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Incyte

Biopharmaceutical company pursuing drug discovery.

Director Patient Access & Channel Strategy

Business OperationsUpdated on Nov 10
Full-timeSaint-Laurent, Montreal, QC, CanadaNo salary listedIn-person

About the Job

Requirements

  • A bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Business, or a related field is required; an advanced degree is an asset.
  • Significant pharmaceutical or biotechnology experience leading Patient Support Programs at scale is required.
  • Experience in trade relations, wholesaler management, and Canadian pharmaceutical distribution or supply chain is required.
  • Working knowledge of Canadian public reimbursement frameworks, including CDA-AMC, INESSS, pCPA, and PMPRB, and private reimbursement frameworks is required.
  • Program management rigor, particularly for Patient Support Program operations at scale, is required.
  • Commercial negotiation skills with wholesalers, GPOs, hospital counterparts, and vendors are required.
  • Ability to operate amid significant ambiguity, sequence competing priorities, and build structure from a limited existing foundation is required.
  • Experience managing external vendors or agencies as an extension of a lean internal team is required.
  • Vendor and cross-functional stakeholder management, including management of short-term agency or vendor resources, is required.
  • Compliance and risk awareness in a regulated, PMPRB-governed pricing environment is required.
  • Bilingualism in French and English is considered an asset.

Responsibilities

  • Own Patient Support Program strategy, performance, and day-to-day program integrity across the oncology/hematology and immunology/dermatology portfolios.
  • Scale and adapt Patient Support Programs ahead of anticipated public reimbursement wins and upcoming launches.
  • Set and monitor key performance indicators for program effectiveness, patient outcomes, and vendor performance; lead vendor selection, onboarding, and governance.
  • Serve as the internal Quality Assurance Ambassador for Patient Support Program operations by overseeing standard operating procedure adherence, supporting inspection readiness, and promoting continuous improvement across vendor-delivered programs.
  • Build a multi-year channel and Patient Support Program strategy roadmap aligned with portfolio evolution.
  • Assess and refine foundational infrastructure, including governance, standard operating procedures, vendor frameworks, and key performance indicators.
  • Develop and maintain the business case for additional headcount or ongoing vendor support as scope is validated; lead hiring and onboarding as resources are approved.
  • Partner with Government Affairs, HEOR/Reimbursement Strategy, and the Private Insurance lead to ensure channel, trade, and pharmacy strategy reflects and reinforces active pCPA negotiations, CDA-AMC/INESSS outcomes, and payer strategy.
  • Partner with Medical to generate real-world evidence.
  • Provide a channel and trade perspective on pricing and contracting strategy for in-line and pipeline assets.
  • Own Patient Support Program, trade, and channel-related budgets; manage forecasts, variance, and return-on-investment reporting with Finance.
  • Ensure cost-effective and compliant vendor management across Patient Support Program, trade, and GPO/pharmacy relationships, including short-term external vendor or agency engagements where internal capacity is being built.
  • Own wholesaler and distribution partner relationships and commercial agreements.
  • Negotiate and renew trade terms to ensure uninterrupted product flow for publicly reimbursed, privately reimbursed, and pCPA-negotiated brands.
  • Serve as the primary Supply Chain point of contact in Canada; oversee third-party logistics operations, forecasting, and distribution planning.
  • Engage and manage external vendors or agencies as needed to maintain trade and supply chain continuity when internal capacity is constrained.
  • Represent Incyte Canada to the Health Products Stewardship Association and ensure compliance with environmental stewardship and product-return obligations tied to the wholesaler and distribution network.
  • Develop and execute Incyte Canada's pharmacy channel strategy across retail, specialty, and hospital pharmacy.
  • Build and manage relationships with relevant GPOs and hospital shared-services organizations, prioritizing hospital-administered or infused oncology products and pipeline assets.
  • Lead GPO and hospital contract negotiations with Legal and Finance, ensuring alignment with PMPRB pricing rules, the Competition Act, and Incyte's compliance framework.
  • Assess buy-and-bill versus Patient Support Program-mediated distribution models for infused and hospital-administered assets as they approach launch.
  • Coordinate with the Private Insurance lead where pharmacy or specialty network strategy intersects with private payer plan design.

Desired Qualifications

  • Experience with pharmacy channel strategy and/or GPO negotiation is strongly preferred, ideally involving hospital-administered or infused specialty products and buy-and-bill models.
  • Prior people-leadership experience, or demonstrated readiness to build and lead a team, is considered an asset.

About the Company

Incyte

Biopharmaceutical company pursuing drug discovery.

Incyte develops and sells medicines by discovering and developing new drugs, focusing on diseases in inflammation, autoimmunity, and blood cancers. Its core product, Jakafi (ruxolitinib), is a JAK1/2 inhibitor approved to treat a rare blood cancer and works by blocking JAK enzymes to reduce abnormal blood cell growth. The company also expands its pipeline through research collaborations, partnerships, and acquisitions, such as the 2024 purchase of Escient Pharmaceuticals to strengthen its inflammation and autoimmune portfolio. Unlike some competitors that rely mainly on internal programs, Incyte combines in-house discovery with external collaborations and strategic deals to grow its drug candidates from early research to approved therapies. The goal is to deliver medicines that help patients with serious diseases by building a diverse, clinically validated portfolio of treatments through internal efforts and partnerships.

Company size
1,001-5,000
Company stage
IPO
Headquarters
Wilmington, DE
Founded
1991

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