Director, CRO Alliance Management, Strategic Partnerships

Join a Legacy of Innovation 110 Years and Counting!

With over 100 years of scientific expertise and a presence in more than 20 countries, Daiichi Sankyo and its 15,000 employees around the world draw upon a rich legacy of innovation and a robust pipeline of promising new medicines to help people. In addition to a strong portfolio of medicines for hypertension and thrombotic disorders, under the Group’s 2025 Vision to become a “Global Pharma Innovator with a Competitive Advantage in Oncology,” Daiichi Sankyo research and development is primarily focused on bringing forth novel therapies in oncology, including immuno-oncology, with additional focus on new horizon areas, such as pain management, neurodegenerative diseases, heart and kidney diseases, and other rare diseases.

Job Summary:

The Director, CRO Alliance Management - Strategic Partnerships will design, develop and manage the relationship with CRO strategic partner(s) to enable long term success of clinical trials and programs. The Director of CRO Alliance Management for Strategic Partnerships will liaise and lead with cross-functional leaders and their teams and the strategic partner to develop the model for the partnership and ensure appropriate governance is in place to assure the highest quality delivery of clinical programs. The Director of CRO Alliance Management for Strategic Partnerships will be responsible for leading and managing the partnership from concept through operationalization to maximize the value and efficiency of this partnership.

Responsibilities:

CRO Alliance Management, Strategic Partnerships

• Develop & implement the framework and model for the a new CRO Strategic Partnership
• Lead the successful implementation of the Daiichi Sankyo CRO Strategic Partnership & ensure internal and external global relationships are successful.
• Ensure appropriate oversight & documentation of the partnership is defined, developed & maintained.
• Design & implement governance as well as the escalation process both within Daiichi Sankyo & within the partner organization.
• Engage with the strategic alliance partner on the various day-to-day issues & opportunities arising from the collaboration. Ensure appropriate functions are engaged as appropriate.
• Partner with cross-functional study teams to prepare for and engage in interactions with strategic partners to ensure successful outcomes for clinical programs (e.g. direction/input for joint operating & steering committee meetings, development and review of metrics, project-based analyses & recommendations).
• Recommend & implement innovative process ideas & tools to improve the strategic partnership.
• Build expertise about the strategic CRO alliance partner company, including partner company’s organization structure, leadership, strategies, financials, priorities, etc. become in-house “internal expert” on partner company.
• Lead the development of tools & training for the Partnership

Communications/Relationship Building

• Conduct regular reviews/meetings with senior management & functions across regions as appropriate to communicate current partner status, key issues, milestones, etc. & to gather feedback.
• Develop partnership dashboards/scorecards and communication pathways. Address areas of concern & provide recommendations to mitigate against poor performance.
• In conjunction with the CRO Strategic Partner & functional line managers, develop & implement the completed governance structures (i.e. joint operating committees, executive steering committees, etc.).
• Lead internally & externally to optimize cross-functional communication; to include monitoring all related activities and lead joint teams in resolving issues regarding effective communication and information flow, conflict or role clarity. Determines the cause, develop, & implements action plans to any identified issues.
• Responsible for development/maintenance of partnership engagement plans (e.g. partnership manuals, governance plans, etc.).
• Build & maintain collaborative relationships with key personnel both internally & with strategic alliance partner.
• Influence various business units (globally as well as outside of R&D) to ensure consistency & support for the CRO strategic partnership
• Regularly communicate with CRO strategic partner alliance management counterpart & other key partner stakeholders as needed, including ad hoc communications that require cross-functional involvement.

Metrics/Process Improvements

• Act as the lead for process optimization between the CRO Strategic Partner & Daiichi Sankyo
• Develop Standards and templates to be used across the partnership
• Create strategic level KPIs/KQIs & conduct ongoing analysis of outsourcing provider performance to ensure compliance of contracted services.
• Develop a plan for alliance audits & “health checks”.
• Liaise with all internal Daiichi Sankyo functions in the partnership to ensure that key contract terms, including roles & responsibilities, milestones, financial transactions, progress reports, etc. are executed appropriately.
• Conduct ongoing lessons learned analyses & identify areas of focus to proactively identify and mitigate operational risk.
• Identify issues as they arise internally, or as a result of partner interactions, & work with team leadership & other necessary stakeholders to formulate a position/strategy and participate/drive resolution.

Qualifications: Successful candidates will be able to meet the qualifications below with or without a reasonable accommodation.

Education/Experience:

Bachelor’s Degree in the Sciences and a minimum of 10 years’ experience (8 years’ experience with Master’s degree; 5 years’ experience with PhD/PharmD) in pharmaceutical/biotechnology drug development.

• Strong drug development experience with understanding of other functions relevant to the position.
• Experience building a CRO strategic partnership or managing a large complex CRO strategic partnership
• Strong change management experience

Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.