Associate Director, sac-TMT Market Research

Merck; Rahway (NJ); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, seeks an Associate Director, Primary Market Research to lead portions of the Global and U.S. market research plan, guiding strategic insights for our product portfolio from pre-launch to lifecycle management.

You will partner with marketing, sales and analytics teams, oversee studies, apply AI-enabled methods, and mentor a team in a fast-paced environment, driving evidence-based decisions and innovative research approaches.

Qualifications

• Minimum of eight years of pharmaceutical marketing market research and analytics experience.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills with the ability to translate data into actionable insights.
• Experience with AI-enabled research methods and data sources.

Responsibilities

• Develop and oversee execution of market research plans for the product franchise.
• Lead primary market research projects and frame critical business questions.
• Apply AI-enabled research methods and synthesize insights into actionable recommendations.
• Manage external research partners and vendor selection.
• Collaborate with marketing, commercial, and analytics teams to apply insights to launches and lifecycle planning.

Skills

Market research

Strategic thinking

Analytical skills

AI-enabled analytics

Leadership

Project management

Education

BA/BS in Business, Marketing, Healthcare or related field

MBA, MS, MPH or other advanced degree

Tools

SAS

SPSS

LLM tools

Job description

Job Description

Our Marketing team is passionate about bringing our medicines and vaccines to our customers around the world. Through digital listening and patient analytics, we can understand our customers’ needs and strive to provide solutions to meet them. At our Company (https://go.msd.com/~vs4xix) , we are leveraging insights, analytics and technology, as we invent for life on behalf of patients around the world. We are seeking those who have a passion for using strategic insights, data and analytics to drive decision making, that will allow us to tackle some of the world’s greatest health threats.

Within our commercial Insights, Analytics, and Data organization we are transforming to better power decision-making across our end-to-end commercialization process, from business development to late lifecycle management. As we endeavor, we are seeking a dynamic talent for the role of Associate Director, Primary Market Research .

Position Description:

The Market Research Associate Director will be a main point of contact for their assigned areas of responsibility for our product's marketing / commercial team. The position will plan, prioritize, manage, and execute a scope of work within the sac-TMT asset spanning both pre- and post-launch. Responsibilities include providing strategic input to the extended global and U.S. teams via primary market research projects and secondary data analysis by proactively defining business questions and opportunities, identifying strategic insights, and recommending actionable business solutions. The Associate Director will also help advance the evolution of Primary Market Research by leveraging AI-enabled research, analytics, and knowledge management capabilities to accelerate insight generation, enhance decision-making, and identify innovative approaches to understanding customers, markets, and business opportunities.

This person is expected to be an exceptional team player who can comfortably interact with and add value to the existing market research team as well as strategically partner with extended team members including pricing and access, sales, promotion, marketing and our Research & Development Division (https://go.msd.com/~vs4xix) . The Associate Director will consistently demonstrate strong leadership skills with an ability to work independently in a rapidly changing environment with a transformational mindset, cultural awareness and resiliency to change. The successful candidate should have an understanding of emerging AI-powered market research methodologies and capabilities including but not limited to synthetic respondents and digital personas and will embrace emerging technologies and data-driven ways of working, while ensuring the responsible, compliant, and effective application of AI and advanced analytics to support business objectives.

Key responsibilities include and are not limited to the following:

Market Research & Analytics:

• Develop and oversee execution of an assigned portion of the Global and U.S. market research plan within the product franchise with a strategic mindset and minimal supervision.

• Provide leadership and strategic thinking for assigned primary market research projects for our product including framing critical business questions, identification of information needs, identifying considerations from other data sources, development of research/analysis plans and management of the research process to deliver an objective understanding of key customers, competitors’ products and current/future market developments.

• Take full ownership of understanding the business challenges/information needs, consider alternatives, propose appropriate methods and approaches, apply best practices, and proactively consider and/or develop new techniques and innovations to meet objectives.

