Director, Meetings & Events

Abivax; United States; On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Abivax is seeking a Director of Meetings & Events to lead enterprise meetings and events strategy across commercial, medical, and corporate functions. You will oversee national and international congresses, speaker programs, advisory boards, and customer engagements, ensuring compliance and operational excellence.

The role requires deep expertise in pharmaceutical events, cross-functional leadership, and budgeting, with a focus on scalable processes and governance frameworks as Abivax advances

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, Hospitality Management, Healthcare Administration, or related field.
• Minimum 10 years in pharma/biotech/healthcare.
• Minimum 5 years leading meetings, congresses, and speaker programs.
• Experience managing enterprise-level event portfolios and budgets.
• Strong understanding of healthcare compliance for meetings and speaker programs.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement the company's meetings and events strategy across commercial and medical organizations.
• Lead planning and execution of national, regional, and international congresses.
• Oversee exhibit strategy, sponsorships, logistics, staffing, and budgets.
• Coordinate activities across Commercial, Medical Affairs, Clinical Development, and Corporate Communications.
• Direct planning and execution of advisory boards, consultant meetings, investigator meetings, and customer engagement events.
• Establish governance, vendor partnerships, and speaker program management.

Skills

Strategic event planning

Budget management

Vendor management

Regulatory compliance

Cross-functional leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business/Marketing/Communications/Healthcare Admin

Tools

Event management systems

Job description

At Abivax, our purpose is simple: to improve patients' lives. As a global clinical-stage biotechnology company with headquarter in Paris and offices in the United States, we are advancing innovative therapies for people living with chronic inflammatory diseases. We are looking for talented, purpose-driven individuals who want their work to have a meaningful impact. Every day, we challenge ourselves to ask: "How did I make a patient's life better today?" If that question inspires and motivates you, we invite you to join our team.

The Director, Meetings & Events is responsible for developing and leading Abivax's enterprise meetings and events strategy across commercial, medical, and corporate functions. This individual will oversee the planning, execution, compliance, and operational excellence of all national sales meetings, launch meetings, speaker program operations, congresses, advisory boards, customer engagements, and internal corporate events. As Abivax advances toward commercialization, the Director will establish scalable processes, governance frameworks, agency partnerships, and event execution capabilities that deliver exceptional stakeholder experiences while ensuring full compliance with industry regulations and company policies. This role serves as the central point of accountability for event strategy and execution and partners closely with Commercial, Medical Affairs, Compliance, Legal, Finance, Procurement, and field teams.

Key Responsibilities / Essential Functions

Meetings & Events Strategy

• Develop and implement the company's meetings and events strategy across commercial and medical organizations.

• Establish a scalable operating model to support pre-launch, launch, and post-launch business needs.

• Create annual event roadmaps aligned to commercial objectives, brand milestones, and scientific engagement strategies.

• Serve as the strategic lead for all major internal and external events.

Congress Planning & Execution

• Lead planning and execution of national, regional, and international medical congresses.

• Oversee exhibit strategy, sponsorships, meeting logistics, staffing plans, ancillary events, and budget management.

• Coordinate congress activities across Commercial, Medical Affairs, Clinical Development, and Corporate Communications.

• Ensure seamless execution of onsite activities and post-congress assessments.

• Drive continuous improvement based on attendee feedback and business outcomes.

• Lead the strategy, operations, and governance of Abivax's speaker bureau and promotional speaker programs.

• Develop processes for speaker onboarding, training, contracting, and performance management. • Oversee vendor execution of live, virtual, and hybrid speaker programs.

• Partner with Compliance, Legal, and Medical Affairs to ensure all speaker activities meet regulatory and company requirements.

• Monitor program effectiveness and develop performance metrics to optimize impact and resource allocation.

Advisory Boards & Customer Engagement Events

• Direct planning and execution of advisory boards, consultant meetings, investigator meetings, and customer engagement events.

• Partner with cross-functional stakeholders to define objectives, participant selection criteria, and meeting outputs, in accordance with compliance requirements.

• Ensure insights and action items are captured and communicated effectively.

• Establish best practices for attendee engagement and experience management.

• Lead relationships with meeting planning agencies, congress partners, speaker bureau vendors, and event technology providers.

• Negotiate contracts and service agreements to maximize value and ensure high-quality execution.

• Establish vendor performance metrics and oversee ongoing evaluation processes.

• Identify innovative event technologies and service solutions that enhance stakeholder engagement.

Financial Management & Operational Excellence

• Develop and manage annual meetings and events budgets.

• Implement forecasting, tracking, and reporting processes to ensure responsible resource management.

• Monitor event ROI and develop performance dashboards and KPIs.

• Create standardized policies, procedures, templates, and planning tools across the organization.

• Drive operational efficiency while maintaining high-quality execution standards.

Compliance & Governance

• Establish and maintain compliant meetings and events processes aligned with applicable regulations and industry guidelines.

• Partner with Compliance and Legal teams to ensure appropriate review and approval procedures. • Maintain documentation, reporting, and audit readiness for all event-related activities.

• Ensure adherence to Sunshine Act reporting requirements and other healthcare compliance obligations.

• Provide training and guidance to internal stakeholders regarding policy and process requirements.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Serve as a trusted partner to Commercial, Medical Affairs, Market Access, Training, Compliance, Finance, Procurement, and Executive Leadership teams.

• Lead event planning committees and cross-functional working teams.

• Support launch readiness planning and execution efforts.

• Influence organizational decision-making through strong collaboration and stakeholder management.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, Hospitality Management, Healthcare Administration, or related field.

• Minimum 10 years of experience in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, or related industries.

• Minimum 5 years of experience leading meetings, congresses, speaker programs, or large scale event operations.

• Demonstrated experience managing enterprise-level event portfolios and budgets.

• Strong understanding of healthcare compliance requirements related to meetings and speaker programs.

• Proven ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives in a dynamic environment.

Preferred

• Experience supporting pre-launch or launch-stage biotechnology organizations.

• Experience building meetings and events capabilities from the ground up.

• Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation or equivalent certification.

• Experience with speaker bureau platforms and event management technologies.

• Immunology, gastroenterology, specialty pharmaceutical, or biotechnology experience.

• Experience managing external agencies and strategic vendor partnerships.

Technical Skills

• Deep expertise in pharmaceutical meetings, congresses, and speaker bureau management.

• Strong understanding of event logistics, budgeting, contracting, and procurement processes.

• Knowledge of healthcare compliance regulations, transparency reporting requirements, and industry codes.

• Experience with virtual, hybrid, and in-person event technologies.

• Proficiency in project management and event management systems.

• Strong analytical skills with experience measuring event effectiveness and ROI.

Core Competencies

• Exceptional leadership and stakeholder management abilities.

• Strong strategic planning and operational execution skills.

• Outstanding communication and presentation capabilities.

• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple high-profile initiatives simultaneously. • Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills.

• High level of organizational agility and adaptability.

• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to execution excellence.

• Ability to influence across functions without direct authority.

• Customer-focused mindset with commitment to delivering exceptional experiences.

• Commitment to integrity, collaboration, and patient-centered values.

This job description is intended to describe the general responsibilities and qualifications for this position and is not an exhaustive list of all duties. Responsibilities may change based on business needs, and Abivax reserves the right to modify this job description at any time. Reasonable accommodation will be provided to qualified individuals with disabilities to enable them to perform the essential functions of the position. Abivax is an Equal Opportunity Employer and makes all employment decisions without regard to any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.