Senior Director, New Product Planning – Neurology

Job description

Job Title: Senior Director, New Product Planning – Neurology Location: Cambridge, MA (Alternative locations are Morristown, NJ; Washington, DC; or Paris, France). About the Job Join a team transforming the vision of care for people with neurological conditions. In Sanofi’s Specialty Care you’ll help deliver breakthrough treatments that bring hope to patients with some of the highest unmet needs. Reporting to the Global Head of New Product Planning (NPP) for the Sanofi Neurology Franchise, the Senior Director NPP Neurology will play a critical role in the future growth of Sanofi. This role demands a deep understanding of commercialization needs throughout pre-launch, ensuring that early-stage assets are developed with commercial viability, market readiness and probability of overall success in mind. The Senior Director will: Leverage deep understanding of major global pharmaceutical markets, strong analytical skills and previous commercialization experience to lead the commercial strategy and brand development for internal neurology pipeline drug candidates from discovery/preclinical through proof of concept/start of phase 3. Lead the commercial Due Diligence and assessment of external pipeline opportunities (In-licensing, collaborations, M&A). Coordinate and support the development and articulation of comprehensive Therapeutic Area and Disease Area strategy projects. The Senior Director NPP Neurology will collaborate cross-functionally with teams and leaders across the organization including Research, Clinical Development, Regulatory, Medical, Business Operations, Commercial, R&D Portfolio Strategy and Business Development. In particular, the Senior Director NPP Neurology will closely partner with SILC, Market Access, Health Economics, Forecasting, Market Research and Competitive Intelligence to deliver the commercial assessments and strategies. Join the team transforming care for people with immune challenges, rare diseases, cancers, and Specialty Care neurological conditions. In Specialty Care, you’ll help deliver breakthrough treatments that bring hope to patients with some of the highest unmet needs. About Sanofi We’re an R&D-driven, AI-powered biopharma company committed to improving people’s lives and delivering compelling growth. Our deep understanding of the immune system – and innovative pipeline – enables us to invent medicines and vaccines that treat and protect millions of people around the world. Together, we chase the miracles of science to improve people’s lives. Main responsibilities: Drive Therapeutic Area and Disease Area Strategy development and execution: Lead and drive the development of the Neurology TAS ensuring submission of an aligned and clear articulation of the strategy across Research, Clinical Development and Commercial, working closely with Neurology Therapeutics Areas Strategy (TAS) core team; liaise with Function Heads, Corporate Strategy, R&D Strategy, TA Heads, GBLs and GPHs. Support the preparation of the annual Portfolio Strategy Week (PSW) presentation and Disease Area Strategy (DAS) requirements. Analyze disease landscapes, identify investment opportunities, develop recommendations and execution roadmaps. Present strategic assessments and recommendations to Senior Leadership, including ExCom members. Advance early pipeline and guide drug development with future commercialization in mind: Represent commercial as a core member of the Global Project Team (GPT), leading the development of Target Product Profiles (TPP) based on thorough understanding of market dynamics and targeted differentiation and positioning. Support the team in preparing strategic assessments and deliverables, including presentations, to governance committees. Actively participate in the development of a robust asset-specific Clinical Development Plan (CDP) and the Integrated Evidence Generation Plan (IEGP). Support milestone and phase transition decisions by contributing to the preparation and delivering presentations to Sanofi governance bodies (TARC, RWG, DWG, IDCC). Support and execute the external innovation strategy: Partner with BD and M&A teams to provide commercial insights and guidance on external assets screening and participate in the BD process from external innovation to due diligence, valuation, negotiation and integration. Lead the commercial assessment of Business Development and M&A opportunities. Support investment decisions by contributing to the preparation of presentations to governance bodies (TxC, Investment Committee, Acquisition Committee) and present opportunity assessments and recommendations to Senior Leadership, including ExCom members. Deliver data-driven assessments and recommendations: Integrate market analytics and competitive intelligence insights to understand current and future disease trends including epidemiology, market dynamics, patient segmentation, treatment paradigm, patient journey, unmet medical needs, competition, market access and pricing environment. Identify key value drivers and lead the development of target product profiles (TPP) reflecting these, identify POCC criteria, brand positioning. Partner with Market Access to define the value proposition and pricing assumptions. Liaise extensively with internal and external experts to evaluate products, pathways, and treatment approaches. Translate key insights from scientific experts into clear, actionable strategies for the franchise. Develop robust commercial assumptions and forecast/business cases for internal programs and external opportunities in close collaboration with the Forecasting team. Anticipate and prepare for development stage gate milestones and a Transition Package to Global Brand Lead (GBL), with proposed path to launch plan that reflects keen understanding of commercialization readiness needs and processes. About You Bachelor's Degree required; MBA, MS or PhD in life science preferred 10+ years of relevant biopharmaceutical industry and/or consulting experience. Pharmaceutical marketing and/or sales experience. Experience in New Product Planning, Strategic Marketing; experience in Neurology is highly preferred. Experience in strategy, forecasting, financial valuation; knowledgeable in market research, market access, business development and portfolio management; deep understanding of drug development, incl. regulatory affairs, with the ability to lead on the commercial side throughout the pre-launch phase. Strong scientific background, demonstrated ability to understand and translate clinical/scientific information and to engage credibly with internal and external stakeholders around scientific topics. Strong leadership, strategic thinking, planning, analytical, decision making and problem-solving skills paired with commercial execution experience. Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in a matrixed environment with many cross-functional partners. Excellent interpersonal, oral and written communication skills, including ability to synthesize and deliver a clear overview of the strategy, opportunity and risks. Ability to prepare and deliver high-quality presentations. Demonstrated learning agility, driven and result-oriented; Ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously and effectively prioritize work with a sense of urgency. Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and quickly adjust to changing priorities. Ability to identify opportunities driven by AI and digital advances Valid passport and ability to travel internationally approximately 20% of the time. Why Choose Us? Bring the miracles of science to life alongside a supportive, future-focused team. Discover endless opportunities to grow your talent and drive your career, whether it's through a promotion or lateral move, at home or internationally. Enjoy a thoughtful, well-crafted rewards package that recognizes your contribution and amplifies your impact. Take good care of yourself and your family, with a wide range of health and