Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead

LanceSoft; Cambridge; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading biotechnology firm seeks an Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead for its Oncology team in Cambridge. This hybrid role involves overseeing the development of global scientific communications strategies and medical publications. Candidates should have a PhD or equivalent, experience in oncology, and a strong background in project management and communications. Responsibilities include managing publication strategies, collaborating with cross-functional teams, and ensuring compliance with publication standards.

Benefits

Hybrid Schedule

Professional Development Opportunities

Qualifications

• 5+ years healthcare experience with medical publications.
• Oncology experience strongly preferred.
• Strong leadership skills necessary for training teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead development of scientific communications plans.
• Manage publications process and ensure compliance.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams for strategy.

Skills

Strong written and verbal communication skills

Project management

Resource allocation

Oncology knowledge

Ability to synthesize complex data

Education

PhD or PharmD in a scientific discipline

Tools

Datavision

MS Project

Word

Excel

Power Point

Job description

Job Title: Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead (Hematology, Global Medical Affairs Oncology)

Location: Cambridge, MA 02139 - Hybrid

Duration: 06 Months

Hybrid Schedule – 8 AM to 5 PM

Description:

About the role:

• As a member of Client Oncology, your work will contribute to our bold, inspiring vision: We aspire to cure cancer. Here, you'll build a career grounded in purpose and be empowered to deliver your best.
• As part of the Global Medical Affairs Oncology team, you will report to the Scientific Communications Group Lead, Hematology.
• As a subject matter expert on scientific publications best practices and the development of scientific communications strategy and deliverables, the Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead, Hematology proactively defines and drives the publication and scientific communication strategic plan and deliverables for the assigned oncology assets based on medical strategies, transparency requirements, and data availability.
• This position requires a strong scientific and analytical background, preferably in life sciences, and excellent project management skills.
• The Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead, develops and implements strategic publications and scientific communications plans in coordination with relevant cross-functional teams (including members of medical affairs, clinical development, and outcomes research; global, regional, or local); leads the publications planning team; manages the development of scientific publications for external audiences and scientific communications materials such as slide decks, NCCN or pathway submissions, animations, and digital amplification of data; manages vendors, freelancers, and available contractors, writers, and editors in the execution of publication and scientific communications tactics; and manages annual budget planning for each assigned program(s).
• The individual in this role will be responsible for driving the publications process and ensuring compliance with global standards, and for ensuring accuracy and scientific rigor of publications. The Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead will serve as the primary liaison with internal and external opinion leaders, investigators, authors, partners, and affiliates on publication activities related to the compounds/programs.
• The individual in this role will also be responsible for leading the development of the scientific platform for the assigned assets in collaboration with cross-functional stakeholders, ensuring that this foundational document, which is centered on core scientific statements, provides a scientific lexicon for the program and drives one consistent scientific voice across scientific communications channels.
• This role will be leading additional medical communications content, which may include, but is not limited to, scientific slide decks, field medical tools, training materials, congress-related activities, websites/tools, and other deliverables.
• The Associate Director, Scientific Communications Lead will have strong leadership skills required for training internal teams on good publications practices and will play an active role in providing guidance and training to Publications department colleagues on publication strategy development and tactical execution best practices.
• This individual will work closely with the Scientific Communications Group Lead, Hematology to optimize department resources and evaluate trends in medical publications, and lead and/or participate in the development and review of publications SOPs and Work Practices, where appropriate, to ensure delivery of high-quality medical publications in a timely and compliant manner across programs.

