Senior Director

Axsome Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company leading a new era in the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) conditions. We deliver scientific breakthroughs by identifying critical gaps in care and develop differentiated products with a focus on novel mechanisms of action that enable meaningful advancements in patient outcomes. Our industry-leading neuroscience portfolio includes FDA-approved treatments for major depressive disorder, excessive daytime sleepiness associated with narcolepsy and obstructive sleep apnea, and migraine, and multiple late-stage development programs addressing a broad range of serious neurological and psychiatric conditions that impact over 150 million people in the United States. Together, we are on a mission to solve some of the brain’s biggest problems so patients and their loved ones can flourish. For more information, please visit us at www.axsome.com and follow us on LinkedIn and X.

About This Role:

Axsome Therapeutics, Inc is seeking a Senior Director of Account Management. This individual will report to the Executive Director of Account Management and will work cross functionally with Commercial leadership (Sales, Marketing, Operations), Medical and HEOR leadership, as well as Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance to align resources and strategic initiatives, ensuring patient and provider access to Axsome.  This role will also regularly interact with Axsome’s Executive Leadership Team.

Job Responsibilities and Duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Lead a team of Account Directors responsible for:
  • Developing and maintaining strong relationships at national and regional payer accounts within the Commercial, Medicare, Medicaid channels
  • Understanding an influencing multiple payer stakeholder
  • Developing and executing account specific strategies for national and regional payers
  • Communicating Axsome’s portfolio, corporate, and product(s) value proposition(s) that demonstrate the clinical and economic value of Axsome’s products with the Payer community
  • Educating Payers as they make formulary access decisions; this includes education on the value Axsome’s products provide Payers and their patients, and our competitive position relative to alternatives
  • Negotiating and securing payer coverage for Axsome products that ensures a balance between affordable and easy access for patients while meeting the Net Sales goals of the company (i.e. contracting within approved financial metrics and in alignment with coverage strategy, as set by the Executive Leadership Team)
• Recruit, develop, and assess Field talent
• Engage internal parties to optimize idea generation and plan of action to implement strategic plans
• Collaborate with other Market Access functions (e.g. Pricing & Contracting, Trade, Patient Services), Field Access Teams, Commercial, Medical, Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance partners to operationalize overall market access strategy
• Function as a member of the Market Access Leadership Team and provide general management insights to optimize the overall long-term mission of the Market Access function
• Collaborate closely with Pricing & Contracting to design, develop, and implement optimal contracting strategies and Payer coverage (as approved by the Executive Leadership Team), and ongoing assessment of the suitability of those strategies
• Implementation of tools and tactics to support Market Access strategies for use with third party Payers
• effective and collaborative working relationships with external business partners, including consultants, and data analytics vendors, as well as internal departments such as Marketing, Sales, Analytics, Training, Medical, Regulatory, Legal and Compliance
• Collaborate with Sales Leadership to gather feedback and input on market dynamics, field needs and effectiveness of push and pull through tactics
• Ensure the function operates in a fiscally sound manner in accordance with the objectives of Axsome

Requirements / Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required, MBA or MHA degree preferred
• 15+ years of related experience in the pharmaceutical, medical device, or biotech industry
• At least 3 years of direct experience managing and developing teams
• Ability to travel up 70%
• Demonstrated effective Payer Account (field) Team leadership with comparable types of Payers

Experience and Knowledge:

• Negotiation experience, preferably in competitive primary care therapeutic areas
• Prior experience in longer-term execution (including complex multi-year contract & program management)
• Experience managing projects and vendors
• In-depth knowledge of the payer marketplace, payer practices, and legal and regulatory landscape pertinent to the industry
• Demonstrated effective leadership in pre-launch, early, mid, and long range /full life cycle market access strategy formulation and execution.
• Strong understanding of the payer landscape and how payer decision making impacts providers and their patients
• A problem-solving mindset with demonstrated “lean-forward” approach and ability to think critically.
• Ability to influence internal and external stakeholders
• Excellent oral, written and presentation skills with ability to use numbers and data to tell a story, influence decision makers, and explain complex concepts clearly to a variety of audiences
• Prior experience with budget development and control
• Ability to translate the organization’s strategy into action by the team and build resilience into their team and so they are adaptive to changing and/or challenging market conditions.
• Previous product launch experience, preferably in the CNS space
• Familiarity with current legal and regulatory landscape pertinent to the Payer market and industry
• Strong communication and collaboration skills with the ability to effectively present ideas and influence others to achieve desired results and to drive consensus
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment with high expectations and accountability for the quality and timing of deliverables to meet company goals

Salary and Benefits:

The anticipated salary range for this role is $250,000 - $270,000. We encourage candidates of all levels to apply as there may be flexibility on final job title and responsibilities. The salary offer will be based on a variety of factors, including experience, qualifications, internal equity and location. Axsome offers a competitive employment package that includes an annual bonus, significant equity and a generous benefits package.

Axsome is committed to equal employment opportunity and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and/or mental disabilities. We value and encourage diversity and solicit applications from all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, religion, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, ancestry, citizenship, marital status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

Axsome Therapeutics does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters or third-party recruitment agencies and will not pay placement fees for unsolicited candidates that are sent to hiring managers, the HR team or other Axsome team members. Only approved vendors who have been explicitly asked to support a specific search will receive access to our Applicant Tracking System to submit candidates for consideration.