As the Head of Public Affairs and a member of the HDSS (Healthcare Development and Strategic Services) leadership team, you will take ownership for shaping the company’s strategic direction for the Public Affairs function. You will be influencing decision making at a senior level, relating to our Public Affairs approach to In Vitro Diagnostics (IVDs). Focusing our Public Affairs efforts on high value medical IVDs which are integral to clinical pathways with the goal of achieving market access will be critical to your success.
Responsible for driving all aspects of Public Affairs, from developing its strategic vision, planning and execution, you will lead a small team to deliver effective and integrated campaigns. The overall objective will be to shape the healthcare environment whilst meeting the interests of patients, clinicians and health care commissioners and providers.
You will Identify, develop and uphold relationships with key audiences such as policymakers, patient groups, clinicians and trade associations e.g. BIVDA.
In addition, you will develop cross portfolio strategies which project positive messages and align to our approaches in Healthcare Development (Market Access), Medical Affairs, External Communications, Roche Pharma and other key Roche Diagnostics internal stakeholders. Developing the skills of your own team and collaborating with senior stakeholders across the organisation, leveraging your well established network of public affairs contacts, external partners and advisers will be vital to success.
In order to effectively manage public affairs issues you will need to build relationships and continually build upon your understanding of social, legal, ethical and commercial developments within the health sector. Implementing the necessary processes and monitoring the success of activities, it will be important that the impact made by team initiatives is thoroughly analysed and that it provides a platform for relevant strategic insights to be analysed and translated for the Senior Leadership team. You will consistently apply and promote best practice and industry compliance with MEDTECH and BIVDA regulations as well as adhering to Roche internal guidelines.
You must be able to balance multiple priorities, lead, manage and inspire a team as well as looking after their own assigned areas of Public Affairs responsibility. In addition, you will take full accountability of the PR departmental budget and hold responsibly for highly accurate financial management.
As a senior Public Affairs professional you will have extensive experience within the healthcare industry with proven experience of successfully leading and collaborating with, cross functional and multi-disciplinary teams to successful project completion.
You are skilled in cultivating valuable relationships, negotiating effectively and influencing to a high level and dealing directly with policymakers and key decision makers in government affairs. An outstanding communicator and presenter you must also be organised and thorough, able to deliver measurable results within the confines of ethics, regulation and a complex political environment.
Who you are
You’re someone who wants to influence your own development. You’re looking for a company where you have the opportunity to pursue your interests across functions and geographies. Where a job title is not considered the final definition of who you are, but the starting point.
Minimum Qualifications required:
- University educated with relevant degree. An MBA or related advanced degree in Business would be a bonus;
- Specific vocational training in Public Affairs, e.g. CIPR;
- Extensive Public Relations or Communications experience within the Healthcare Industry;
- Line Management and leadership experience, with the proven ability to lead, and mentor a team;
- Proven knowledge of cross media market research and competitive analysis experience;
- Ambitious and self-directed strategic thinking with strong business acumen;
- Creative, confident and intuitive with the gravitas and credibility to have conversations at the highest levels.
Who we are
Our UK Diagnostics business, headquartered in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, employs approximately 560 highly skilled individuals. We provide the industry’s broadest range of diagnostics and monitoring products & services, spanning all sectors of the market: from small hand held devices used directly by patients or healthcare professionals, to large diagnostic instruments found in hospital laboratories.