Director, Epidemiology

Alkermes; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 210,000 - 245,000; Full time

Job summary

Alkermes is seeking a Director, Head of Epidemiology to guide epidemiologic research across discovery and clinical development within our R&D organization. The role collaborates with program leaders for investigational and marketed products, designs research plans, and oversees direct reports and vendors.

This hybrid position requires 60% office time in Waltham, MA and 40% remote, with base salary between $210,000 and $245,000 plus a performance bonus.

Qualifications

• Accountability and a sense of urgency in leading critical projects.
• Can work both independently and collaboratively and to be able to effectively communicate with varied stakeholders, including senior management at Alkermes and external stakeholders, both verbally and in writing.
• Strategic and critical thinking skills.
• Ability to effectively operate and lead in a highly matrixed and dynamic environment.
• Excellent organizational skills, including budgeting and tracking.
• Understand the strengths and weaknesses of real-world data sources and can perform or direct queries and analyses from appropriate data sources to address strategic needs.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate cross-functional teams to define program strategies and identify epidemiologic research needs.
• Develop and maintain disease area reports describing demographics and comorbidities of focus diseases.
• Provide literature searches and support analyses of epidemiologic data for safety signals and regulatory queries.
• Provide epidemiologic reports to support regulatory filings (e.g., orphan designation).
• Lead pharmacoepidemiologic study design and execution with Safety, Clinical Development, Medical Affairs, and external vendors.
• Collaborate with HEOR on real-world data sources and pharmacoeconomic methods.
• Review observational study protocols, analysis plans, reports, and publications.
• Represent Alkermes at scientific forums.
• Educate stakeholders on pharmacoepidemiology resources; track deliverables; manage vendors; ensure SOP/regulatory compliance; budget activities.
• Establish scalable pharmacoepidemiology plans; track key deliverables and queries; establish and manage key vendors; ensure regulatory-compliant SOPs; budget and prioritize epidemiology needs.

Skills

Accountability

Urgency

Independent work

Stakeholder communication

Strategic thinking

Budgeting

Data queries

Education

PhD or ScD in Epidemiology

Job description

Job Description

The Director, Head of Epidemiology serves as an important resource to the Alkermes R&D organization. This critical leadership role is tasked to advise both discovery and clinical development programs through better understanding of target disease populations, timely epidemiologic support to safety queries, and contribute to regulatory filings as needed. The incumbent will collaborate closely with cross-functional program leaders for both investigational and marketed products to identify program needs that can be addressed through epidemiologic research and then design and deliver on those research plans. The position includes management oversight of direct reports and vendors.

The Director, Head of Epidemiology serves as an important resource to the Alkermes R&D organization. This critical leadership role is tasked to advise both discovery and clinical development programs through better understanding of target disease populations, timely epidemiologic support to safety queries, and contribute to regulatory filings as needed. The incumbent will collaborate closely with cross-functional program leaders for both investigational and marketed products to identify program needs that can be addressed through epidemiologic research and then design and deliver on those research plans. The position includes management oversight of direct reports and vendors.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate with cross-functional discovery and product teams to understand program strategies and needs and identify potential epidemiologic research that supports program goals.
• Develop and maintain epidemiology disease area reports describing the demographics and comorbidities of diseases of focus associated with Alkermes discovery targets and investigational and marketed products.
• Provide epidemiologic literature search as well as support analyses of epidemiologic data sets to aid DSPV safety signal investigations, ad hoc queries, aggregate reports and epidemiologic studies as well as supporting Clinical Development queries regarding focus disease states.
• Provide epidemiologic reports to support regulatory filings as needed (e.g., orphan drug designation applications)
• Lead pharmacoepidemiologic study design and execution in close partnership with Drug Safety, Clinical Development and Medical Affairs stakeholders as well as with external vendors.
• Collaborate with Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) group on real-world data sources, strategic evidence generation, and pharmacoeconomic methodology.
• Participate in reviews of observational research study protocols, analysis plans, study reports, and associated scientific publications.
• Effectively represent Alkermes at scientific forums.
• Establish a vision and plan for scaling pharmacoepidemiology with future company growth. This will include:
  • Educating key stakeholders on pharmacoepidemiology resources and capabilities
  • Tracking of key deliverables and queries
  • Establishing and managing key vendors for needed contract services
  • Ensure that processes/SOPs relating to pharmacoepidemiology activities are compliant to regulatory requirements
  • Budgeting and prioritization of epidemiology activities and needs

Qualifications

• PhD or ScD in Epidemiology is preferred.
• Five or more years of experience in the health science-related field, and at least 3 years in the pharmaceutical industry with direct exposure to clinical, regulatory or pharmacovigilance functions, including 2 years epidemiology/pharmacovigilance experience.
• Experience in managing direct reports strongly desired.
• Knowledge of pre- and post-marketing US and EU regulations desirable.

Skills

• Accountability and a sense of urgency in leading critical projects.
• Can work both independently and collaboratively and to be able to effectively communicate with varied stakeholders, including senior management at Alkermes and external stakeholders, both verbally and in writing.
• Strategic and critical thinking skills.
• Ability to effectively operate and lead in a highly matrixed and dynamic environment.
• Excellent organizational skills, including budgeting and tracking.
• Understand the strengths and weaknesses of real-world data sources and can perform or direct queries and analyses from. appropriate data sources to address strategic needs.

Alkermes has recently adopted a hybrid working environment to support and meet the needs of employees and this role will operate in a flexible environment with 60% of time in the office and 40% from home. This position is eligible for the hybrid workplace model, requiring work to be completed onsite at our Waltham, MA office at least 3 days per week. This role is not eligible for fully remote work.

The annual base salary for this position ranges from $210,000 to $245,000. In addition, this position is eligible for an annual performance pay bonus. Exact compensation may vary based on skills, training, knowledge, and experience. Alkermes offers a competitive benefits package. Additional details can be found on our careers website: www.alkermes.com/careers#working-here

Why join Team Alkermes?

Alkermes applies its decades of deep neuroscience expertise to develop medicines designed to help people living with complex and difficult-to-treat psychiatric and neurological disorders. A global biopharmaceutical company, headquartered in Ireland with U.S. locations in Massachusetts and Ohio, we seek to make a meaningful difference in the way people manage their diseases. We have a portfolio of proprietary commercial products for the treatment of alcohol dependence, opioid dependence, schizophrenia, bipolar I disorder and narcolepsy, and a pipeline of clinical and preclinical candidates in development for various psychiatric and neurological disorders.

We are proud to have been recognized as an employer of choice by many national organizations. In 2024 and 2025, we were certified as a Great Place to Work in the U.S. and named one of Massachusetts’ Top Places to Work by the Boston Globe, a Best Place to Work in Greater Cincinnati by the Cincinnati Business Courier and recognized as a Best Place to Work in BioPharma by Fortune Magazine.

Alkermes, Inc. is an equal employment opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any qualified applicant or employee because of race, creed, color, age, national origin, ancestry, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression and identity, disability, genetic information, veteran status, military status, application for military service or any other characteristic protected by local, state or federal law. Alkermes also complies with all work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act and IRCA. Alkermes is an E-Verify employer.