Executive Director, Medical Affairs Strategy Excellence & Operations

As a senior leader within Medical Affairs, the Executive Director will serve as a strategic thought partner and Chief of Staff to the Vice President of Medical Affairs, providing high-level guidance and operational leadership across the organization. Leveraging a deep understanding of industry trends and internal priorities, this individual will shape the development of best-in-class medical excellence capabilities aligned with Otsuka’s vision, direction, and growth strategy.

The Executive Director, Medical Affairs Strategy, Excellence & Operations will lead five critical teams : Strategic Planning, Business Solutions & Analytics, Vendor & Contracts Management, Governance & Procedures, and Global Medical Evidence Operations ensuring alignment with enterprise goals and medical excellence priorities. This role will champion operational rigor, foster strategic integration, and drive high-quality insights to support decision-making across the organization.

Serving as a key liaison across the Global, US, and Commercial ecosystem, the Executive Director will play a pivotal role in advancing scientific and medical initiatives. Through thoughtful leadership and collaboration, this individual will shape and execute the global medical affairs strategy, optimize operational frameworks, and enable data-driven innovation across therapeutic areas.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities Include :

Strategic Leadership and Execution

Serve as Chief of Staff to the VP of Medical Affairs, driving strategic alignment and operational integration across the Global Medical Affairs organization.

Sets the overall direction of Medical Excellence & Operations (MEO); make critical decisions that have impact across Global Medical Affairs therapeutic areas (TAs) and functions

Leads the development, refinement, and execution of Medical Affairs strategies and objectives in alignment with corporate goals.

Coordinates cross-functional planning, meeting cadences, budget oversight, and communication on behalf of Medical Affairs leadership.

Collaborates with cross-functional teams to align medical affairs activities with commercial and clinical development strategies

Leads Medical Excellence for Med Affairs Strategy to ensure consistent best practices across programs and drive consistent methods of strategic and tactical planning and execution.

Operational Excellence and Team Management

Lead and manage core operational pillars within Medical Affairs Excellence & Operations Team, including :

Global Asset Strategic Planning

Business Solutions and Analytics

Vendor and Contracts management

Global Medical Evidence Operations

Governance and Procedures

Establish and implement systems, SOPs, and governance frameworks to ensure excellence, compliance, and efficiency in Medical Affairs processes (e.g., IME, ISTs, EAPs, publications, congresses)

Provide and maintain the technological infrastructure, business tools, and data analytics, including the medical information contact center, to enable Global Medical Affairs teams to operate efficiently

Oversee the department’s budget, resource allocation, and vendor contracting processes (including key TA level vendors)

Will ensure assignment of Med Excellence activities / projects to Otsuka priorities

Congress Strategy / prioritization, ensure aggregation of congress plans (including meetings) and awareness cross functionally

Develop and maintain calendar of important TA meetings across programs, including congresses and internal offsite meetings (US and Global) to ensure no conflicts and adequate resourcing; will work with Administrative leads to ensure meetings are added to calendars

Develops and manages large teams driving a high-performance culture; understands the required skillset (s) needed within the medical excellence function to deliver best results

Builds relationships with key internal and external stakeholders, including industry partners

Performance Monitoring and Reporting

Establish and track key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure Medical Affairs impact and execution

Deliver monthly and quarterly updates to Global Medical Affairs leadership and contribute to board-level reporting, as needed

Keeps abreast external environment-relevant trends and incorporates insights and best practices to inform functional decisions

Responsible for ensuring timelines and process for cross-brand initiatives, such as annual medical strategy planning, 3-year roadmaps, SMART goals

Qualifications

Education and Experience :

Doctorate Degree (MD (Medical Doctor), PharmD, PhD) or equivalent preferred

Minimum of 15 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology setting within medical affairs strategy

Sr Director level medical affairs strategy experience for a minimum of 5 yrs. and experience in Medical Excellence & operations

Skills and Competencies :

Demonstrated ability to lead and inspire high-performing teams

Strong strategic, operational, and leadership capabilities within a biotech or pharmaceutical setting

Expertise in navigating regulatory frameworks and ensuring compliance within medical affairs function

Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence cross-functional teams

Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to address complex challenges within medical affairs

Ability to lead a team and influence organizational level decisions

Experience in collaborating with Medical Affairs vendors that can provide medical excellence related support

Strategic thinking acumen and record of accomplishment for operational excellence

Ability to rapidly pivot based on evolving corporate strategy and direction

Proficiency in pharma code and all guidelines concerning medical affairs activities

Excellent presentation skills and ability to communicate complex scientific information

Motivated, disciplined, pro-active individual capable of effectively managing timelines

Other Requirements :

Ability to travel globally up to 25% for congresses, advisory board meetings, Governance meetings as business needs require