Head of Search & Evaluation, Technologies (all genders)

Work Your Magic with us!  

Ready to explore, break barriers, and discover more? We know you’ve got big plans – so do we! Our colleagues across the globe love innovating with science and technology to enrich people’s lives with our solutions in Healthcare, Life Science, and Electronics. Together, we dream big and are passionate about caring for our rich mix of people, customers, patients, and planet. That's why we are always looking for curious minds that see themselves imagining the unimaginable with us.  

United As One for Patients, our purpose in Healthcare is to help create, improve and prolong lives. We develop medicines, intelligent devices and innovative technologies in therapeutic areas such as Oncology, Neurology and Fertility. Our teams work together across 6 continents with passion and relentless curiosity in order to help patients at every stage of life. Joining our Healthcare team is becoming part of a diverse, inclusive and flexible working culture, presenting great opportunities for personal development and career advancement across the globe.

We are currently seeking to appoint a new Head of Search & Evaluation, Technologies. This role will be responsible for proactively shaping R&D technologies strategy, identifying suitable technology partners, building & nurturing the external network; supporting inorganic strategy building and initial technology assessments. In more detail the Head of Search & Evaluation, Technologies, will be responsibe for:

• Acting as a trusted partner to internal stakeholders in Research and Drug Discovery Technologies Units in identify technology needs and elaborating a Technologies partnering strategy.
• Shaping the definition of search scope and partnering needs through market-specific insights.
• Driving proactive search to identify technologies and potential partners.
• Translating organisational and technological needs to partner search profiles and guide partner selection.
• Developing and keeping an overview of the external and internal landscape within investment priorities along R&D Technologies strategy; maintaining and monitoring a longlist of potential opportunities.
• Extracting key transferable learnings on the maturity of certain technologies and key developments to next inflection point guiding search scope and investment decisions. 
• Maintaining an overview of search and evaluation activities in the Technologies area to form basis of senior management reporting and discussions.
• Overseeing and guiding the filtering of potential opportunities (e.g., unsolicited, VC portfolios, conferences); execute CDA and providing aligned feedback to stakeholders.
• Selecting and prioritizing opportunities for further evaluation in close collaboration with Business Development counterparts.
• Benchmarking of potential partners based on aligned criteria to elucidate differentiation.
• Building and maintaining external network (e.g., biotech/pharma/VC) and represent/position Merck externally towards potential partners.
• Engaging, together with Business Development colleagues, in business model for partnering discussions to assess viability / feasibility of partnership.
• Elaborating value add of envisioned partnership in context of cost to make, alternatives, benchmarks and the likes working closely with R&D controlling and other R&D stakeholders.
• Driving identification of big rocks and consolidation of EGIB decision-making document to make a go/no-go decision
• Advising of due diligence activities and consulting on assessment of risks and mitigations.
• Supporting outbound partnering/externalization efforts, including pitch deck generation, assessment of attractiveness of outlicensing, utilising network to pitch opportunities.
• Advising and coaching S&E Leads on workplan development.

In order to succeed in this role it is expected that the new incumbent will have gained previous experience that closely matches that following:

• University degree (Master, preferably PhD) in pharmaceutical science or an equivalent qualification
• Expertise in R&D in the life science industry.
• Strong scientific network enabling engagement with the market to identify potentially game changing R&D technologies
• Significant R&D experience as well as experience in a BD&L, S&E or DD position.
• Thorough understanding of the pharmaceutical drug discovery/development process

What we offer: We are curious minds that come from a broad range of backgrounds, perspectives, and life experiences. We celebrate all dimensions of diversity and believe that it drives excellence and innovation, strengthening our ability to lead in science and technology. We are committed to creating access and opportunities for all to develop and grow at your own pace. Join us in building a culture of inclusion and belonging that impacts millions and empowers everyone to work their magic and champion human progress!
 
Apply now and become a part of our diverse team!