Senior Director, Brand Lead, Nephrology

Ardelyx is a publicly traded commercial biopharmaceutical company founded with a mission to discover, develop and commercialize innovative first-in-class medicines that meet significant unmet medical needs. Ardelyx has two commercial products approved in the United States, IBSRELA® (tenapanor) and XPHOZAH® (tenapanor). Ardelyx has agreements for the development and commercialization of tenapanor outside of the U.S. Kyowa Kirin commercializes PHOZEVEL® (tenapanor) for hyperphosphatemia in Japan.

A New Drug Application for tenapanor for hyperphosphatemia has been approved in China with Fosun Pharma. Knight Therapeutics commercializes IBSRELA in Canada.

The Senior Director, Brand Lead, Nephrology will be responsible for the overall brand strategy and execution for XPHOZAH – a key product in the company’s Nephrology therapeutic area. This leader will evolve the brand’s vision and strategic focus, drive integrated marketing efforts, and oversee the thought leader engagement strategy, ensuring cohesive communication across healthcare professionals (HCP), patients and the broader medical community.

The ideal candidate is a dynamic, strategic marketer with deep experience in biotech or specialty pharmaceuticals, a proven record of successful product leadership, and the ability to inspire and guide a cross-functional team.

• Lead the evolution and execution of the brand vision, positioning, and market strategy for XPHOZAH
• Partner cross-functionally with Medical Affairs, Market Access, Sales, Commercial Operations, and Corporate Communications to align messaging, data generation, and commercialization efforts
• Serve as the primary brand champion, ensuring consistency across all internal and external touchpoints
• Oversee brand performance metrics and market insights to drive data-driven decisions and optimize ROI
• Oversee marketing budget, and ensure all marketing programs and campaigns support overall strategy, are executed effectively with a strong ROI, and are within budget

• Lead and mentor a high-performing team by setting clear goals and aligning team efforts with business objectives for the HCP Marketing, Patient Marketing, and Thought Leader Engagement functions
• Foster collaboration, accountability, and professional development across the team

• Lead development of cross-functionally aligned brand plan, and foster strategically aligned functional execution of innovative HCP and DTP tactics
• Partner with multi-channel marketing team to develop media / NPP strategy and initiatives, ensuring alignment between patient and HCP initiatives
• Drive content creation and promotional materials in compliance with regulatory and medical review processes
• Collaborate with analytics and insights teams to continuously evaluate campaign effectiveness and refine strategies

• Build and maintain strategic relationships with key opinion leaders (KOLs), professional societies, and advocacy groups
• Oversee advisory boards, speaker programs and congress activities to position XPHOZAH as the therapy of choice within its category
• Partner with Medical Affairs to ensure a scientifically grounded and compliant approach to external engagement

• Serve as the bridge between commercial, clinical and medical teams, ensuring alignment on messaging, evidence generation, and product lifecycle strategy

• Bachelor’s degree, advanced degree (MBA) strongly preferred, with 10+ years of progressive marketing or brand leadership experience in biotech, pharmaceutical or specialty healthcare or equivalent experience
• Demonstrated success leading commercial strategy for a launched or early‑stage marketed product in a competitive therapeutic area
• Proven ability to manage and develop teams
• Strong understanding of regulatory and compliance frameworks governing biopharma marketing
• Strategic and analytical mindset with operational discipline
• Collaborative and influential leader who thrives in a matrix environment
• Entrepreneurial spirit with a bias for action and innovation
• High emotional intelligence and executive…