Head of Commercial Operations & Strategic Initiatives, Rare Disease

Title:
Head of Commercial Operations & Strategic Initiatives, Rare Disease

Company:
Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals Inc.

About Ipsen:

Ipsen is a mid-sized global biopharmaceutical company with a focus on transformative medicines in three therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Disease and Neuroscience. Supported by nearly 100 years of development experience, with global hubs in the U.S., France and the U.K, we tackle areas of high unmet medical need through research and innovation.

Our passionate teams in more than 40 countries are focused on what matters and endeavor every day to bring medicines to patients in 88 countries. We build a workplace that champions human-centric leadership and fosters a culture of collaboration, excellence and impact. At Ipsen, every individual is empowered to be their true selves, grow and thrive alongside the company’s success. Join us on our journey towards sustainable growth, creating real impact on patients and society!

For more information, visit us at https://www.ipsen.com/   and follow our latest news on LinkedIn and Instagram .

Job Description:

The Head of Commercial Operations & Strategic Initiatives is a member of the Rare Disease Business Unit (RDBU) Leadership Team and serves as the strategic and operational deputy to the SVP, U.S. Rare Disease. The role is accountable for translating franchise strategy into an integrated operating plan, establishing the management systems required to deliver business objectives, and leading the RDBU portfolio of enterprise priorities and transformation initiatives.

This leader owns RDBU governance, strategic and business planning, performance management, commercial operations, organizational effectiveness, and cross-functional execution. Working across Sales, TLLs, Marketing, Market Access, Medical, Finance, Business Operations & Strategy (BOS), and other enterprise partners, the role identifies trade-offs, escalates risks, enables timely executive decisions and holds initiative owners accountable for delivery.

The role leads a team and influences senior and key stakeholders across the organization to advance near-and long-term portfolio performance.

WHAT - Main Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Governance

- Serve as strategic advisor and Chief of Staff to the SVP, shaping the RDBU agenda, framing critical business decisions, anticipating enterprise risks and opportunities, and driving Leadership Team effectiveness and accountability.
- Design and lead the RDBU governance and management operating system, including Leadership Team forums, operating reviews, executive and board communications, decision processes, and accountability mechanisms.
- Partner with RDBU LT to define objectives, shape the culture, and drive alignment with cross-functional teams.
- Own the integrated RDBU planning process, aligning strategic, brand, operational, workforce, and financial plans; identifying interdependencies and trade-offs; and ensuring resources are directed to the highest-value priorities.
- Serve as the RDBU champion and expert for key account management, including building operating mechanisms and organizational capabilities that accelerate adoption of RDBU products in priority health systems.
- Identify organizational capabilities and operating model enhancements that accelerate portfolio growth and long-term success.

Commercial Excellence, Operations & Analytics

- Build, lead, and develop a high-performing Commercial Operations and Strategic Initiatives team (2-3 people), establishing clear accountabilities, strengthening capabilities, and creating succession and development plans.
- Drive strategic and operational excellence by identifying, exploring, and implementing innovative commercial capabilities.
- Oversee performance monitoring, recognition programs, and continuous improvement efforts.
- Own the RDBU performance-management framework in partnership with BOS, including RDBU KPIs, leading and lagging indicators, dashboards, business insights, and executive reporting that enable timely decisions and corrective action.
- Provide strategic leadership and RDBU business ownership for sales operations capabilities—including targeting, segmentation, territory design, incentive effectiveness, CRM adoption, field-force analytics, and performance reporting—in partnership with BOS and field leadership.
- Lead enterprise-wide launch readiness and commercialization planning for the Rare Disease Business Unit, establishing governance, integrated workplans, decision milestones, risk mitigation, and executive-level progress reporting.
- Set the operational excellence agenda for the RDBU, leading enterprise-wide process redesign, operating-model improvements, and capability investments that remove barriers, increase organizational agility, and improve business performance.
- Translate market, customer, and performance insights into strategic recommendations that improve business outcomes.

Cross-Functional Execution & Strategic Initiatives

- Build and lead Health System Account team responsible for RDBU priority account strategic planning and execution to enhance patient diagnosis and treatment pathways, referral and care coordination and access to the RDBU treatments
- Lead operating-model and capability transformation across the RDBU, identifying and implementing the organizational, process, technology, and insight capabilities required to support portfolio growth
- Build alignment among senior cross-functional leaders, resolve competing priorities, and create the conditions for timely enterprise decisions and coordinated execution'

HOW - Knowledge & Experience

Knowledge & Experience (essential):

- At least 12 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 8 years and a Master’s degree; or equivalent experience
- Demonstrated success serving as a senior advisor to business-unit or enterprise leadership and leading through influence across complex matrixed organizations
- Proven accountability for integrated business planning, governance, performance management, and execution of enterprise-level strategic priorities
- Experience building and leading high-performing teams, including direct people-management responsibility and leadership of cross-functional teams
- Demonstrated ability to synthesize complex market, customer, financial, and operational information into clear executive recommendations and decisions
- Experience leading organizational transformation, operating-model change, or capability-building initiatives with measurable business impact
- Strong commercial and financial acumen, including resource prioritization, investment evaluation, KPI development, and performance management
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills along with the ability to influence others
- Working within an environment of strict compliance to all appropriate regulatory guidelines to successfully design and execute tactics, programs and tools that achieve business objectives
- Passion for patients and a deep commitment to support success of high performing teams with high integrity and in compliance with all policies and regulations
- Able to work on a hybrid model including in-office multiple times per week from our Cambridge, MA HQ
- Willingness/ability to travel domestically; International travel may be required

Education / Certifications (essential):

- BA/BS is required

Education / Certifications (preferred):

- MBA is strongly preferred

Compensation

The annual base salary range for this position is $217,500 - $300,000

The pay range displayed above is the range of base pay compensation within which Ipsen expects to pay for this role at the time of this posting. Individual compensation within this range depends on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, prior education and experience, job-related knowledge and demonstrated skills.

This job is eligible to participate in our incentive compensation program as well as our long-term incentives program.

At Ipsen we are proud to offer a comprehensive employee benefits package, including 401(k) with company contributions, group medical, dental and vision coverage, life and disability insurance, short- and long-term disability insurance, as well as flexible spending accounts. Ipsen also provides parental leave, paid time off, a discretionary winter shutdown, well-being allowance, commuter benefits, and much more.

We are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels heard, valued, and supported; where we embrace “The Real Us”. The value we place on different perspectives and experiences drives our commitment to inclusion and equal opportunities. When we include diverse ways of thinking, we make more thoughtful decisions and discover more innovative solutions. Together we strive to better understand the communities we serve. This means we also want to help you perform at your best when applying for a role with us. If you require any adjustments or support during the application process, please let the recruitment team know. This information will be handled with care and will not affect the outcome of your application. Ipsen is an equal opportunity employer that strictly prohibits unlawful discrimination. We recruit, employ, train, compensate, and promote without regard to an individual’s race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin/ancestry, age, mental/physical disability, medical condition, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.