Head of Global External Affairs, Roche Diagnostics

Roche; Pleasanton (CA); On-site; USD 350,000 - 432,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation benefits

Discretionary annual bonus

Job summary

Roche seeks a Head of Global External Affairs to lead policy architecture and high-stakes engagement for Roche Diagnostics. You will guide global teams, harmonize regulatory, healthcare, environmental, and trade policy, and partner with regional leaders to drive enterprise priorities.

The role emphasizes strategic alliances, executive presence, and the One Roche approach across global and regional partners, with a primary location in Washington, D.C. Relocation benefits are available.

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in Public Policy, Health Policy, International Relations, Law, Environmental Affairs, or Life Sciences with 15+ years of leadership in External Affairs or Government Relations.
• Proven track record of leading global teams and building policy capabilities across regulatory, healthcare, environmental, and trade domains.

Responsibilities

• Lead central policy setting and governance for Roche Diagnostics on key issues: trade, regulatory, healthcare, and environmental policy.
• Shape and align policy stances with regional affiliates to drive unified Roche Diagnostics priorities.
• Develop external alliances with international bodies (WHO, OECD) and industry partners to advance strategic positions.
• Collaborate with QR&E, Diagnostics, Pharma, Legal, and Sustainability to ensure cohesive policy across the enterprise.

Skills

Executive leadership

Policy development

Regulatory affairs

Stakeholder engagement

Strategic thinking

Education

Master’s degree

Ph.D. or JD

Job description

At Roche you can show up as yourself, embraced for the unique qualities you bring. Our culture encourages personal expression, open dialogue, and genuine connections, where you are valued, accepted and respected for who you are, allowing you to thrive both personally and professionally. This is how we aim to prevent, stop and cure diseases and ensure everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Join Roche, where every voice matters.

The Position

Operating as the Head of Global External Affairs, you will be a pivotal member of the Quality, Regulatory & External Affairs (QR&E) global leadership team, with a direct reporting line to the Global Head of QR&E for Roche Diagnostics.

This role serves as the senior global leader for Roche Diagnostics regarding policy architecture and high-stakes external stakeholder engagement, working closely with our regional and affiliate leaders. Leading dedicated global teams, you will position the organization as the authoritative voice for defining and harmonizing official policy across regulatory policy, healthcare, environmental, trade, and industry domains to drive Roche Diagnostics business priorities on key innovation and markets to serve.

Furthermore, you will cultivate strategic alliances to advance these global positions, collaborating in lockstep with regional and country affiliates, Roche/Genetech Pharma and Group (as relevant) to implement a unified policy framework that accelerates enterprise business priorities for Roche Diagnostics.

KEY ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Central Policy Setting & Governance

• Lead teams that serve as the central point for setting, maintaining, and governing Roche Diagnostics' official policy positions on critical topics, including:
• Trade & Industry Policy: Navigating supply chain resilience, tariff/trade agreements, security and defense policies, and broader medtech industry standards
• Regulatory Policy: Influencing global IVD/medical device regulations, standards harmonization, pre/post-market pathways, and emerging technology regulations (e.g., AI, software, digital healthcare, RUO, companion diagnostics and LDTs)
• Healthcare Policy: Shaping diagnostic valuation, funding models, personalized healthcare, and health system transformation
• Environmental Policy: Partner with the Diagnostics Product Sustainability and Compliance Team to drive sustainable healthcare initiatives, green manufacturing policies, and circular economy expectations
• Develop and cascade a streamlined, simplified matrix of global policy positions designed to give internal and external stakeholders absolute clarity on Roche Diagnostics' stance
• Champion enterprise-wide awareness regarding current and prospective healthcare trends influencing the business, while proactively managing high-stakes relationships with prominent global external bodies, including the WHO and OECD

Strategic Partnerships & External Engagement

• Act as the primary global representative and executive connector for Roche Diagnostics across regulatory entities, multilateral organisations, key external partners, and policy platforms outside the US. Partner closely with External Affairs International, Diagnostics US Government Affairs & Policy, Genentech's Head of US Public Affairs & Market Access, and key members of the Roche Diagnostics Leadership Team to socialize, clarify, and align policy stances, driving a unified “One Roche” approach that optimizes broader enterprise leverage
• Create, nurture, and leverage high-impact external affairs partnerships with industry associations, international non-governmental organizations, and patient advocacy coalitions to advance Roche Diagnostics' strategic positions
• Direct targeted advocacy strategies to ensure Roche Diagnostics proactively shapes the global policy agenda rather than reacting to it

