Assoc. Dir , D&A Strategy

Merck; Rahway (NJ); Hybrid; USD 157,000 - 247,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work arrangement

Competitive benefits

Salary commensurate with experience

Job summary

Merck & Co., Inc. is seeking an Associate Director – Data Strategy, Oncology to drive data strategy within the Digital Human Health (DHH) DSPI team in Rahway, NJ.

You will partner with commercial stakeholders to shape data assets across HCP, payer, and patient domains and lead cross-functional collaborations to enable oncology data solutions. The role focuses on understanding the oncology data landscape, identifying gaps, and executing plans to acquire or partner for assets, including 1st/3rd

Qualifications

• Strong business acumen with a keen ability to understand how data (HCP, consumer, payer, patient, account, engagement, etc.) can be leveraged to inform critical commercial decisions and actions.
• Proven ability to analyze and assess the commercial value of data assets.
• Strong business acumen necessary to understand business stakeholders (marketing, sales, account management, operations, etc.) needs.
• Proven potential to effectively collaborate with a broad range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Intellectual curiosity and ability to identify innovative approaches to addressing data needs.
• Excellent presentation, analytics and communication skills, both written and oral, are required to synthesize key issues and communicate/persuade constituencies towards specific actions and initiatives.
• Ability to attain “trusted advisor” status with key stakeholders and business clients.
• Ability to operate in dynamic, transforming environment.

Responsibilities

• Actively maintains an understanding of the HH commercial data landscape, including assigned 1st, 2nd and 3rd party data assets, spanning HCP, consumer, payer, patient, account, etc.
• Thorough understanding of the Oncology market and understanding of the data being leveraged across various channels and third party data.
• Able to partner to enable proactive data strategy and standardizations to power Gen AI data solutions
• Experience with oncology product launches.
• Continually scans the external environment for new valuable data assets and potential data partnerships in the assigned area.
• Conducts data needs assessments in assigned areas using input from key analytics and business stakeholders, identifies gaps in current data strategy versus ideal state & prioritizes identified gaps.
• For assigned areas, builds and executes plans to fill prioritized gaps, including acquisition of new assets from external sources, or identifying partners to create needed assets, or enacting internal initiatives such as gathering new 1st party assets.
• Partners with internal team to ingest/review external data sources for use by the analytic teams
• Conducts assigned data innovation analytics including data quality assessments, fit-for-purpose analyses, and proof-of-concept use case tests.
• Works in close collaboration with the analytics, master data management teams to ensure appropriate implementation and value realization.
• Responsible for forming and maintaining productive working partnerships with assigned data providers.
• Creates an environment of high-performance collaboration by building strong cross-functional teams

Skills

Business acumen

Data valuation

Stakeholder management

Cross-functional collaboration

Analytical thinking

Communication skills

Trusted advisor

Adaptability

Education

BS in Data Science

MBA/MS/PhD a plus

Tools

EMR/EHR data

Job description

Job Description

Oncology

This role will reside within the Digital Human Health (DHH) organization and specifically the Data Strategy, Products, Innovation (DSPI) team. The Data Strategy, Oncology team operates as part of the US commercial team, providing strategic thought-partnership to US commercial stakeholders and develops the data strategy to support the Oncology business strategy.

Job Title: Associate Director – Data Strategy, Oncology

This role will reside within the Digital Human Health (DHH) organization and specifically the Data Strategy, Products, Innovation (DSPI) team. The Data Strategy, Oncology team operates as part of the US commercial team, providing strategic thought-partnership to US commercial stakeholders and develops the data strategy to support the Oncology business strategy.

Job Responsibilities

• Actively maintains an understanding of the HH commercial data landscape, including assigned 1st, 2nd and 3rd party data assets, spanning HCP, consumer, payer, patient, account, etc. Maintains a working knowledge of the use cases and value associated with each data asset.


• Thorough understanding of the Oncology market and understanding of the data being leveraged across various channels and third party data.


• Able to partner to enable proactive data strategy and standardizations to power Gen AI data solutions


• Experience with oncology product launches.


• Continually scans the external environment for new valuable data assets and potential data partnerships in the assigned area.


• Conducts data needs assessments in assigned areas using input from key analytics and business stakeholders, identifies gaps in current data strategy versus ideal state & prioritizes identified gaps.


• For assigned areas, builds and executes plans to fill prioritized gaps, including acquisition of new assets from external sources, or identifying partners to create needed assets, or enacting internal initiatives such as gathering new 1st party assets.


• Partners with internal team to ingest/review external data sources for use by the analytic teams


• Conducts assigned data innovation analytics including data quality assessments, fit-for-purpose analyses, and proof-of-concept use case tests.


• Works in close collaboration with the analytics, master data management teams to ensure appropriate implementation and value realization.


• Responsible for forming and maintaining productive working partnerships with assigned data providers.


• Creates an environment of high-performance collaboration by building strong cross-functional teams

Education Requirements

• BS (or equivalent) in Data Science, Mathematics, Economics, Computer Science, Statistics, Decision Science, Marketing, Engineering, or Public Health is required.


• MBA, MS or PhD degree is a plus.

Required Experience And Skills

• Strong business acumen with a keen ability to understand how data (HCP, consumer, payer, patient, account, engagement, etc.) can be leveraged to inform critical commercial decisions and actions.


• Proven ability to analyze and assess the commercial value of data assets.


• Strong business acumen necessary to understand business stakeholders (marketing, sales, account management, operations, etc..) needs.


• Proven potential to effectively collaborate with a broad range of internal and external stakeholders.


• Intellectual curiosity and ability to identify innovative approaches to addressing data needs.


• Excellent presentation, analytics and communication skills, both written and oral, are required to synthesize key issues and communicate/persuade constituencies towards specific actions and initiatives.


• Ability to attain “trusted advisor” status with key stakeholders and business clients.


• Ability to operate in dynamic, transforming environment.

Preferred Experience And Skills

Preferred: Prior hands‑on experience working with healthcare data especially in EMR/EHR, Claims Data and various data offering

Required Skills

Account Management, Business Acumen, Business Analysis, Business Decisions, Cross-Team Collaboration, Data Quality Assessments, Data Science, Data Strategies, Demand Management, Innovation, Master Data Management (MDM), Prioritization, Public Health, Requirements Management, Sourcing and Procurement, Stakeholder Relationship Management, Strategic Planning, Strategic Thinking, Teamwork

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.

Requirements

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.

Salary

The salary range for this role is

$156,900.00 - $247,000.00

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.

Benefits

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.

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

No relocation

VISA Sponsorship

No

Travel Requirements

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements

Hybrid

Shift

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License

No

Hazardous Material(s)

n/a

Job Posting End Date

09/25/2026

Additional Information

• 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.

Requisition ID

R406330