Associate Director Medical Affairs (“MSL Lead”)

This is what you will do:

Alexion develops and markets life-changing drugs for rare and severe diseases, including Hematology & Nephrology.

The MSL Lead is responsible for leading and developing a team of Medical Science Liaisons (MSLs) to ensure the delivery of high-quality scientific engagement and medical value to external stakeholders. The role combines scientific expertise, strategic leadership, and operational excellence to drive the Medical Affairs strategy within the assigned therapeutic area.

The MSL Lead serves as a key partner to cross-functional teams, translating medical strategy into actionable field plans, identifying emerging scientific insights, and ensuring that stakeholder needs and patient perspectives are incorporated into Medical Affairs activities. The individual provides coaching and guidance to the MSL team, fosters high performance, and ensures execution of field medical objectives in compliance with applicable regulations and company policies.

He/She provides scientific and medical leadership to establish a deep understanding of the medical landscape in relation to relevant hematological and nephrological diseases and Alexion products. The MSL Lead Hematology & Nephrology makes strategic contributions to Alexion’s hematological and nephrological disease activities and supports all functions of the German subsidiary in this field to achieve local goals and Alexion Global Medical Affairs to achieve treatment outcomes through the establishment and continuous improvement of evidence-based medical care standards.

It ensures that all activities of its team are consistent with the overall Alexion strategy and all internal and external policies and standards.

You will be responsible for:

Leadership & Team Development

• Lead, coach, and develop the MSL team to ensure high performance and achievement of Medical Affairs objectives.
• Conduct regular field coaching and performance reviews.
• Identify, develop, and retain top talent.
• Define resource requirements and optimize field medical activities.

Medical & Scientific Leadership

• Maintain deep scientific expertise in hematologic and nephrologic diseases and products relevant to Alexion.
• Serve as a trusted scientific expert internally and externally.
• Build and maintain relationships with key healthcare professionals, scientific experts, and professional organizations.
• Gather and communicate medical insights to inform strategy and decision‑making.

Medical Strategy & Execution

• Support the development and execution of local Medical Affairs strategies for marketed and pipeline products.
• Lead regional medical education initiatives, including scientific meetings and congress activities.
• Ensure compliance with applicable regulations and company policies.
• Support medical information activities, evidence generation, publications, registries, and investigator-initiated research.
• Manage the assigned Medical Affairs budget.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Medical Affairs, Commercial, Market Access, Clinical Development, and Global teams to achieve business objectives.
• Deliver scientific training to internal stakeholders.
• Support reimbursement initiatives and clinical research activities, including study feasibility and study implementation.

You will need to have:

• Relevant life-science degree (MD, PharmD, PhD, Master or Diploma) 5+ years experience in pharmaceutical/ biotechnology industry in the Medical Affairs field
• 4+ years experience as an MSL Lead or comparable position
• Proven leadership experience in leading, coaching, and developing MSL teams
• Proven strategic thinking with the ability to prioritize resources and activities based on business and patient needs
• Ability to translate medical strategy into actionable field medical plans
• Good communication and convincing skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English

We would prefer for you to have:

• Demonstrated ability to foster a high-performance culture and drive employee engagement
• Strong decision-making and problem-solving skills
• Experience of launching new, novel drugs
• be proactive and innovative
• Ability to develop and build resilience networks internally and externally

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.