Medical Affairs Director, Italy

Santhera Pharmaceuticals; Ancona; In loco; EUR 90.000 - 120.000; Tempo pieno

Descrizione del lavoro

A leading pharmaceutical company is seeking a Medical Affairs Director in Italy to provide strategic leadership and build a high-performing medical team. The ideal candidate will have over 10 years of experience in medical affairs, particularly in rare diseases, and demonstrate strong relationship-building skills. This role requires a native Italian speaker with excellent communication abilities, ready to travel up to 50%.

Competenze

• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in medical affairs with a focus on product launches and lifecycle management.
• In-depth knowledge of regulatory and compliance requirements in Italy.
• Experience in rare diseases, preferably within hospitals or patient associations.

Mansioni

• Provide effective strategic, scientific, and medical leadership.
• Recruit, develop, and maintain a high-performing medical affairs team.
• Align Italy Medical Affairs and publication plans with global plans.

Conoscenze

Strong relationship-building skills

Excellent planning, organizational, and strategic skills

Native Italian speaker

Resilient, adaptable, and solutions-oriented

Formazione

Bachelor’s degree in a scientific field; MD, PharmD, or equivalent advanced scientific degree

Descrizione del lavoro

Santhera Pharmaceuticals is a Swiss specialty pharmaceutical company focused on medical science and the development and commercialization of innovative pharmaceutical products for the treatment of rare neuromuscular diseases with high unmet medical need.

Come and join our team to contribute to providing treatment options for patients with rare diseases that have a severe impact on the lives of affected children and adults. You can make a difference as :

Medical Affairs Director, Italy

Scope of Work

The Medical Affairs Director, Italy reports directly to the General Manager of Italy, with a dotted line to the Head of Medical Affairs EU & ROW. This role is part of the Italian management team and collaborates closely with all other functions based in Italy, as well as affiliated functions such as Clinical Development, Medical Affairs, Marketing, Commercial, Market Access, and others. The overall scope of the role includes:

• Providing effective strategic, scientific, and medical leadership
• Line management of the medical team (when in place)
• Developing and leading implementation of Italy Medical Affairs plans
• Engaging with scientific leaders in relevant therapy areas to raise awareness, provide relevant information, and foster scientific exchanges
• Demonstrating effective collaboration and sharing best practices between Italy, other countries, and HQ

Key Responsibilities

• Recruit, develop, and maintain a high-performing medical affairs team
• Identify strategic medical activities to support company goals
• Align Italy Medical Affairs and publication plans with global plans
• Plan and deliver effective medical communications, congress, and educational plans
• Deliver tactics on budget and on time
• Develop and oversee Italy scientific/clinical leaders and KOL development plans
• Support local patient advocacy group engagement as aligned with HQ
• Support market access projects related to local value and reimbursement dossiers
• Contribute to HQ-led Medical Affairs projects such as product/therapy training platforms and congresses
• Ensure adherence to SOPs and compliance codes of practice, developing local SOPs as necessary
• Act as Italian compliance champion
• Support collaboration between Medical Affairs and commercial colleagues
• Contribute to high-priority EU/global projects
• Ensure timely and compliant review of marketing and medical materials
• Represent the company at global projects as the senior medical representative

Required Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in a scientific field; MD, PharmD, or equivalent advanced scientific degree
• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in medical affairs with a focus on product launches and lifecycle management
• In-depth knowledge of regulatory and compliance requirements in Italy
• Experience in rare diseases, R&D, or clinical work, preferably within hospitals or patient associations
• Experience in neuromuscular diseases or related therapeutic areas
• Leadership and team management experience
• Willingness to travel up to 50%

Required Competencies & Skills

• Strong relationship-building skills with KOLs, healthcare professionals, and stakeholders
• Excellent planning, organizational, and strategic skills
• Proactive, results-oriented, and independent worker
• Native Italian speaker with excellent communication and presentation skills
• Ability to work in a dynamic, matrix environment
• Resilient, adaptable, and solutions-oriented

If interested in a multicultural, challenging, and innovative environment, please apply online in English via LinkedIn or email us.

Note for agencies: Recruitment agencies are kindly requested not to send unsolicited CVs to Santhera.