Director, Scientific Communications

Role Summary

The Director, Scientific Communications provides leadership and governance across the scientific communications function, focusing on publications, medical education, and congress planning. The current business need emphasizes medical education and congress planning responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the strategy and end-to-end execution of publications, medical education and/or congress deliverables, including annual planning, governance cadence, resourcing, and delivery timelines
• Translate emerging evidence from data readouts, congress presentations, and literature surveillance into clear, approved key messages and content
• Coordinate and quality-control Medical Affairs-delivered external communications across functions to drive consistency and ensure adherence to the scientific narrative
• Direct and manage external vendors and partners to deliver against defined scope, quality standards, timelines, and budgets
• Chair Grants and Sponsorships Review Committee (GSC) and set educational areas of interest, ensuring global consistency and alignment of CME activities with medical strategy and narrative
• Evaluate medical grant requests for scientific merit, educational rationale, key stakeholder fit, and compliance with IME/CME policies and regulations
• Own the medical education grants budget and operational controls, including documentation workflows, archiving, and outcomes reporting with defined metrics and follow-up
• Oversee content development model to enable efficient creation of medical education and internal- and external-facing materials, including briefing standards, review workflows, and version control
• Translate emerging evidence into approved key messages and ensure timely incorporation into training and field-facing materials and medical education
• Lead Medical Affairs congress strategy for congresses, ensuring alignment with objectives and scientific narrative across materials, booth or session content, symposia support, and customer-facing communications
• Coordinate congress tactical planning, including timeline management, cross-functional logistics, and alignment with the broader congress excellence approach
• Ensure congress deliverables incorporate the latest approved key messages and reflect current data, coordinating closely with the publications stream where congress presentations are involved
• Lead the strategy and end-to-end execution of the publication plan across indications, including authorship management and sequencing of data dissemination
• Conduct and oversee monthly literature searches for assigned indications to identify emerging evidence, competitive intelligence, and opportunities for narrative advancement
• Provide input into clinical development planning and other upstream functions where publication implications exist

Qualifications

• Required: PharmD, MD, or PhD in a related life sciences discipline; an equivalent combination of education and applicable job experience may be considered
• Required: 6+ years of experience across scientific communications and medical affairs in life sciences, with demonstrated leadership of cross-functional programs
• Required: Breadth of experience across at least one of publication strategy and plan management; medical education grants strategy and management; or congress strategy and execution, in a similar role within the pharmaceutical industry, preferably small-molecule biopharmaceuticals
• Required: Understanding of compliance frameworks and standards (ACCME, IME guidelines, ICMJE recommendations, GPP, Sunshine Act provisions) to planning and execution
• Required: Ability to translate evidence from data readouts, congress presentations, and literature surveillance into clear, approved key messages and content direction for the scientific communication plan (SCP) and core decks
• Required: Understanding of publication strategy management tools and systems (e.g., Polarix; Pub Strat Max) to maintain accurate tracking of the publication pipeline, timelines, and deliverable status
• Required: Embrace innovative methods to enhance or amplify scientific communications deliverables, including digital formats and post-congress dissemination
• Preferred: Experience directing or reviewing scientific writing and content development, either in nephrology and/or rare diseases
• Required: Ability to travel 20 to 25% of time domestically and internationally for congresses and perform face-to-face work with colleagues and onsite presence in San Diego
• Required: All positions require the ability to perform face-to-face work with colleagues and onsite in San Diego; no role is 100% remote

Skills

• Strategic leadership of cross-functional scientific communications programs
• Medical education, CME/IME governance, and grant management
• Congress planning and external communications coordination
• Publication strategy, authorship management, and data dissemination
• Content development, messaging, and training materials
• Vendor management, budgeting, and project management
• Regulatory and compliance knowledge (ACCME, ICMJE, GPP, Sunshine Act)
• Proficiency with publication planning tools and systems
• Adaptability to digital formats and post-congress dissemination

Additional Requirements

• Travel: 20-25% domestically and internationally
• On-site presence in San Diego; cannot be fully remote