Director, Marketing Excellence & Development

Position Summary

The Director, Marketing Excellence is responsible for developing and implementing a marketing excellence strategy that delivers best-in-class marketing and commercial capabilities across the CNS portfolio and BU. These efforts will ensure effective strategic execution, drive consistency, and expand core technical competencies across Otsuka’s CNS business unit. This role will lead efforts to define marketing competencies for the future and implement learning programs to address key gaps.

They will also play a key role in identifying and shaping capability-building initiatives as well as annual brand planning. They will work closely with senior CNS BU and Brand leadership, Market Access, and Commercial Operations to define a capability and learning roadmap. The Director, Marketing Excellence must possess and leverage deep subject-matter expertise in marketing, brand planning, launch and leadership along with a firm understanding of adult learning principles.

• Marketing Competencies and Learning Programs: Identify core marketing competencies needed for the future, develop and implement structured learning programs for all marketers and key BU personnel including but not limited to insights generation, segmentation, strategic brand planning, customer engagement planning, omnichannel execution, marketing analytics, access and affordability, digital, and more.

• Strategic Brand Planning: Develop consistent CNS BU approach to strategic brand planning across functions. Provide frameworks, tools, and guidance to brand teams to help facilitate the annual brand planning process and deliver effective integrated strategic and tactical plans to executive leadership.

• Capability Building :
  In partnership with CNS Marketing and BU leadership, develop a 2-3 year roadmap that will build marketing engagement capabilities needed to address changing customer needs, technology shifts, and the evolving product portfolio.

• Marketing Standards: Establish and refine marketing best practices, tools, and frameworks to improve planning, program execution, and operational efficiency.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work with commercial operations, medical, market access, finance, legal, compliance, and COE teams to ensure marketing approaches and processes align with organizational goals and industry best practices.

• Talent Development & Career Pathing: Lead effort to build a marketing career development program by defining functional competencies, career paths, business acumen, and mentorship programs in collaboration with HR and senior BU leadership.

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field; MBA preferred
• 8+ years of experience in marketing, sales, operations, and/or learning and capability development in the pharmaceutical, biotech, or healthcare industry
• 3+ years in brand marketing role(s) is required, with role as either an HCP and/or Consumer lead highly preferred
• Deep subject matter expertise in marketing best practices, core technical marketing competencies, brand planning and tactical execution, and omnichannel engagement
• Strong knowledge of marketing analytics and insights generation practices, including promotional mix optimization
• Experience developing and delivering marketing development, learning, and training programs
• Project management and process improvement expertise
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to influence and drive change across teams
• Proven ability to work in a matrixed environment, managing multiple stakeholders

Accountability for Results - Stay focused on key strategic objectives, be accountable for high standards of performance, and take an active role in leading change.

Strategic Thinking & Problem Solving - Make decisions considering the long-term impact to customers, patients, employees, and the business.

Patient & Customer Centricity - Maintain an ongoing focus on the needs of our customers and/or key stakeholders.

Impactful Communication - Communicate with logic, clarity, and respect. Influence at all levels to achieve the best results for Otsuka.

Respectful Collaboration - See…