, focusing on relevant senior stakeholders within high-value accounts.
• Credibly engages influential stakeholders across the broader specialist ecosystem to collaboratively develop win-win-win solutions.
• At private sector may be required to handle basic managed healthcare (medical aid scheme) discussions at the doctor’s practice
• At state sector may be required to call on Academic State Institutions for certain brands within Oncology, detail Head of departments on the brands that are on state buy-out.

Compliance

• Follows correct procedures and SOPs for all activities and planned meetings.
• Behaves in an ethical manner in response to requests or challenging situations.
• Ensures AZ's products meet with national and local guidelines and the product license.
• Ensures compliance with the AZ Code of Conduct, Global External Interactions Policy and Standards, and Privacy Policy and standards.

Disease, Science, Therapy, Product, & Competitors

• Demonstrates solid scientific and disease area knowledge in their therapeutic area.
• Continually builds their scientific and disease area knowledge.
• Possesses detailed knowledge of relevant clinical trials and data.
• Demonstrates extensive understanding of their product portfolio and relevant competitor product

Patient Safety: Adverse Reporting

• Responsible for promptly collecting and reporting any adverse events and product quality complaints received from any source. All such cases must be documented accurately and submitted to the designated department within one business day of becoming aware of the information, ensuring compliance with company policies and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Responsible for completing Adverse Event training during initial onboarding and then annually thereafter.

If this sounds appealing, please read on to understand the experience and skills we’re looking for…

ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

• Must have a completed Bachelors Degree in Health Sciences; Life sciences and/or Human Anatomy ie: B.Sc, B.Pharm
• 2-4 years of proven sales experience in a Specialist environment.
• Must have a Valid driver’s license and own vehicle.
• Current relationships with Oncologists & support staff/MDT in the specified area (including country trips) would be advantageous
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with and influence peers.
• Demonstrated communication and platform skills.
• Strong analytical ability.
• Strong presentation skills.
• Excellent communication skills: clear and concise messaging.
• Ability to work closely in collaboration with cross-functional business areas.

Why AstraZeneca?

 

We are proud to have achieved Top Employer certification in South Africa, Kenya, and Nigeria, for 2026. This distinction is a confirmation of our commitment and ability to sustain people, partnerships, and employee engagement and foster an innovative workplace environment.

 

At AstraZeneca, we’re dedicated to being a Great Place to Work. Where you are empowered to push the boundaries of science and unleash your entrepreneurial spirit. There’s no better place to make a difference to medicine, patients and society. An inclusive culture that champions diversity and collaboration, and always committed to lifelong learning, growth and development. We’re on an exciting journey to pioneer the future of healthcare. Join the fastest-growing pharmaceutical in our markets, set up to fuel further growth. Be part of our shared ambition and pride: our strong heritage, our turnaround story, and early investment and commitment in international markets. There’s no better place to feel inspired and energized.

 

 

SO, WHAT’S NEXT?

 

Are you already imagining yourself joining our team? Good, because we can’t wait to hear from you!

Click the link to apply no later than 06 November 2026 and we’ll be in touch as soon as we can.

 

 

WHERE CAN I FIND OUT MORE?

 

Our social media, Follow AstraZeneca on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/1603/

Follow AstraZeneca on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/astrazenecacareers/

 

Close Date: 06 November 2026

Date Posted

29-Oct-2026

Closing Date

06-Nov-2026

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity.  We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills.  We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.  We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics.  We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.