Job Description

Our Global Oncology team is dedicated to delivering breakthrough innovations that extend and improve the lives of cancer patients worldwide. Our team of forward-thinking individuals achieves this through an unwavering commitment to support accessibility to medicine, providing new therapeutic solutions, and collaborating with governments and payers to ensure that people who need medicines have access to them. Our focus is on innovation and launch execution excellence; we translate breakthrough science into innovative medicines that help people with cancer across the globe.

Within Human Health, our Global Oncology organization is currently recruiting for an Executive Director, Global Oncology – Lung Cancer, reporting to the Associate Vice President, Lung/ GI/ KRAS.

This role is for a strategic leader with an enterprise mindset who is a self-starter, enjoys solving complex and strategic issues/topics, can effectively engage senior internal stakeholders, and thrives on leading and influencing broadly across the organization to drive positive, tangible outcomes across the Lung cancer portfolio. Additionally, the leader will help build and develop a high performing team who will cultivate a winning attitude and resilience operating in a challenging therapeutic area.

The Executive Director, Global Oncology – Lung Cancer will be responsible for defining and executing the global commercial strategy for our Lung cancer portfolio.

Key responsibilities include:

• Set and lead the global Lung Cancer strategy
• Define the end-to-end global commercial strategy for current and future Lung indications.
• Translate scientific innovation and clinical data into clear, differentiated value propositions and strategic frameworks for Lung cancers including Market Overviews and Assessments, Target Product Profiles, and Forecasts.
• Ensure strategies are informed by robust insights into customers, competitors, and the evolving standard of care across key Lung tumor types
• Steer the development and delivery of global sales forecast guidance for Lung indications in collaboration with Asset Teams, Forecasting and Finance.
• Drive cross-functional and cross-regional alignment on key planning assumptions
• Partner closely with key functions, including Global Market Access, Medical Affairs, Regulatory Affairs, Clinical Development, HEOR, Manufacturing, IP/Legal, Competitive Intelligence, and Finance to build integrated Lung strategies and execution plans.
• Collaborate with Regional and Local Marketing Organizations to ensure local market needs and insights shape global Lung strategy and to support in-market execution.
• Represent the commercial Lung perspective in key internal governance forums and cross-functional asset/tumor teams.
• Contribute to portfolio and business development discussions related to Lung cancer, including assessment of external business development opportunities.
• Identify and drive impactful disease level initiatives that support the achievement of goals across the Lung portfolio (e.g. Early Detection/ Screening Initiatives)
• Lead and develop a high-performing team
• Provide leadership/line management to a team of global marketers and/or tumor leads supporting the Lung portfolio.
• Build and develop core commercial competencies and oncology expertise across the team, fostering talent development and succession planning.
• Champion our inclusive ways of working and drive a culture of collaboration, accountability, and innovation.
• Manage ad hoc strategic and operational issues related to the Lung portfolio, including access, supply, competitive response, and policy/environmental changes.
• Ensure timely communication and alignment with senior leaders on key risks, opportunities, and performance drivers within the Lung business.

Key Leadership Competencies

• A dynamic executive with significant business acumen and demonstrated leadership in oncology and/or specialty pharmaceutical markets.
• Proven ability to articulate a compelling vision and direction for a complex, global tumor area and to translate that vision into clear strategies and execution plans.
• Inspirational and motivational personal leadership qualities that inspire trust, respect, credibility, and confidence of peers, colleagues, and external partners.
• Demonstrated ability to lead teams through ambiguity and organizational change, with a willingness to challenge the status quo.
• Strong collaboration skills and ability to influence without direct authority across geographies, cultures, and functions.
• Action- and solution-oriented approach with a strong sense of accountability for business outcomes.

Education:

• Required: Bachelor’s Degree
• Preferred: MBA, MSc, PhD, or other advanced degree in life sciences, business, or related field

Required Experience and Skills:

• Minimum of 12 years experience in pharmaceutical commercial roles (e.g., marketing, access, insights, portfolio/brand management) with a minimum of 3 years of direct experience in Oncology Marketing.
• Minimum of 2 years experience in global marketing (e.g., global brand, global franchise, or global strategic marketing role).
• Demonstrated experience in leading strategy development, portfolio/brand planning, and execution in a complex, highly regulated environment.
• Team leadership experience, including direct line management and/or leadership of cross-functional teams.
• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical market dynamics around the world, including the U.S. and key developed and emerging markets.
• Proven ability to effectively communicate complex scientific and business concepts, including to Senior Leadership.
• Strong problem-solving skills, analytical capability, and financial acumen (forecasting, business cases, investment decisions).
• Demonstrated track record of working effectively with cross-functional partners and creating alignment around strategic choices.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• Previous experience in Lung cancer or related solid tumors.
• Experience with launch planning and execution for global assets (e.g., indication launches, label expansions).
• Experience in an advanced operating role in market
• Experience working across multiple regions and cultures; secondary language(s) is a plus.

Travel

Up to 25% (including some international travel and occasional weekends, as business needs require).

Location

Rahway, NJ or Upper Gwynedd, PA

Required Skills:

• Business Development Initiatives
• Direct Marketing
• Executive Presence
• Launch Readiness
• Market Assessments
• Market Development
• Market Research
• Oncology Marketing
• Product Launch Support
• Product Management
• Product Positioning
• Results-Oriented
• Strategic Communication Management
• Strategic Planning
• Strategic Thinking

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:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date:

10/8/2026

*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.