National Sales Director, Rare Disease

Title:

National Sales Director, Rare Disease

Company:

Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals Inc.

Job Description:

The National Sales Director, Rare Disease (NSD RD) is a critical leadership role in the company’s objective to be the partner of choice across the value chain in cholestatic rare liver diseases and the place to be for commercial field talents.

The NSD RD is responsible for providing sales leadership in the commercialization of Ipsen cholestatic rare liver disease portfolio across all segments of the business. NSD’s responsibilities span across the entire US geography. This is an exciting, yet complex senior commercial leadership role, as it encompasses leading and delivering:

(i) on one hand, ultra-rare diseases commercial priorities, including patient identification, building regional care models around patients, and large institutional Center-of-Excellence account management

and (ii) on the other hand, winning on highly competitive rare disease specialty-like therapeutics areas, e.g., primary biliary cholangitis (PBC).

The NSD RD will be fully accountable for delivering successful results versus company’s sales expectations at the national level for cholestatic rare liver disease portfolio. The NSD RD will do that in close collaboration with multiple cross-functional partners, including Medical, Patient Support Services, Reimbursement, and Trade.

The NSD RD shall help the organization listen to the voice of our customers, understand execution challenges, identify objections, and take accountability to prioritize and address them. The NSD RD shall also provide clear directions, motivate the field team, build a healthy competitive environment among commercial field representatives, drive innovation & best practice sharing, as well as drive pragmatism & action in competitive spaces where we compete.

Main Responsibilities & Job Expectations:

• Lead the development of a US RDBU sales plan, across the rare cholestatic liver disease portfolio. covering all states across the US market.
• Build a best-in-class rare disease sales organization, starting with seasoned first line managers,
• Lead the sales field team’s preparation & training for multiple successful launches.
• Drive demand uptake across the portfolio and long-term sales & profit goals
• Provide strategic direction to Rare Disease Sales Leadership ensuring team goals are achieved; support the successful execution of all cholestatic rare liver disease brands and Ipsen’s strategic objectives.
• Serve as strategic business partner across the several indications and brand teams providing real time market insights and solutions to achieve corporate objectives.
• Lead cross functional execution within the RDBU to foster a collaborative environment, creating opportunities and building a successful liver franchise sales organization
• Lead a team of Regional Business Directors to implement sales force productivity initiatives including improving and evolving sales force competencies, design and execution of reward systems, sales force deployment strategies, customer relationship management, and talent development.
• Lead prioritization of Thought Leader engagement in close collaboration with other functions
• Drive effective sales force execution, participating in the development of Go-To-Market strategies based on market dynamics and deep understanding of customer needs and preferences.
• Develop a high-performance sales leadership organization and ensure the sales team has relevant current and future capabilities as well as long and short-term bench strength.
• Partner with the marketing team in ensuring excellence in execution of all brand-related tactics.
• Collaborate and coordinate with Marketing and Market Access teams to ensure alignment of messages and territory-specific tactics.
• Partner with the Business Operations & Strategy team to ensure that field team’s analytical and training needs are fully aligned and addressed for maximum impact.
• Lead the Business and Account planning process. Develop and deliver Business status updates and reviews to executive leadership (e.g., NALT, NA President)
• Ensure timely and accurate execution of ad-hoc requests by executive leadership.
• Lead with clearly measurable indicators (Key Performance Indicators) to maximize clarity of direction, fairness while providing strategic direction, where necessary
• Oversee the effective communication process within the cholestatic rare liver disease salesforce.
• Fully accountable for fostering a culture of compliance within the field force, e.g., winning within the allowed boundaries, by partnering early on and consistently with Regulatory, Legal, and Business Ethics
• Drive recognition and understanding of the changing healthcare landscape and strategically adapt the field organization to succeed in this environment.
• Provide leadership, coaching and development to direct reports.
• Support and help implement continuous process improvements across all US commercial function.

Knowledge, Abilities and Experience:

• BA / BS is required; an advanced degree is preferred
• Minimum of 15 years sales experience in the biopharma industry
• At least 8-10 years of sales leadership
• Minimum 3-5 years of managing and developing sales teams
• Diverse experience in strategic commercial leadership roles, including Marketing, V&A, and Business Operations
• Experience maximizing life cycle management of different brands (i.e., launch experience, late cycle execution)
• Demonstration of strong leadership skills and a track record of delivering exceptional business results.
• Proven ability to recruit, hire and retain top rare disease and specialty sales talent.
• Demonstration of superior coaching skills that drive improvements in sales behaviors and staff development, ability to enable exceptional performance in self and others.
• Extensive knowledge of the payer landscape in the assigned markets and the factors that drive access and product pull through.
• Prior experiences in injectable, oral, and infusible rare disease therapeutic areas as well as specialty drugs - both in the buy & bill and specialty pharmacy fulfillment pathways
• Superior presentation, organization, administrative and communication skills
• Executive presence (i.e., C-suite engagements and presentations, stage presence at large national business meetings)
• Model only the highest level of professional behavior and ethics and live the Ipsen Values daily
• Familiar with trade relations, reimbursement environment, government programs, managed care, formulary, and contract negotiation.
• Demonstrated understanding of rare disease and specialty products and overall marketplace
• Leverage analytical tools as well as field insights to guide complex decision making and setting strategic direction to deliver results

#LI-Hybrid

IPSEN is an equal opportunity employer that strictly prohibits unlawful discrimination. We recruit, employ, train, compensate, and promote without regard to 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.