Dir , Patient Strategy & Innovation lead

Merck & Co.; Rahway (NJ); Hybrid; USD 173,000 - 273,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical

Dental

Vision healthcare

Other insurance benefits (employee &/+

Retirement benefits (401k)

Paid holidays

Vacation

Sick days

Job summary

Merck & Co. is seeking a Director, Patient Strategy & Innovation Lead within the Digital Human Health group in Rahway, NJ.

This role drives strategy, engagement, and program management for patient-focused initiatives, collaborating across DHH, CEI, and marketing to align with our patient-first mission. The ideal candidate will bring 10+ years in patient support or digital health strategy, 5+ years leading cross-functional programs, and a deep understanding of the US healthcare landscape.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required.
• 10+ years in patient support, patient engagement, digital health strategy, program management, or related field in pharma/healthcare.
• 5+ years managing complex, cross-functional programs or teams in a matrixed environment.
• Proven track record of strategic patient engagement or marketing initiatives.
• Strong understanding of US healthcare, patient support programs, access and reimbursement.
• Excellent relationship-building and stakeholder management; ability to influence without direct authority.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic development and execution of patient engagement programs.
• Identify and manage external partnerships to enhance patient support offerings.
• Serve as liaison between DHH Patient Capabilities, US CEI Patient CoE, and US marketing teams.
• Oversee end-to-end program management of patient experience projects within time and budget.
• Champion patient-centric innovation and evolve patient strategy with digital, data, and analytics capabilities.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Program management

Stakeholder management

Healthcare ecosystem knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree

Advanced degree (MBA/MPH)

Tools

Agile methodologies

Vendor management

Job description

Job Description

Our Digital Human Health (DHH) team is transforming how we engage with and support patients throughout their healthcare journey. -We are at the forefront of building a more connected, personalized, and seamless patient experience, which will be critical to helping patients to benefit from our upcoming launch products.- Working cross-functionally, we are inventing new ways of leveraging digital, data, and analytics to improve health outcomes and deliver on our "patient-first" mission.

Reporting to the Executive Director, Digital Patient Experience, the Director, Patient Strategy & Innovation Lead will be instrumental in executing our patient-centric vision. This new role will lead the strategy, engagement, and program management for patient-focused initiatives, working in tight partnership with the Patient CoE in the US Commercial Excellence & Innovation (CEI) team and US marketing brand teams.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Strategic Leadership & Execution:-Lead the strategic development and execution of patient engagement programs, ensuring alignment with broader DHH and Human Health objectives.
• Partnership & Ecosystem Development:-Identify, cultivate, and manage innovative external partnerships that enhance our patient support offerings and accelerate our digital patient capabilities.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration:-Serve as the primary liaison between the DHH Patient Capabilities team, the US CEI Patient CoE, and US marketing brand teams to ensure seamless integration and deployment of patient initiatives.
• Program Management:-Oversee the end-to-end program management of key patient experience projects, ensuring they are delivered on time, within budget, and achieve defined success metrics.
• Future Patient Strategy:-Act as a champion for patient-centric innovation, gathering internal and external best practices to continuously evolve how our company's supports patients throughout their treatment journey.- Drive visioning for continued evolution of our patient strategy and the digital, data, and analytics capabilities needed to enable this.

Required Experience and Skills:

• Bachelor's degree
• 10+ years of relevant experience in patient support, patient engagement, digital health strategy, program management, or commercial operations within the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or healthcare industry.
• 5+ years of experience managing complex, cross-functional programs or teams in a highly matrixed environment.
• Proven track record of developing and executing strategic patient engagement or marketing initiatives.
• Strong understanding of the US healthcare ecosystem, including patient support programs, access, and reimbursement dynamics.
• Excellent relationship-building and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence without direct authority across brand and enterprise teams.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• Advanced degree (e.g., MBA, MPH).
• Prior experience specifically working within or closely partnering with a commercial patient support Center of Excellence (CoE).
• Demonstrated experience in evaluating, negotiating, and managing digital health partnerships or vendor relationships.
• Familiarity with agile methodologies and digital product development lifecycles.

Required Skills:

Business Analysis, Business Analysis, Clinical Outcomes, Commercial Operations Management, Data Science, Demand Management, Engagement Strategies, Innovation, Leadership Management, Leadership Theories, Liaison Work, Matrix Management, Multidisciplinary Teamwork, Organizational Leadership, Patient Care, Patient Engagement, Patient Management, Patient Monitoring, Patient Observation, Patient Support, Policy Compliance, Requirements Management, Schedule Adherence, Situational Leadership, Sourcing and Procurement {+ 2 more}

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.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

The primary location for this posting is:

USA - New Jersey - Rahway

Where required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.

The salary range for the primary location of this role is:

$173,200.00 - $272,600.00

This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of 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.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include:

• medical
• dental
• vision healthcare
• other insurance benefits (for employee and family)
• retirement benefits
• including 401(k)
• paid holidays
• vacation
• compassionate and sick days

More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits .

Additional location(s):

Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

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:

11/4/2026

*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:

R413347