Director, Rare Disease Regional Marketing - West

About Acadia Pharmaceuticals

Acadia is advancing breakthroughs in neuroscience to elevate life. Since our founding, we have been working at the forefront of healthcare to bring vital solutions to people who need them most. We developed and commercialized the first and only FDA-approved drug to treat hallucinations and delusions associated with Parkinson’s disease psychosis and the first and only approved drug in the United States and Canada for the treatment of Rett syndrome. Our clinical-stage development efforts are focused on Prader-Willi syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, and multiple other programs targeting neuro-psychiatric and neuro-rare diseases. For more information, visit us at Acadia.com and follow us on LinkedIn and X.

 

Seeking talent near: Los Angeles, CA; Denver, CO; Phoenix, AZ; Dallas, TX

The Director - Rare Disease Regional Marketing (East/West), is critical role and visible leader within the US Marketing Team, overseeing KOL/key professional stakeholder strategies and engagement plans to activate, educate, and build regional advocacy to improve patient care. This position is responsible for leading a team of RMLs tasked with establishing strategic direction through analysis of customer/regional market insights to drive key strategic choices for the franchise. The Director, Regional Marketing is an exceptional leader with Rare Disease experience, who will work across assigned geographies managing a dedicated team of 6 Regional Marketing Liaisons (RMLs) across initiatives related to KOL Engagement, Peer to Peer Education, Congress Planning/Execution, Insight Generation, Regional Marketing, as well as market development in support of late-stage pipeline. This is field-based leader role and will report into Executive Director of HCP marketing, rare disease.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Brand Strategy & planning:
  • Serve as a key member of the US Brand team by providing national and region-specific market insights/ feedback to shape future strategies for Daybue and Rett Syndrome.
  • Develop deep clinical and commercial knowledge of the Rett market and understand the treatment /market dynamic nuances in their region.
  • Drive annual tactical planning for regional marketing team in partnership with peer leader, outline and manage annual budget and project timelines supporting RML activities. Oversee tactical execution and coordination with creative agency and navigating Acadia’s MLR process.
  • Shape specific market development plans and drive specific tactics/activities for pending indications/approvals of late-stage pipeline assets.
• Drive brand advocacy; establish Acadia as a trusted, enduring partner amongst thought leaders in Rett Syndrome and beyond.
  • Lead team to conduct KOL Identification and influence mapping, a key input in driving engagement strategy.
  • Lead comprehensive KOL expert engagement strategy, tactical planning and execution across all Rett KOL tiers/types. Direct team’s activities with national and regional thought leaders to impact education and drive brand advocacy of Acadia product offerings; work with regional cross functional teams to identify and cultivate emerging KOLs across different specialties.
  • Serve as commercial Lead for national and regional thought leader engagement across departments including ELT, Sales leadership, and Marketing. Align and collaborate with Medical Affairs lead and Field MSL lead on individual and comprehensive Acadia KOL strategy.
  • Center of Excellence (COE): Work with cross-functional One Acadia team to develop and implement strategies with COEs.

• Regional Marketing
• Synthesize key customer insights and stakeholder dynamic and ladder up to leadership to inform evolution and optimization of strategy, tactics, messaging, and program execution.
• Lead RML team in the development and execution of region specific tactics, tailored to regional needs/objectives; develops novel marketing solutions to address regional (customer) and educational needs.
• Consult and collaborate with compliance and MLR partners to vet new and innovative tactical ideas and find solutions to compliantly execute initiatives with appropriate guidance and training.
• Collaborate with VP of Sales and RBLs to align and draw up specific plans focused on business critical accounts. Guide RMLs in account-level execution, identifying gaps, and driving coordination.
• Regional medical professional associations: Investigate, Identify and develop strategy to engage with regional chapters of national clinician association, health systems to drive Rett education, diagnosis and understanding of Daybue.

• Insight Generation:
  • Collate, synthesize and translate market and clinical insights generated from KOL interactions, Regional insights/trends/sentiments for the franchise leadership team on a regular basis; disseminate regular updates to brand team and brand leadership
  • In partnership with Exec Director of Marketing, develop priorities for insight generation for business related to Rett syndrome, Daybue, and/or competitive landscape.
  • Generate insights through use of secondary data, market research, and analytics and translate these into external expert strategy and tactical plan development.
  • Partner with internal functions like Market Research, Medical/MSL, New Product Planning, etc to facilitate insight generation for market development for pipeline assets.
  • Oversee planning and execution of all regional advisory boards and regional round table discussion in collaboration with cross functional team including compliance, commercial operations, medical and home office marketing
• Peer 2 Peer Execution:
  • Partner with VP of sales and home office marketing team to enhance field effectiveness of the peer 2 peer channel and tactical effectiveness, including: Conceptualizing different programming types, generating insights to evolve content strategy (branded and disease education), and facilitate speaker training strategy.
  • In partnership with HCP marketing, creative agency, and compliance, develops new programming concepts, creation of educational content, and compliant execution.
  • Partner with sales & home office marketing to assess speaker utilization and ensure compliance with internal guidelines
  • Work closely with home-office marketing, sales, external vendors, and commercial operations to optimize processes for seamless peer 2 peer execution.
  • Lead Annual development and approval of needs assessment plan for Daybue and pipeline indications / products
• HCP Congress Strategy & Planning:
  • Brand lead for all regional conferences and scientific meetings (with HCP audience) deemed important for driving Rett and Daybue education.
  • Lead RML team to foster strong partnership with cross functional teams to include:  compliance, commercial operations, medical, and home office marketing
  • Responsible for developing key congress collateral with marketing agency and bringing through MLR
  • Commercial Lead on all executive encounters, executive ride-along, KOL engagements.
• Team Management:
  • Hire, lead and develop a team of 6 Regional Marketing Liaisons.
  • Monitor performance and coach team to build best in class capabilities and talent pipeline

Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in marketing, health care, business administration or related or an equivalent combination of relevant education and experience may be considered.  MBA a plus.  A minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible experience and advancement within pharmaceutical or biotech industry in sales, sales training or marketing. Rare disease, pediatric neurology or neurology experience strongly preferred.  The ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of HCP, KOL, and/or Key Account customer audiences, but also the ability to collaborate with larger professional entities (e.g., societies, health systems and/or third party B2B partners) and lead projects. An equivalent combination of relevant education and experience may be considered.

• 5+ years of marketing or marketing adjacent experience and / or Field Leadership experience required
• 5+ years of KOL engagement experience required
• Rare disease, pediatric neurology, endocrine, neuro metabolic experience strongly preferred.
• Ability to analyze data and insight to drive key choices and define a thoughtful short and long term customer strategy.
• Must exhibit exceptionally strong leadership skills, ability to perform in fast-paced environments and ability to influence without authority.
• Must exhibit organizational agility and have experience working/collaborating with multiple home office functions/hierarchy (compliance, regulatory, business development, public relations, MLR, etc)
• Ability to present ideas effectively to individuals or groups, targeting presentation to the needs of the audience.
• Highly motivated and with great attention to detail. Strong endurance to work under tight timelines and complex/changing situations.  
• Outstanding organization and communication skills.
• Strong project and vendor management track record, including resource allocation and fiscal management. Acts as lead of key vendors, including assessments and RFP decisions.
• A proven ability to prioritize and manage complex and innovative projects and establish vision and direction within a fast moving, challenging and energetic commercial environment.
• Strong scientific/medical aptitude, ability to communicate complex scientific/medical concepts in a clear and concise manner.
• Impeccable written and oral presentation skills; comfort around senior/executive leadership
• This is a field-based role. Approximately 50% local/regional travel required by business which may include weekends so proximity to a major airport within the territory is a must to ensure quick connectivity to air transport hubs.

Scope:

Overseas the team who establishes strategic plans for designated function(s) and may participate with senior management to align objectives across the organization.  Develops methods, techniques, and evaluation criteria for projects, programs, and people. Works on complex issues where analysis of situations or data requires an in-depth knowledge of functional area and related organizational objectives.  Erroneous decisions will have a serious impact on the overall success of functional area and may impact the long term success of the company.

Physical Requirements:

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, see, talk or hear in a standard office environment and independently from remote locations. Employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds.   Ability to travel by car or airplane independently overnight up to 50% of the time and work after hours if required by travel schedule or business issues.

#LI-REMOTE

In addition to a competitive base salary, this position is also eligible for discretionary bonus and equity awards based on factors such as individual and organizational performance. Actual amounts will vary depending on experience, performance, and location. 

Salary Range$188,400—$235,500 USD

EEO Statement (US-Based Employees): Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they meet every single one of the qualifications in the exact way they are described in job postings. We are committed to building a diverse, equitable, inclusive, and innovative company and we are looking for the BEST candidate for the job. That candidate may be one who comes from a less traditional background or may meet the qualifications in a different way. We would strongly encourage you to apply – especially if the reason you are the best candidate isn’t exactly as we describe it here.

It is the policy of Acadia to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and employment applicants without regard to considerations of race, including related to hairstyle, color, religion or religious creed, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, gender transition, country of origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, legally-protected medical condition or information, marital status, domestic partner status, family care status, military caregiver status, veteran or military status (including reserve status, National Guard status, and military service or obligation), status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, enrollment in a public assistance program, or any basis protected under federal, state or local law.

As an equal opportunity employer, Acadia is committed to a diverse workforce. If you are a qualified individual with a disability or a disabled veteran, you have the right to request a reasonable accommodation. Furthermore, you may request additional support if you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access Acadia’s career website due to your disability, along with any accommodations throughout the interview process. To request or inquire about your reasonable accommodation, please complete our Reasonable Accommodation Request Form or contact us at talentacquisition@acadia-pharm.com or 858-261-2923.

Please note that reasonable accommodations granted throughout the recruiting process are not guaranteed to be the same accommodation given if hired. A new request will need to be submitted for any ADA accommodations after starting employment.

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Notice to Search Firms/Third-Party Recruitment Agencies (Recruiters): The Talent Acquisition team manages the recruitment and employment process for Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“Acadia”). Acadia does not accept resumes from recruiters or search firms without an executed search agreement in place. Resumes sent to Acadia employees in absence of an executed search agreement will not obligate Acadia in any way with the respect to the future employment of those individuals or potential remuneration to any recruiter or search firm. Candidates should never be submitted directly to our hiring managers or employees.

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