Regional & Affiliate Alignment

• Affiliate Enabling: Work closely with regional and country-level teams to translate global policy positions into actionable local strategies, ensuring local execution directly advances global business priorities
• Feedback Loop: Establish a robust global-to-local network to aggregate regional market insights, emerging country trends, and policy risks back to the central policy-setting process

Leadership & Culture Evolution

• Embody Roche's leadership vision as a Visionary (setting clear policy direction), Architect (building agile policy framework mechanisms), Catalyst (forging external alliances and removing local barriers), and Coach (empowering global and regional policy leads)
• Cross-Functional Integration: Collaborate seamlessly across the broader QR&E function, Diagnostics Division, Diagnostics affiliates, Pharma Division and affiliates, Commercial, Legal, and Corporate Sustainability to ensure enterprise-wide policy cohesion

KNOWLEDGE/ SKILLS/ATTRIBUTES

• Advanced degree (Master’s, Ph.D., or JD) in Public Policy, Health Policy, International Relations, Law, Environmental Affairs, or Life Sciences
• Minimum 15+ years of global or multi-regional leadership experience in External Affairs, Policy Setting, or Government Relations within the In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD), Medical Device, or Pharmaceutical sectors
• Proven track record of leading, mentoring, and developing high-performing global teams; skilled at building strong internal policy capabilities, fostering talent growth, and inspiring a collaborative culture within a complex, matrixed organization.
• Proven experience leading central policy development and successfully building multi-stakeholder partnerships across regulatory, healthcare, environmental, and trade domains
• Demonstrated executive presence and media expertise, with a track record of influencing C-level executives, Board members, and key external global stakeholders while serving as an articulate spokesperson on complex policy matters.
• Exceptional strategic and analytical thinking skills with ability to simplify complex topics
• Proven leadership skills, including the ability to lead in a complex and matrixed environment, building coalitions and advising senior executives

The ideal candidate brings:

• Exceptional ability to distill complex, multi-faceted issues (regulatory, environmental, trade) into simple, compelling, and unified policy stances
• Outstanding track record acting as the principal spokesperson and negotiator with high-level external partners and public authorities
• Strong capability to influence, align, and partner with regional and local country affiliates without direct hierarchical authority, uniting them around common business goals
• Ability to balance long-term global policy shaping with the near‑term commercial needs of regional business units

Location

The primary location is Washington, D.C, with additional major DIA sites in Branchburg, NJ; Indianapolis, IN; Pleasanton, CA; Santa Clara, CA; Tucson, AZ; Basel and Rotkreuz (Switzerland); and Mannheim and Penzberg (Germany).

Relocation benefits are available for this role.

The expected salary range for this position based on the primary location of Washington, D.C is $349,605.00 and $431,865.00. Actual pay will be determined based on experience, qualifications, geographic location, and other job-related factors permitted by law. A discretionary annual bonus may be available based on individual and Company performance. This position also qualifies for the benefits detailed at the link provided below.

Benefits

Where pay transparency applies, details are provided based on the primary posting location. For this role, the primary location is Washington DC. If you are interested in additional locations where the role may be available, we will provide the relevant compensation details later in the hiring process.

Who we are

A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100’000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.

Let’s build a healthier future, together.

Roche is an equal opportunity employer. It is our policy and practice to employ, promote, and otherwise treat any and all employees and applicants on the basis of merit, qualifications, and competence. The company's policy prohibits unlawful discrimination, including but not limited to, discrimination on the basis of Protected Veteran status, individuals with disabilities status, and consistent with all federal, state, or local laws.

If you have a disability and need an accommodation in relation to the online application process, please contact us by completing this form Accommodations for Applicants.

Roche is an equal opportunity employer and strictly prohibits unlawful discrimination based upon an individual's race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin/ancestry, age, mental/physical disability, medical condition, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.