Senior Medical Affairs Lead – General & Specialty Medicine

Merck; Riyadh; On-site; SAR 500,000 - 700,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia seeks a senior Medical Affairs leader to recruit and develop a high-performing team and to design and execute CMAPs aligned with global strategy. You will oversee budgets, support inspections, and lead scientific exchanges with health authorities and HCPs.

The role requires strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration, and deep therapeutic area expertise. The successful candidate will drive regulatory and strategic initiatives across local data generation,

Qualifications

• MD, PhD or PharmD with a minimum of three to five years of clinical, Medical Affairs, and/or research experience in a relevant disease area.
• Proven ability to work cross-functionally with various business units and senior leaders.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to create and execute complex strategic and operational initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Recruits, hires and develops talent within the Medical Affairs team.
• Creates an empowering, compliant, collaborative, and innovation-focused work environment.
• Builds a culture of quality and compliance through training, oversight and collaboration.
• Develops and executes the Country Medical Affairs Plans (CMAPs) for the TA, ensuring alignment with global strategy and adherence to relevant regulations and SOPs.
• Manages the TA portfolio, balancing global and local priorities.
• Performs observational field visits with Field Medical Advisors to assess scientific and soft-skill acumen.
• Oversees the development and execution of CMAPs, including post-licensure research, publication plans, and investigator-initiated studies.
• Manages the operating administrative and lifecycle-management budget for the TA.
• Supports inspections and audits and provides assistance in answering inquiries by health authorities and internal auditors.
• Ensures Field Medical Advisors/MSLs have assigned geographic territories and/or indications aligned with the Medical Affairs Plan.
• Manages the country-developed Protocol Concept Sheets (PCSs) and supports obtaining regional and global approvals for new local data-generation activities.
• Represents V&I in cross-functional teams, collaborating with GCD, GCTO, and other internal stakeholders.
• Provides scientific expertise to commercial product teams, ensuring the scientific and medical value of the company's products.
• Fosters collaboration among local marketing teams, market access teams, RDMAs, regional marketing, and Medical Managers to support the TA in achieving local and regional goals.
• Ensures correct development of core competencies of Medical Affairs in the team.
• Serves as the external interface with key TA stakeholders, professional societies, and the broader scientific community.
• Develops and maintains relationships with health-care professionals (HCPs), providers, and academic centers.
• Collaborates with market access, regulatory, and commercial colleagues to engage payers, policymakers, and other decision-makers.
• Liaises with national and international physicians to establish good relationships and model HCP perception about the company's products.
• When needed, engages in scientific exchange to bridge science to clinical practice and improve patient outcomes.

Skills

Leadership Management

Clinical Trials

Regulatory Strategies

Stakeholder Management

Scientific Publications

Strategic Planning

Data Analysis

Education

MD, PhD or PharmD

Job description

Merck in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia seeks a senior Medical Affairs leader to recruit and develop a high-performing team and to design and execute CMAPs aligned with global strategy. You will oversee budgets, support inspections, and lead scientific exchanges with health authorities and HCPs.

The role requires strong leadership, cross-functional collaboration, and deep therapeutic area expertise. The successful candidate will drive regulatory and strategic initiatives across local data generation,