Therapeutic Area Head, Oncology

Job Description Summary

Are you ready to lead at the forefront of Oncology? We are seeking an accomplished commercial leader to join us as Oncology Therapeutic Area Head. This is an opportunity to turn strategy into impact—driving launch excellence, accelerating brand and portfolio growth, and building the commercial capabilities needed for the next generation of oncology medicines. You will inspire a high-performing sales and marketing organization, unite teams across a complex matrix, and build trusted partnerships that help deliver better outcomes for patients.

 

Job Description

Major accountabilities:

• Turn regional and global priorities into clear, actionable short- and long-term commercial plans.
• Lead launch readiness for current and future brands and new indications across priority markets.
• Accelerate brand performance through sharp market insights, HCP perspectives, competitive intelligence, and disciplined KPI reviews.
• Create an integrated One Brand Plan that unites cross-functional teams around the biggest opportunities and stakeholder needs.
• Build a powerful thought-leader engagement strategy to support upcoming launches and indications.
• Influence and inspire across markets, regions, and global teams—creating a focused, collaborative one-team culture.
• Bring the commercial voice into pipeline, clinical-development, lifecycle, and business-development decisions.
• Raise the bar for field execution across strategy, messaging, targeting, call planning, and resource allocation.
• Develop future-ready capabilities through inclusive leadership, succession planning, and a strong talent pipeline.

Requirements:

• 10+ years of commercial experience in healthcare or life sciences, with a record of leading high-performing teams.
• Proven P&L ownership and strong commercial management experience.
• Sales and marketing leadership expertise, ideally in oncology or another specialty area.
• Strong knowledge of customers, market dynamics, and competitor strategies; oncology experience is highly valued.
• The ability to influence, collaborate, and deliver results across a complex global matrix.
• Experience bringing innovation into healthcare systems and leading business or organizational transformation.
• Commercial curiosity, digital fluency, strong business acumen, and a hands-on drive for results.
  

 

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion:

Novartis is committed to building an outstanding, inclusive work environment and diverse teams' representative of the patients and communities we serve.

 

Novartis is a proud member of the ILO Global Business and Disability Network and the Valuable 500, promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in workplaces around the world. We also collaborate with international partners, such as Disability:IN, Purple Space, and Business Disability Forum to identify and develop best practice solutions to enable people with disabilities to participate as equal members of our organization.

 

Skills Desired

Asset Management, Business Development, Commercial Excellence, Cross-Functional Collaboration, Digital Marketing, Influencing Skills, Inspirational Leadership, Key Account Management, Market Share, Market Trends, People Management, Product Launches, Profit and Loss (P&L), Sales, Stakeholder Engagement, Stakeholder Management, Value Propositions