AVP, Data Strategy, Products & Innovation

Job Description

The individual in this role leads a global function responsible for driving strategy, governance, and innovation across commercial data supply chain. The role will oversee an integrated team spanning data strategy, governance, engineering and data products to deliver scalable, secure, and compliant data products and infrastructure. This leader also serves as an authority on Human Health (HH) data compliance, responsible AI, and risk mitigation, ensuring all HH data initiatives align with internal policies, external regulations, and ethical standards. In addition, they oversee a digital innovation hub tasked with identifying, piloting, and scaling next-generation data sources and products—across markets and therapeutic areas—to accelerate business impact across commercial and access domains.

Position Responsibilities:

• Shapes Human Health (HH) data strategy and innovative solutions across core capabilities & franchises (e.g., Oncology, Vaccines, Pharma. Rare disease for US and ex-US markets)
• Owns the “Gold” layer of our Medallion data architecture and has deep expertise in commercial data domains
• Partners closely Global Data Operations (CDO) teams on enterprise data governance frameworks, data ingestion patterns and data quality standards
• Leads data contracting and vendor management for strategic data partners across HH
• Delivers integrated data products aligned to US & international markets and digital solutions portfolios
• Leads development and management data pipelines on commercial data platforms (e.g., Databricks) and shared services
• Ensures reliability and scalability of ingestion, transformation, and data workflows across global data layers
• Coordinates with Chief Technology Office (CTO) and Digital Human Health teams to maintain technical infrastructure and enable product roadmap
• Identifies & evaluates emerging data technologies (e.g., synthetic data generation, data mesh architectures) for HH to strengthen scalability, security & compliance in commercial data systems, in collaboration with CDO
• Manages design, testing and deployment of new/innovative data products & services across HH franchises & markets
• Implements “Privacy and Compliance by design” frameworks from Enterprise functions across internal and external datasets, ensuring alignment with global regulations (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA) and contract standards
• Establishes and operationalizes responsible AI governance, including ethical reviews of GenAI pilots, validation protocols, explainability standards, and human-in-the-loop controls
• Develops and embeds training programs on responsible data understanding and use; track compliance through dashboards, audit logs, and KPIs

Educational Requirements:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s in Engineering, Data Science, or Computer Science
• MBA or innovation/entrepreneurial certification preferred

Behavioral Competencies Required:

• Strategic understanding of our business portfolio and ability to anticipate data gaps/opportunities for our product portfolio
• Strategic planning and prioritization of demand and innovation aligned to TA needs, LROP requirements, and platform evolution
• Able to drive risk mitigation strategies and represent a Digital/ Analytics org in Legal, Privacy, and Global Ethics forums
• Able to lead large and high performing cross functional teams in matrixed organizations

Functional Competencies Required:

• Experience in working with enterprise/ central data functions and unstructured data to support key programs and initiatives (e.g., content)
• Understanding of how data layers support downstream use cases in brand, forecasting, and patient support
• Hands-on experience with developing data platforms, including FAIR, consented, & payer data integration
• Deep expertise in commercial pharma data domains with extensive experience in applied data and insights using real world data assets
• Experience with global data strategy, product engineering, and digital innovation programs
• Proven success in building and scaling modern data platforms and pipelines (e.g., AWS, Databricks)
• Familiarity with agile product development, API orchestration, and data privacy requirements (e.g., HIPAA, GDPR)

Experience Requirements:

• 15+ years in data strategy, governance, engineering, data products, or consulting in pharma or life sciences

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

U.S. Hybrid Work Model

Effective September 5, 2023, employees in office-based positions in the U.S. will be working a Hybrid work consisting of three total days on-site per week, Monday - Thursday, although the specific days may vary by site or organization, with Friday designated as a remote-working day, unless business critical tasks require an on-site presence.This Hybrid work model does not apply to, and daily in-person attendance is required for, field-based positions; facility-based, manufacturing-based, or research-based positions where the work to be performed is located at a Company site; positions covered by a collective-bargaining agreement (unless the agreement provides for hybrid work); or any other position for which the Company has determined the job requirements cannot be reasonably met working remotely. Please note, this Hybrid work model guidance also does not apply to roles that have been designated as “remote”.

The salary range for this role is

$276,600.00 - $435,400.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits.  Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic/International

Visa Sponsorship:

Yes

Travel Requirements:

25%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(S):

n/a

Required Skills:

Agile Application Development, Biopharmaceutical Industry, Business Analysis, Business Decisions, Computer Science, Customer Experience Management, Data Forecasting, Data Science, Data Strategies, Demand Management, Ethical Standards, Ethics, Forecasting Models, Human Diseases, Innovation, Management Process, Requirements Management, Responsible AI, Risk Mitigation Strategies, Sourcing and Procurement, Stakeholder Relationship Management, Strategic Planning, Unstructured Data

Preferred Skills:

Job Posting End Date:

10/9/2025

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.