Director, Patient Advocacy & Engagement

Cogent Biosciences•Waltham, MA

1d•Remote

About The Position

Cogent Biosciences is seeking a Director, Patient Advocacy & Engagement. The successful candidate is someone who thrives in a fast-paced environment and is passionate about making an impact on the lives of patients with unmet medical needs. Reporting to the Executive Director, Patient Advocacy & Engagement, this role will develop and execute strategic advocacy engagement initiatives for our Systemic Mastocytosis programs, ensuring alignment throughout the product development lifecycle, with a special focus on new product launches and patient-centered outcomes. The Senior Director/Director will work collaboratively with cross functional team members to increase awareness of our programs in the patient community, bring the patient voice into the everyday operations of Cogent, and highlight critical patient insights to help inform strategic decision making.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree is required
8-12+ years in patient advocacy, patient engagement, patient marketing, patient services or related experience in the pharmaceutical industry required; level commensurate with experience
Deep understanding of commercialization and R&D, including experience with successful commercial product launches
Demonstrated success in navigating regulatory and legal compliance related to advocacy efforts
Proven leadership and effective collaboration in Cross-Functional Teams
Experience in rare diseases, hematology, allergy/immunology, or oncology preferred
Agile, strategic leader able to successfully navigate fast-paced environments
Experience developing and executing patient-facing disease education and awareness resources and initiatives
Excellent organizational, planning, and interpersonal skills
Strong executive presence and communication skills
Self-starter who motivates, is detail-oriented, solutions-oriented, has tack, diplomacy, leadership skills and who has a flexible and positive approach
Able to make sound decisions and communicate recommendations after careful consideration of various courses of action, decision support data, and regulatory environment
Experience working with all levels of management and consulting with key business stakeholders with an ability to influence for greater outcomes
Attention to detail and the ability to work individually, within a multi-disciplinary team, as well as with external partners and vendors

Nice To Haves

Experience in patient digital health initiatives and campaigns a plus (e.g., virtual booths, webinars, podcasts, social media platforms, CRM, paid search/SEO, etc.)
Ability to travel to key U.S. and global congresses and patient events, as needed (Up to 30%)

Responsibilities

Establish Cogent as a strong partner to the global Systemic Mastocytosis patient advocacy community by building strategic, long-term partnerships, strengthening existing collaborations, and identifying new groups for engagement
Develop, lead, and execute annual strategic plan for Patient Advocacy & Engagement to support our Systemic Mastocytosis programs, including commercial launches
Lead our external patient advocacy engagement strategy through the identification, negotiation, and execution of mutually beneficial opportunities for strategic partnerships with relevant Patient Advocacy Groups and medical associations in alignment with company’s objectives
Develop and execute innovative patient-facing educational initiatives aimed at increasing awareness of Cogent’s programs, disease education, and optimizing access to care; identify opportunities to co-create and collaborate on initiatives with key patient advocacy groups
Support the development of global, national, and local patient advocacy organizations through relationship building, networking, capacity building, and sharing best practices
Gather and champion patient insights by conducting virtual and in-person patient advisory boards to inform key cross-functional initiatives and proactively share ongoing insights from patient advocacy group engagements
Collaborate with cross-functional team members from Marketing, Market Access, Patient Services, Medical Affairs, Clinical Development, Patient Recruitment, Legal, Regulatory, and Research to deliver on workstreams and initiatives that support program goals including clinical trial awareness and commercial launch efforts
Oversee vendors for patient advocacy and engagement initiatives (e.g., patient advocacy webinars, patient videos, awareness initiatives, etc.) including management of budget, timelines, and deliverables
Coordinate and plan Cogent’s presence at key patient meetings and participation in awareness days/months (e.g., sponsorships, materials, booth presence, employee engagement activities, etc.)
Represent Cogent at U.S. and global patient advocacy meetings and events as well as key scientific congresses
Develop metrics to measure the success of advocacy initiatives, ensuring alignment with organizational goals
Continually innovate and elevate Cogent’s approach to patient advocacy and engagement
Maintain a high level of cross-functional coordination, strategic planning, budget adherence, compliance, customer service and creativity in managing and executing all aspects of the patient advocacy and engagement function