• Proficient in various market research methodologies and research techniques to design effective research studies.

• Evaluate and apply innovative market research approaches and emerging technologies, including AI-assisted synthesis, advanced analytics, digital personas, simulated respondents, and connected insights ecosystems, where appropriate to address business needs and inform strategic decisions.

• Complete analyses using available secondary data, syndicated reports and databases and integrate findings into primary market research efforts to build and tell a compelling story and deliver concise and actionable results, on an as‑needed basis.

Project Management:

• Lead execution of market research studies, including project planning, budget management, vendor briefing, timeline oversight, compliance requirements, and delivery of actionable insights and recommendations, including innovative options.

• Clearly articulate the business rationale, hypotheses, methodology, and expected impact of research approaches to managers and franchise/client teams, ensuring alignment to business objectives.

• Evaluate, select, and manage external research partners based on methodological expertise, technical capabilities, quality standards, innovation potential, and ability to deliver against business needs.

• Assess vendor capabilities in AI-enabled research methodologies and analytics solutions, ensuring appropriate application, compliance, transparency, methodological rigor, and measurable business value.

• Proactively engage marketing/commercial teams to ensure insights are integrated into decision‑making and planning; synthesize findings across multiple sources to frame strategic options and provide consultative guidance.

Proactive Collaboration

• Partner proactively with cross‑functional business partners, including marketing communications, market access, commercial teams, and agency partners, to ensure insights are integrated into launch and post‑launch activities.

• Collaborate with forecasting and analytics teams to inform strategic assumptions, track key performance indicators, and support benchmarking dashboards that guide business decisions.

• Partner with analytics, data strategy, and other insights functions to advance the use of novel data sources, including Real World Data, AI-enabled analytics, and connected insights capabilities.

• Work on and lead ad hoc franchise‑wide initiatives as needed.

Position Qualifications:

Education:

• Minimum Required: BA/BS degree in Business, Marketing, Healthcare or related field

• Preferred: MBA, MS, MPH or other advanced degree in relevant discipline

Knowledge and Skills:

• Minimum of eight (8) years of experience in pharmaceutical marketing market research and analytics; prior experience may include market research, analytics, sales, forecasting, access and pricing, marketing or competitive intelligence.

• Well‑developed analytical and problem‑solving skills; demonstrated ability to think strategically and objectively.

• Expertise in quantitative and qualitative research methodologies and working knowledge of secondary data, analytics and epidemiology data sources.

• Proven ability to synthesize data and research outputs into compelling, actionable insights through effective storytelling and executive‑ready communication.

• Strategic consulting mindset, with ability to quickly establish trust, build credibility, and influence effective partnerships across multiple stakeholders and team members.

• Technical aptitude and curiosity to build expertise in current and emerging market research approaches, including AI‑enabled tools, advanced analytics, and innovative insight‑generation methods.

• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple requests from marketing partners, commercial stakeholders and extended team members in a fast‑paced environment.

• Strong communication skills and demonstrated ability to lead change, support transformation, and promote new ways of working.

Preferred Knowledge and Skills:

• AI fluency and experience applying responsible, compliant AI‑enabled market research and analytics capabilities to accelerate insight generation and enhance decision‑making. Hands‑on experience with LLM tools/apps and basic understanding of prompt engineering.

• Experience supporting launch excellence, early commercial development, and/or lifecycle planning.

• Familiarity with marketing strategy development.

• Demonstrated leadership behaviors, including customer focus, sound decision‑making, courage and candor, collaboration, and accountability.

• Strong project leadership skills, with the ability to manage complexity, balance competing priorities, and deliver high‑quality work in a fast‑paced environment.

• Ability to motivate without authority.

• Ability to support transformation, manage change, and promote adoption of new tools, capabilities and ways of working.

Required Skills:

Business Analysis, Marketing, Researching, Stakeholder Relationship Management, Supplier Management, User Research, Waterfall Model

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:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements: Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date: 10/19/2026

***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: R421176