Job Description

Our Respiratory team is dedicated to delivering breakthrough innovations that improve the lives of respiratory patients worldwide. Our team of forward-thinking individuals achieve this through an unwavering commitment to support accessibility to medicine, providing new therapeutic solutions, and collaborating with governments and payers to ensure that people who need medicines have access to them. Our focus is on innovation and launch execution excellence; we translate breakthrough science into innovative medicines that help people across the globe.

The Associate Director Payer Marketing role will play a critical leadership role in supporting the continued commercial success of our newly acquired COPD asset. This position will report to the Director of Market Access, and will be based in the Upper Gwynedd, PA office.

This role will lead the development and execution of payer marketing and market access strategies, helping to define and shape the evolving access landscape for our company growing respiratory portfolio. The ideal candidate brings deep knowledge of the U.S. payer and access ecosystem, experience in COPD and/or specialized therapeutic areas, and a strong understanding of patient access dynamics.

The role requires close collaboration with Brand Marketing, the Field Access Team, Policy, Medical Affairs, Finance, and other respiratory matrix partners to achieve key business objectives.

• Develop and execute strategies and tactics to attain profitable market access. The Associate Director will be a subject matter expert on US health care ecosystem, interconnectivity of private and public payors, hospital delivery systems, as well as policy trends across life cycle.

• Identify unmet evidence needs and access drivers to help inform HEOR, RWE, and broader evidence-generation plans.

• Define and monitor KPIs to assess the effectiveness of market access and payer marketing strategies.

• Support L3 initiatives for the BU including Global, Brand and Payer focused workstreams by providing US Payer perspective and insights

• Serve as a core member in key workstreams such as V&I, PAT, and 4th Hurdle, ensuring alignment and integration of access perspectives

• Partner closely with Brand Marketing, Field Access, Policy, Medical Affairs, Finance, and other stakeholders to align on strategy and execution.

• Lead market research efforts for in-line and pipeline respiratory assets to deepen understanding of the evolving access landscape, customer needs, and competitive environment.

• Conduct internal and external benchmarking to ensure the respiratory business is leveraging best-in-class market access and payer marketing practices.

• Lead budget and profit-plan activities for Market Access related to the product and broader respiratory initiatives.

• Identify unmet evidence needs and access drivers to inform HEOR, RWE, and broader evidence-generation plans.

Education:

• Required: BA/BS Degree

• Preferred: Pharm D, MPH, MBA, or other advanced degree

Requirements:

• Minimum of 3-5 years combined market access or payer reimbursement experience (healthcare industry experience, marketing/field leadership, account management or other customer-facing role, or consulting in the healthcare industry)

• Demonstrated understanding of the mechanics and economics of the healthcare ecosystem, including influences across payer segments, distribution models and channel dynamics

• Expertise in influencing without direct authority, navigating complex or matrix organizations, and successfully collaborating with cross-functional teams

• Ability to learn quickly and to assess a variety of scenarios, strategically and operationally

• Strong collaboration, with “Win as one team” mindset

• Strong knowledge of marketing principles, with ability to leverage data analytics and activate market research for insights

Preferred Skills:

• Proven understanding of patient access mechanics, including the intersection of patient access and payer reimbursement

• Extensive knowledge of marketing processes and ability to translate market trends and customer needs into resources or tactics

• Previous experience in COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) or chronic conditions

• Ability to create solutions that drive value for customers, incorporating innovative approaches where relevant

• Working knowledge of agile environments with scrum principles

• Exceptional leadership and communication skills

• Proven success in establishing, developing, and maintaining business relationships

• Strong collaboration, project management, and organizational skills; ability to prioritize activities and manage multiple tasks within deadlines

Location: Upper Gwynedd, PA – Hybrid working model

Travel: ~25% of the time

Required Skills:

Brand Marketing, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Collaboration, Data Analysis, Market Access, Marketing, Marketing Strategies, Market Research, Payer Marketing, Strategic Planning, Strategic Thinking

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

U.S. Hybrid Work Model

Effective September 5, 2023, employees in office-based positions in the U.S. will be working a Hybrid work consisting of three total days on-site per week, Monday - Thursday, although the specific days may vary by site or organization, with Friday designated as a remote-working day, unless business critical tasks require an on-site presence.This Hybrid work model does not apply to, and daily in-person attendance is required for, field-based positions; facility-based, manufacturing-based, or research-based positions where the work to be performed is located at a Company site; positions covered by a collective-bargaining agreement (unless the agreement provides for hybrid work); or any other position for which the Company has determined the job requirements cannot be reasonably met working remotely. Please note, this Hybrid work model guidance also does not apply to roles that have been designated as “remote”.

The salary range for this role is

$142,400.00 - $224,100.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

25%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

1st - Day

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

NA

Job Posting End Date:

02/18/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.