Execution Excellence and Commercial Portfolio Head MTA

Band

Level 5

 

Job Description Summary

Execution Excellence

Leads enterprise-wide evolution through excellence in execution across the commercialization life cycle (from two years pre-launch to loss of exclusivity).
This role supports Country President to drive business performance and future ambitions by:
1. Enabling strategic decisions based on data & insights
2. Implementing innovative and competitive go-to-market strategies/plans
3. Building digital strategy & solutions to enhance customer experience and increase the effectiveness and efficiency of our M&S model
4. Developing right capabilities and deploying fit for future organization models
The Execution & Excellence Head leads a cross-functional team to drive operational excellence, collaboration, and future-readiness across Commercial, Medical, and Access domains, enabling data-driven decisions and optimizing field resources.

Commercial Portfolio
Maximises the value generation and access of its products portfolio through innovative go to market models, commercial alliances & partnerships strategy and life cycle management.
It ensures an efficient collaboration model with above- & in-country functions to execute strategies within resource constrained environment.

 

Job Description

Major Accountabilities

Execution Excellence

Field Excellence

Support and provide guidance to elevate field performance and operational excellence by enabling data-driven decisions, optimizing territory structures, and aligning field resources with strategic brand priorities.

• Provide support for the design and operationalization of field incentive schemes, territory structures, and field force sizing

• Implement balanced territory structures, revise territory maps, conduct rep placement analytics, and generate/refine call plans

• Propose optimal sales force size and organization structure to support new launch go-to-market design

Integrated Insights

Serves as a strategic partner for TA business units by transforming data into actionable insights to execute launch plans, sustain brand performance, inform market model consolidation and support decision making process in resource allocation & optimization.

• Provide integrated key metrics and measurements, gather and develop strategic insights

• Lead market research planning including patient journey mapping, segmentation, and market sizing

• Conduct deep-dive analyses using internal and external data sources includes external data strategy acquisition & liaising with external partners based on current & future needs

• Map the market/industry trends for each Therapy area, evolutions in Healthcare system/landscape, digital/technology area, Novartis competitiveness etc.

Data, Analytics & Platforms (DAP)

Translates global digital strategy into localized, fit-for-purpose solutions and delivers technology platforms, enabling data analytics and reporting to support informed decision-making.

• Own and maintain a federated, trusted view of business-critical data

• Define business rules for data processing and ensure data quality

• Liaise with Integrated Insights to develop dashboards and reports

• Drive change management and adoption of technology platforms

• Manage AI products for customer engagement and productivity

Capability Building

Aligned with global strategy, strengthen and deploy industry leading capabilities to optimize launch excellence, agility and knowledge retention.

• Assess capability needs across sales, marketing, medical and V&A in alignment with global alignment

• Deploy and deliver strategic learning/curriculum programs tailored to country needs

• Set standards for learning effectiveness and governance

• Execute and deliver global learning experiences/tools

• Maintain partnerships with external vendors for training deployment

Customer Excellence

Serves as the execution engine for integrated customer excellence across commercial(Sales & Marketing), medical, and access, ensuring that launches are strategically planned & executed, content is activated across channels, and customer engagement is orchestrated with precision.

• Ensure content is activated and ready for use on field platforms

• Validate customer journeys and provide guidance for omnichannel excellence

• Coordinate logistics and vendor management for congresses

• Ensure local orchestration of strategy and co-define execution metrics

• Implement frameworks to optimize promotional channel resources

Commercial Partnerships & Alliances

• Identify and evaluate partnership opportunities, proactively scanning for and assessing external collaborations that can enhance portfolio value

• Negotiate and structure agreements, leading the negotiations and formalizing partnership terms to align with strategic objectives

• Manage & sustain strategic alliances, overseeing ongoing partnerships to ensure mutual benefit and adapt to evolving needs

• Piloting international projects with opportunity to scale at Regional/International level

Digital Marketing Execution

• Promote through digital channels, utilizing digital platforms to maintain brand visibility and engagement where required

• Manage content and channels, regularly updating and optimizing digital assets to maintain compliance and relevance

• Partner with TA Heads to identify opportunities for synergies and leverage digital promotion assets/plan to support the priority brands performance

Commercial Portfolio

Lifecycle Management (LCM)

• Build LoE excellence, tracking and preparing brands for LoE with tailored strategies

• Onboard brands from TAs by coordinating the transition of brands into the commercial portfolio, ensuring seamless transfer and streamlining of assets, budgets, analytics, and engaging key stakeholders for a smooth handover

• Partner with Legal, V&A, Supply chain and Finance to ensure proper estimation of volume/value erosion post LoE

• Identify and apply late LCM strategies, implement tactics to sustain brand value and minimize post-LoE erosion

• Externalise asset to reduce maintenance efforts, transferring or retiring assets to streamline operations and reduce costs

Portfolio Management

• Manage budget and forecasting, developing and monitoring budgets and forecasts to support portfolio goals

• Manage performance vigilance activity, this includes tracking brand performance and market trends to inform decision-making (effort will vary for supported versus carry over products)

• Liaise with Regulatory teams to ensure a proper portfolio management in terms of RMP finetuning/amendments

• Manage ad hoc requests (e.g., recalls, packaging queries), responding promptly to urgent and routine operational requests

• Partner with Supply Chain to minimize stock outs and write offs

Leadership & Culture

• Lead and coordinate cross-functional teams to execute prioritized tactics

• Build a high-performance culture, manage recruiting, performance, and coaching; develop critical capabilities and talent pipelines

• Attract, develop, and retain top talent; strengthen succession plans and capabilities across the country organization

• Role-model Novartis Leadership Expectations, inspire transformation and performance, and demonstrate self-awareness with a growth mindset

Ideal Background

Education

• University degree in business administration or related fields

• Experiences in consulting preferred

Languages

• English

• Country language desirable

Experience/Professional Requirement

Experiences

• Proven track-record of commercial management responsibility

• Extensive (>12) years experience in leadership positions within the pharmaceutical industry or related fields (FMCG, consulting)

• Prior experiences across multiple pillars of execution excellence function and ability to partner effectively with subject matter experts and lead the function

Expertise/skills

• Strong business acumen of the pharmaceutical market with a holistic understanding of the commercialization lifecycle, from pre-launch to loss of exclusivity

• Advanced analytical and data interpretation skills, including market research, segmentation, and forecasting and ability to synthesize complex data and insights to inform strategic decisions

• Expertise in digital transformation, technology adoption, and AI enablement

• End-to end portfolio management of mature brands, including onboarding, LoE planning, and post-LoE value retention using late-stage lifecycle tactics

• Proven partnership expertise: opportunity scanning, negotiation, and governance across co-promote, distribution, and licensing with measurable value creation

• Regulated digital marketing execution: content governance, channel optimization, compliance; strong market analytics and performance vigilance

• Track record of leading cross-functional teams (Legal, Finance, Market Access, Regulatory, Supply Chain, CLS) and navigating complex stakeholder environments

• Strategic decision-making: Prioritization frameworks, go/no-go criteria, and resource optimization across competing brands

• Outcome-oriented: Sets clear KPIs (P&L, portfolio value, digital engagement, brand sustainability) and acts on insights

• Strong project management and organizational skills

• Experience managing through change, driving adoption of new technologies, and embedding new ways of working

• Proven ability to inspire, develop, and retain talent across multiple disciplines, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement

• Strong communication skills, with the confidence and credibility to engage, challenge, and influence senior leaders (e.g., Country President, Business Unit Heads)

• Enterprise thinker: Optimizes for total portfolio value and long-term sustainability, not single-brand wins.

 

 

Skills Desired

Account Management, Building Construction, Business Administration, Business Relationship Management (BRM), Capital Market, Corporate Development, Cross Functional Collaboration, Drug Development, Financial Modeling, Innovative Forward Thinking, Investment Portfolio, IT Portfolio Management, Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A), Operations, Pipeline (Software), Pmp (Project Management Professional), Portfolio Analysis, Prioritization, Senior Management, Virtual Private Server, Waterfall Model