Head of DD&T, Canada

Takeda • Toronto, ON

6d • CA$208,000 - CA$286,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The Head of DD&T Canada is the senior DD&T leader for the Local Operating Company (LOC), accountable for shaping and delivering the in-country DD&T agenda to drive measurable business outcomes. As a member of the LOC leadership team, this role co-creates priorities with Commercial, Medical, Access, and enabling functions, ensuring DD&T is embedded in business planning, governance, and execution. The role operates in a matrix model, orchestrating local delivery and adoption while leveraging IBU DD&T Centers of Excellence (CoEs), enterprise platforms, and ICC capabilities for scale, consistency, and speed. The role leads a fit-for-purpose LOC DD&T team covering technology & AI partnering, data excellence and products activation, digital customer experience enablement, and priority digital health innovations in partnership with the local ecosystem. Key accountabilities include driving data & digital initiatives for launches, ensuring launch readiness and acceleration through digital tactics, and being accountable for adoption, value realization, and compliant execution within the local regulatory context (privacy, cybersecurity, digital compliance, and AI governance) while aligning with enterprise standards.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree (MBA, MSc, etc.) preferred or equivalent experience.
• 12+ years of progressive experience in digital, data and/or technology leadership, including business partnering for commercial, medical and/or market access organizations in pharma/biopharma (or closely related regulated industry).
• 5+ years of people leadership and/or leading complex, matrixed delivery across functions and stakeholders; experience operating through affiliates/LOCs strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience working in, with, or across affiliates/LOCs, with strong understanding of local market realities (regulatory, commercial, medical and access context, vendor landscape, and change constraints).
• Proven ability to define and execute an outcomes-based roadmap, including portfolio governance, prioritization, and benefits/value realization (adoption and measurable impact).
• Working knowledge across key capability domains relevant to LOC execution: omnichannel/CRM and customer experience, data foundations (customer/master data), analytics/AI activation, and technology delivery practices.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills, including ability to operate through a matrix and orchestrate work across IBU CoEs, enterprise platforms, and ICC delivery.
• Strong people leadership capabilities, including coaching, talent development, and change leadership; able to build high-performing, diverse teams and communities of practice.
• High standards for ethics and compliance, with working knowledge of privacy, cybersecurity, digital compliance and AI governance in a regulated environment.
• Financial and vendor/partner management skills (budget planning, contract oversight, partner performance management) as applicable to scope.

Nice To Haves

• Advanced degree (MBA, MSc, etc.) preferred or equivalent experience.

Responsibilities

• Co-create and lead the LOC DD&T value creation strategy, translating LOC and IBU priorities into an actionable roadmap that delivers measurable patient, customer and business outcomes.
• Provide DD&T leadership and counsel to the LOC leadership team, shaping and challenging priorities and ensuring digital, data, and technology considerations are embedded in planning and decision-making.
• Identify and champion AI enabled innovation and new ways of working across the LOC and champion knowledge and practice sharing between LOCs.
• Drive adoption and value realization of enterprise platforms and IBU CoE solutions in-country, tailoring implementation to local needs while maintaining standards and reusability.
• Build and lead a high-performing LOC DD&T team and extended DD&T community, strengthening capabilities (data, AI, digital engagement, technology enablement) and accelerating new ways of working.
• Advocate local market realities back into IBU/Enterprise direction ensuring capability CoEs, shared platforms and agentic solutions account for them in their roadmaps.
• Identify and analyze where innovative AI & Agentic opportunities can unlock organizational efficiencies, business growth, cost savings, providing customer insights.
• Serve as the senior DD&T leader for the Core Country LOC, building trusted relationships with the LOC General Manager and leadership team to drive shared priorities and outcomes.
• Own the LOC DD&T plan (multi-year roadmap and annual priorities), aligning investments and delivery plans with LOC strategy, the IBU operating model, and enterprise DD&T platforms.
• Establish and run local governance and operating rhythms (demand intake, prioritization, portfolio reviews, benefits tracking), ensuring transparency of progress, risks, dependencies, and value.
• Orchestrate execution across the LOC DD&T team, IBU DD&T CoEs, and ICC delivery capabilities; define demand, sequence work, and remove blockers to accelerate delivery.
• Drive adoption of digital customer experience and engagement capabilities in-country in partnership with IBU CoEs and enterprise platforms (e.g., CRM/CX enablement, campaign operations enablement, content tooling) as in scope for the operating model.
• Accelerate data excellence and analytics activation locally: ensure data stewardship and quality, support MDM/local data validation and integration with local data sets, and enable activation of data products and advanced analytics use cases.
• Act as the primary LOC interface to enterprise DD&T functions for technology enablement and risk management (architecture alignment, cybersecurity, privacy, digital compliance, and AI governance), ensuring local adherence to standards and SOPs.
• Lead, coach, and develop LOC DD&T talent (direct and matrixed); build an engaged community of practice and strengthen capabilities across commercial, medical and access contexts.
• Demonstrate AI leadership by advising and partnering with Regional/Enterprise teams to reimagine their business with AI not as an add-on but meaningfully embedded into their operating fabric.
• Developing a strategy for managing change and fostering community of practice and consistent capability uplift within the LOC.
• Manage financial stewardship for the LOC DD&T scope (budget planning, vendor/partner management where applicable, value tracking), ensuring investments are prioritized for maximum patient and business impact.

Benefits

• short-term and/or long-term incentives
• subsidies for fitness and internet
• medical, dental, and vision insurance
• basic life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance
• participation in the Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP); company match into a Deferred Profit-Sharing Plan (DPSP) (if eligible)
• short-term and long-term disability coverage
• annual vacation entitlement; additional paid time off and company holidays
• a tuition reimbursement program
• a variety of well-being benefits

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive