Rheumatology Area Business Leader – Southwest

Role Summary

This is a field-based and remote opportunity supporting a sales team in an assigned geography. The Area Business Leader (ABL) directs a team of Territory Account Specialists to deliver tailored customer experiences based on account and HCP needs, engaging in clinical dialogue to generate demand and establish Novartis as a preferred partner. The role fosters a high-performance culture and ensures completion of brand strategy and tactics.

Responsibilities

• Recruit, develop, retain, mentor, and lead a diverse team to achieve strategic sales objectives, establish accountability, and supervise KPIs across performance levels.
• Model leadership by promoting a shared vision, clear expectations, accountability, and process optimization.
• Mentor Territory Account Specialists to coordinate total account calls and deploy resources to meet customer needs effectively.
• Develop and implement a customer-centric business plan with cross-functional partners to optimize experience and product demand.
• Serve on the regional leadership team to contribute to regional goals, execution, and culture.
• Cultivate a customer-centric culture where teams act as engaged business owners, encouraging collaboration, problem-solving, and experimentation.
• Maintain in-depth knowledge of clinical, access and reimbursement, territory management, and omni-channel marketing tools for mentoring.
• Use analytics to guide decisions and identify risks/opportunities to optimize resource deployment.

Qualifications

• Required: Bachelor‚Äôs degree from a 4-year college or university.
• Required: 2+ years‚Äô experience as a first-line sales manager with strategic thinking and enterprise mindset in pharmaceutical/biotech or similarly structured industries; experience in leading large, geographically dispersed sales teams.
• Required: Demonstrated leadership in sophisticated selling environments with success (awards, top rankings, strong performance ratings).
• Required: Proven ability to attract, develop, and retain diverse talent and lead cross-functional teams in matrixed, multi-regional settings.
• Required: Ability to travel 60-80% across broad geography; valid driver‚Äôs license; reside within territory or within 100 miles of the territory border.

Skills

• Strategic thinking and enterprise mindset
• Team leadership and development
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Analytical decision-making
• Account planning and territory management

Education

• Bachelor‚Äôs degree required from 4-year college or university

Additional Requirements

• Driving is an essential function; valid unrestricted driver‚Äôs license required.