How you will contribute:

• Collaborate with cross-functional, multidisciplinary teams to support the development, management, and execution of global (all regions) strategic scientific communication & publication plans that align with product medical strategies.
• Proactively develop, manage, and execute on global or regionally integrated strategic publication plans and scientific communication plans in coordination with cross-functional teams, ensuring alignment with product medical strategies
• Have a strong understanding of prioritized disease areas, including landscape and competition
• Initiate communication with authors; identify all necessary data required for content development; participate in author meetings to facilitate content discussion and ensure appropriate content development process is followed
• Critically review publications including, but not limited to, manuscripts, abstracts, posters, and oral presentations, for accuracy and scientific rigor; manage and facilitate the content review process, including collating reviewer comments and having discussions with authors and reviewers
• Commitment to ethical practices in the preparation and dissemination of publications
• Effectively and consistently communicate the publication and scientific communications strategy, tactical plan, and plan progress to internal business partners; work with vendors and internal technical support groups to evaluate and optimize publications systems for reporting metrics to meet stakeholder needs
• Manage medical writing agency, including oversight on execution of publications plans and budget, and maintenance of publications management databases such as Datavision
• Ensure compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and policies for development, internal review, and dissemination of scientific communications materials, and act with commitment to ethical practices in the preparation and dissemination of publications.
• Manage alliance partnerships
• Evaluate trends in medical publications and drive opportunities for enhanced publications content and amplification of publications to increase value of publications in scientific exchange; lead and/or participate in process development and refinement, as/if needed
• Lead and/or participate in recruitment of vendors to fill resource gaps
• Provide guidance and training to colleagues on publication strategy development and tactical execution best practices
• Coordinate, plan, and manage scientific communications budget for assigned program(s) in close collaboration with GMAO Operations team
• As needed, provide medical and scientific review of Global Medical Affairs Oncology materials (and, if required, promotional materials) to support the medical (and promotional) review process
• As a subject matter expert for the assigned programs, lead or contribute to the development of content for Global Medical Affairs projects, including but not limited to, NCCN compendia, training materials, global congress plan, and medical resource tools, as needed
• Serve as the Global Scientific Communications representative on relevant Global Medical Strategy Team
• Attend conferences, symposia, or other meetings, as necessary or as assigned, and act as liaison between Global Scientific Communications and external content contributors

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Advanced degree (PhD, PharmD, or equivalent) in a scientific discipline (preferred) or a minimum of Bachelor’s degree in a scientific discipline plus commensurate long-term experience within pharmaceutical or biotech industry
• 5+ years healthcare or related experience, including 3+ years of experience with the development and execution of medical publications, within medical affairs in the pharmaceutical or biotech industry or within a medical communications agency, is essential
• Knowledge of the scientific publication planning processes, current standards of good publication practice (GPP3), pertinent external guidelines related to industry publications (ICMJE), and scientific reporting standards for studies (CONSORT)
• Oncology experience strongly preferred
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with demonstrated ability to manage several projects simultaneously
• Ability to work well independently and under pressure
• Strong capabilities and experience with resource allocation and vendor management
• Ability to synthesize, interpret, present, and discuss complex medical and scientific data
• Understanding of pharmaceutical clinical development and product life-cycle management, clinical trial design and execution, statistical methods and clinical clinical trial data reporting requirements
• Experience in medical communications function, which may include publications, medical information, and/or training.
• Experience with publications management databases such as Datavision
• Working experience in cross-functional teams and global/local teams within the pharmaceutical or related industry

Competencies

• Strategic Approach: Ability to identify opportunities and anticipate changes in the business landscape through an understanding and ongoing assessment of the environment
• Collaboration: Ability to cultivate a broad network of relationships throughout the organization, connecting global, regional and local organizations. Requires experience and success in working in a matrix, cross-functional environment; excellent collaboration skills; experience working across functions to achieve results
• Engage Others: Ability to create a clear and unifying vision inspiring teams to excel
• Drive for Results: Creates functional strategies and goals that are closely aligned with company objectives and develops metrics to track and assess performance
• Creativity and Innovation: Ability to contribute to data analytics and publication planning, including ideas for sub-analyses
• Compliance and Regulatory: Excellent understanding of regulatory, compliance and legal requirements
• Technical Skills: Advanced PC skills, including Datavision, MS Project, Word, Excel, Power Point, and SharePoint