Country Head, Comms & Patient Advocacy

We’re a team of dedicated and smart people united by a drive to achieve together.
You will lead and drive the strategy and tactical execution of impact-focused communications and patient advocacy strategies that enhance country organization reputation and shape business outcomes across priority brands, representing the function on the Country Leadership Team as a trusted partner, with a focus on shaping the future national healthcare environment and supporting product brand performance by using real time data to model trends and anticipate what's next. Develop talent and drive performance in alignment with Corporate Affairs and Country Enterprise strategy.

Key Responsibilities:

• Represents function on Country LT and is a trusted partner to Country President. Leads the Country Communications & Patient Advocacy organization across key areas of Corporate Communications and Therapeutic Area Communications & Patient Advocacy, using data-driven and multidirectional strategies to shape business outcomes and to promote and protect the company reputation.
• Provides counsel to local business partners on latest communications channels/trends/insights and opportunities to utilize Comms & Patient Advocacy strategies to contribute to the achievement of business goals. Includes utilization of real-time global and local data to model future trends.  Manage relationships with internal and external key stakeholders helping them change the way they see or think about an issue to enable business outcomes.
• Collaborates across teams & units, above brand / functional activities and select geographies, to support fully integrated learning and interdependent ways of working that enables delivery of best-in-class comms and patient advocacy delivering business impact and shape the environment.
• Oversee execution of Therapeutic Area (TA) communications and patient advocacy strategy, including strategic partnerships with patient organizations and other stakeholders to shape the external environment. Prioritize audience mapping and insights-based decision making across TAs. Implement influencer engagement strategy as needed.
• Implement strategic roadmap for patient advocacy at country level in partnership with Public Affairs to shape environment and deliver business impact. Monitor & inform functional and business partners on patient-driven policy trends. Identify opportunities of engagement with PAG and category-breaking partnerships to amplify Novartis commitment to patients and society. ​​​
• Oversee and drive local corporate communications strategy and tactical execution including media relations; policy comms in partnership with Public Affairs; and people & culture communications to serve our corporate goals. Utilize real-time data to provide strategic guidance and leadership to Public Affairs on comms aspects to craft impactful messaging and implement successful earned and paid media tactics. Support advocacy efforts by providing communication expertise for policy initiatives and campaigns.​
• Operationalize and leverage executive communications in alignment with the corporate affairs and country enterprise strategy.
• Accountable for executing communications strategies in the event of issues and crises.
• Lead and develop Communications & Patient Advocacy Country team members​ to enable delivery of category-breaking work . Ensure systematic implementation CA analytics & insights frameworks and tools to enable our transition to a predictive function underpinned adaptive strategies utilizing real-time data . Consistently monitor performance, enable agility and iterative learning in ways of working.
• Acts as the local Novartis spokesperson and represents Novartis across relevant external forums and working streams including communications teams in local trade associations and other cross-industry partnerships.
• Drive implementation of skill building in alignment with Corporate Affairs Strategy under our predictive model to deliver continually stronger business impact and in service of patients and society.
• Accountable for Country C&PA budget , including allocations from Corporate Affairs and budget allocated by Therapeutic Areas for comms and patient advocacy strategies. Ensure appropriate and ethical dispensing of Patient Advocacy grants and sponsorships.
• Implement agency and vendor strategy in alignment with guidance from CA Strategy & Operations.

What you’ll bring to the role:

• Strong experience in diversified Corporate Communications & Patient advocacy; Product PR communications, Social media strategy and implementation with Patient relations, stakeholder relations with policy work.
• Healthcare / pharma knowledge and experience
• Experience Crisis and issues management.
• Ability to utilise Analytics & insights frameworks.
• Leadership & executive presence and collaborating with diverse multi-functional teams.
• Dutch Native / Bilingual (CEFR C2) with Fluency in English.

Why Novartis? Our purpose is to reimagine medicine to improve and extend people’s lives and our vision is to become the most valued and trusted medicines company in the world. How can we achieve this? With our people. It is our associates that drive us each day to reach our ambitions. Be a part of this mission and join us! Learn more here: https://www.novartis.com/about/strategy/people-and-culture

Join our Novartis Network:

If this role is not suitable to your experience or career goals but you wish to stay connected to hear more about Novartis and our career opportunities, join the Novartis Network here: https://talentnetwork.novartis.com/network

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion: The Novartis Group of Companies are Equal Opportunity Employers and take pride in maintaining a diverse environment. We do not discriminate in recruitment, hiring, training, promotion or other employment practices for reasons of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital or veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status. We are committed to building diverse teams, representative of the patients and communities we serve, and we strive to create an inclusive workplace that cultivates bold innovation through collaboration and empowers our people to unleash their full potential.