Senior Director, Clinical Science, Pulmonary Hypertension and Cardiovascular, Hybrid

Merck & Co.; Rahway (NJ); On-site; USD 250,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck & Co. invites an experienced Senior Director, Clinical Science, Pulmonary Hypertension and Cardiovascular to lead strategic Clinical Science across multiple studies and assets, guiding development planning and standardizing scientific practices.

You will partner with Clinical Operations, Regulatory Affairs, Biostatistics and Data Management, Drug Safety, Translational Medicine and Medical Affairs to align strategies, interpret data, and drive governance discussions with senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic Clinical Science leadership across the disease area, covering multiple studies and assets.
• Contribute to development opportunities, scientific considerations, portfolio risks, and data implications.
• Partner with Section Heads, Asset Leads, and cross-functional leaders to align Clinical Science activities.
• Apply expert knowledge of therapeutic focus, disease biology, treatment landscape, and meaningful endpoints to inform study planning.
• Support cross-study and cross-asset integration of scientific insights to guide development decisions.
• Lead efforts to standardize Clinical Science approaches across the disease area and deliverables.
• Promote consistency in how Clinical Science activities are conducted while allowing program-specific needs.
• Advocate for innovative approaches, including visual analytics, centralized data review, and AI-enabled workflows.
• Provide senior scientific guidance across studies to ensure high-quality and consistent Clinical Science input.
• Help ensure issues are appropriately framed for governance discussions with cross-functional partners.

Job description

Job Description

The Senior Director, Clinical Science, Pulmonary Hypertension and Cardiovascular is responsible for providing strategic Clinical Science leadership, with accountability spanning multiple studies, programs, and assets. Reporting to the Executive Director, this role contributes to disease area strategy by applying deep therapeutic expertise to guide Clinical Science approaches, support development planning, and promote consistency in scientific standards, medical data review practices, and decision-making across the portfolio.

The individual in this role is expected to bring deep knowledge of Pulmonary Hypertension and Cardiovascular disease, including disease biology, current and emerging treatment landscape, relevant clinical endpoints, and key scientific considerations that influence development strategy and study design. The Senior Director partners closely with Section Heads, Asset Leads, Program Development Team Leads, and cross-functional development team members to support study planning, data interpretation, issue resolution, and broader program decisions across assigned studies and programs.

This role has a strong strategic orientation and is expected to shape how Clinical Science work is performed across the Pulmonary Hypertension and Cardiovascular portfolio, including standardization of practices, alignment of scientific approaches, and integration of insights across assets. The Senior Director may have responsibility for direct management and development of multiple Clinical Scientists and is expected to provide leadership, coaching, and clear direction within a matrix environment.

The role requires close collaboration with Clinical Operations, Regulatory Affairs, Biostatistics and Data Management, Drug Safety and Pharmacovigilance, Translational Medicine, Medical Affairs, and other key partner functions, as well as contribution to governance discussions and senior leadership reviews.

Key Responsibilities:

Disease Area and Clinical Science Strategy:

• Provide strategic Clinical Science leadership across the disease area, including multiple studies, programs, and assets.
• Contribute to disease area strategy by providing Clinical Science input on development opportunities, scientific considerations, portfolio risks, and implications of emerging internal and external data.
• Partner with Section Heads, Asset Leads, Program Development Team Leads, and cross-functional leaders to support alignment of Clinical Science activities with broader program and disease area objectives.
• Apply expert knowledge of therapeutic focus, disease biology, treatment landscape, and clinically meaningful endpoints to inform study planning, data interpretation, and issue resolution.
• Support cross-study and cross-asset integration of scientific insights to inform development decisions.

Standardization and Scientific Consistency:

• Lead efforts to standardize Clinical Science approaches across the disease area, including medical data review practices, data interpretation principles, and key deliverables, as appropriate.
• Promote consistency in how Clinical Science activities are conducted across studies and programs while allowing for program-specific needs.
• Help establish and maintain standards, expectations, and leading practices for Clinical Science work within the portfolio.
• Support alignment across assets on important disease area considerations, including endpoint interpretation, patient population considerations, safety topics, and emerging scientific issues.
• Advocate for implementation of innovative approaches, including visual analytics, centralized data review, AI-enabled workflows, and other technologies that improve quality and efficiency.

Strategic Scientific Leadership:

• Provide senior scientific guidance across assigned studies and programs to support high-quality and consistent Clinical Science input.
• Guide interpretation of clinical data across studies, cohorts, and assets to support broader understanding of trends, opportunities, risks, and program implications.
• Support identification and evaluation of important clinical, scientific, and data-related issues and help ensure they are appropriately framed for cross-functional and governance discussions.