Executive Director, Head Of Payer Account Management

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is headquartered in Carlsbad, California, with offices in Boston, Massachusetts, and Dublin, Ireland.  For more than 30 years, Ionis has been the leader in RNA-targeted therapy, pioneering new markets and changing standards of care with our novel antisense technology.  Ionis currently has three marketed medicines and a premier late-stage pipeline highlighted by industry-leading cardiovascular and neurological franchises. Our scientific innovation began and continues with the knowledge that sick people depend on us, which fuels our vision to become the undisputed leader in genetic medicine, utilizing a multi-platform approach to discover, develop and deliver life-transforming therapies.

As the first company to fully harness the power of RNA technology for human therapeutics, Ionis’ platform continues to revolutionize drug discovery and transform lives for patients with unmet needs.  We are building upon our innovative research and drug development excellence to provide greater value to patients, and we are well positioned financially to deliver on our strategic goals.

Ionis is a challenging, motivating and rewarding environment designed to foster innovation and scientific excellence.  Our success is a direct result of our outstanding employees.  We are interested in bringing together a diverse group of individuals with different skill sets and perspectives into this creative environment to be part of a productive and inclusive team.  While acknowledging people are actively engaged in hybrid/remote work, we continue to invest time, money, and energy into making our workplace locations a place where our culture and employees can thrive.  We believe engaging on a day-to-day basis, in person,  builds solid and lasting relationships, and contributes positively to our culture and innovation.  From the heart of our stunning Carlsbad campus,  we aim to provide a central connection point for all our employees.  These facilities give us the opportunity to connect cross-functionally, collaborate and to build on the success of our business as we continue to grow.   Join us and experience our unique culture while you develop and expand your career.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HEAD OF PAYER ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

SUMMARY:

The Head of Payer Account Management will play a critical role in the growth of Ionis and its transformation into a fully integrated biotechnology organization, by building capabilities that enable patient access to Ionis’ innovative products. This individual will be responsible for developing comprehensive engagement strategy and tactical plans to establish payer coverage and remove reimbursement barriers for Ionis’ launch products. Key customers include national commercial and government payers, key regional payers, Pharmacy Benefit Managers, etc.  This position will report to the VP, Head of US Market Access.

 RESPONSIBILITIES:

The ideal candidate will:

• Develop and execute the payer strategy in alignment with Ionis’ launch brands goals for patient access.
• Leverage existing and/or establish relationships at strategic Payer Accounts, including the C suite level, to create and communicate the value proposition of launch products.
• Deliver value proposition and Health Care Economic Information (HCEI) to educate payers, formulary committees and similar entities, on product and economic benefit.
• Develop account specific engagement approaches, strategic and tactical plans, and account deployment to maximize access and reimbursement for launch products.
• Recruit, train and manage team of Payer Account professionals.
• Create, implement, and maintain detailed account plans for targeted accounts, including pre-launch, launch, and post-launch activities.
• Be accountable for securing desired breadth and quality of coverage aligned with brand access strategy within targeted access accounts in a timely manner for launch products.
• Negotiate and measure contract performance with target accounts based on approved strategies.
•  Cultivate and leverage an expansive network of relationships with key customers within target accounts and industry organizations.
•  Collaborate with Market Access and Marketing to update strategy based on field insights and evolving payer dynamics.
• Collaborate with field teams (Sales, Medical Affairs, Nurse Educators, etc.) to identify any access barriers and partner with colleagues to mitigate.
• Proactively communicate payer criteria and terms to relevant field teams and share relevant market trends with the commercial team and leadership.
• Collaborate with Sales, Marketing, Operations, Medical Affairs, Regulatory, Legal, and Compliance to ensure alignment with all deliverables related to access and reimbursement.
• Manage strategic advisors and vendors, including vendor recommendation and selection, contracting, SOP development, reporting requirements and budgets as necessary.
• Ensures all activities are consistent with all US Healthcare regulations, laws, and company policies.
• Upholds behaviors that are in alignment with Ionis’ Culture and Core Principles.
• Contribute to the Ionis Learning Continuum and DEI programs and initiatives.
• Travel as required for live in-person customer engagements.

 REQUIREMENTS:

•  Bachelor’s degree required; MBA strongly preferred.
•  15+ years of biotech/pharma experience with at least 8 years of direct experience in Payer Account Management (NAM, RAM, or KAM).
•  Successful product launch experience in the US required, preference for specialty drug launch.
•  Experience with both Pharmacy and Medical Benefit products, with knowledge of rare disease, orphan, or ultra-orphan product experience highly desirable.
•  Direct management or team leadership role, either field or headquarters based is preferred.
•  Proven credibility in gaining access to key decision makers and influencers.
•  Highly organized and detail oriented, with strong project management and presentation and writing skills, proactive communications.
•  Exceptional customer business planning, tactical planning, and successful execution skills.
•  Demonstrated negotiation and contracting skills and ability to develop sound business rationale to influence external decision makers.
•  Strong financial, analytical, Account Management skills, with demonstrated ability to manage and measure results/performance.
•  Strong leadership, networking, communication, and collaboration skills.
•  Self-motivated & collaborative team player with strong interpersonal skills.

Please visit our website, http://www.ionispharma.com for more information about Ionis and to apply for this position; reference requisition # IONIS003299

Ionis offers an excellent benefits package! Follow this link for more details: Ionis Benefits

Full Benefits Link: https://www.ionispharma.com/careers/working-at-ionis/#:~:text=our%20employee%20spotlight-,Benefits,-Employees%20are%20rewarded

The pay scale for this position is $225,500 to $286,874.

NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE. PRINCIPALS ONLY.

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and all its subsidiaries are proud to be EEO employers.