Associate Director, Congress Strategy Lead - Ophthalmology
Apellis Pharmaceuticals
1 month ago
Remote friendly (Waltham, MA)
United States
Marketing
Roles & Responsibilities
- Act as a strategic integrator across Marketing, Medical, Field, Operations, Comms/IR, and Compliance.
- Develop assets for communication and planning clarity and structure.
- Influence without authority to align stakeholders around clear congress and education strategies.
- Provide clear communication, structure, and leadership across multiple workstreams in a fast-paced environment.
- Communicate updates and strategies in various EC leadership forums to build confidence in plans.
- Collaborate closely with Compliance, Legal, Marketing Operations, and external partners to ensure high-quality, compliant, and scalable programs.
- Manage pieces through the Promotional Review Committee (PRC) process.
Congress Strategy & Leadership
- Own the US congress strategy across Retina/Ophthalmology, aligning congress presence, sponsorships, and programming to brand strategy, objectives, and lifecycle needs.
- Evaluate and prioritize congresses and sponsorship opportunities to maximize scientific impact, brand visibility, and ROI.
- Lead cross-functional planning and execution for major US meetings (e.g., ARVO, AAO, ASRS, OSN, CTS, and others).
- Partner with US Field leadership to align on program targets, executional excellence, and performance monitoring.
- Serve as the primary US relationship lead with key congress organizations and societies.
- Drive booth strategy and execution, sponsorship activation, and on-site experience planning.
- Lead KOL engagement planning (including executive meetings and calendars).
- Translate congress learnings into actionable insights and recommendations for brand and senior leadership.
- Manage budget and vendor partners.
- Manage assets through the PRC process.
Strategic Partnerships & Sponsorships
- Build and manage US partnerships with key professional organizations and foundations.
- Evaluate and execute corporate sponsorships supporting congress and peer-to-peer education objectives.
- Partner with Medical Affairs to ensure appropriate use of sponsorship benefits and alignment with enterprise priorities.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
- 10+ years of US commercial and/or medical experience with strong depth in congress strategy and peer-to-peer engagement.
- Project management and/or management consulting experience.
- Retina or general ophthalmology experience strongly preferred.
- Proven ability to think strategically, execute with excellence, and lead cross-functionally in a lean organization.
- Strong communication skills and executive presence.
Travel Requirements
- Approximately 30% travel.
- Act as a strategic integrator across Marketing, Medical, Field, Operations, Comms/IR, and Compliance.
- Develop assets for communication and planning clarity and structure.
- Influence without authority to align stakeholders around clear congress and education strategies.
- Provide clear communication, structure, and leadership across multiple workstreams in a fast-paced environment.
- Communicate updates and strategies in various EC leadership forums to build confidence in plans.
- Collaborate closely with Compliance, Legal, Marketing Operations, and external partners to ensure high-quality, compliant, and scalable programs.
- Manage pieces through the Promotional Review Committee (PRC) process.
Congress Strategy & Leadership
- Own the US congress strategy across Retina/Ophthalmology, aligning congress presence, sponsorships, and programming to brand strategy, objectives, and lifecycle needs.
- Evaluate and prioritize congresses and sponsorship opportunities to maximize scientific impact, brand visibility, and ROI.
- Lead cross-functional planning and execution for major US meetings (e.g., ARVO, AAO, ASRS, OSN, CTS, and others).
- Partner with US Field leadership to align on program targets, executional excellence, and performance monitoring.
- Serve as the primary US relationship lead with key congress organizations and societies.
- Drive booth strategy and execution, sponsorship activation, and on-site experience planning.
- Lead KOL engagement planning (including executive meetings and calendars).
- Translate congress learnings into actionable insights and recommendations for brand and senior leadership.
- Manage budget and vendor partners.
- Manage assets through the PRC process.
Strategic Partnerships & Sponsorships
- Build and manage US partnerships with key professional organizations and foundations.
- Evaluate and execute corporate sponsorships supporting congress and peer-to-peer education objectives.
- Partner with Medical Affairs to ensure appropriate use of sponsorship benefits and alignment with enterprise priorities.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
- 10+ years of US commercial and/or medical experience with strong depth in congress strategy and peer-to-peer engagement.
- Project management and/or management consulting experience.
- Retina or general ophthalmology experience strongly preferred.
- Proven ability to think strategically, execute with excellence, and lead cross-functionally in a lean organization.
- Strong communication skills and executive presence.
Travel Requirements
- Approximately 30% travel.