Senior Global Medical Affairs Lead, Cardiovascular & Renal (CVRM)

Location: Boston (preferred), Gaithersburg

Hybrid: 3 days a week on site

Reporting to the Global Medical Head, the Senior Global Medical Affairs Lead, Cardiovascular & Renal is a highly experienced Medical Affairs leader with proven vision and impact. This individual develops and leads bold medical strategies within the CVRM (Cardiovascular, Renal & Metabolism) therapy area — spanning hypertension, chronic kidney disease (CKD) and heart failure — expertly guiding cross-functional and cross-regional teams to deliver and exceed ambitious goals. The Senior GMAL's influence is enterprise-wide—shaping global medical agendas through Global Medical Team, Global Product Team, and Disease Area Team leadership, and deep partnership with Medical and Commercial functions in markets and regions worldwide.

This role demands a leader who champions innovative, disruptive thinking—identifies and shapes breakthrough opportunities, reimagines market dynamics, and accelerates high-impact evidence generation and medical change initiatives. The Senior GMAL navigates and transforms health systems, leverages digital, advanced analytics and emerging technologies, drives stakeholder engagement, and ensures AstraZeneca's science leads externally and internally through world-class medical evidence and strategic partnerships.

Expectations of a Senior GMAL include:

Strategy & Transformation: The Senior GMAL designs and leads the implementation of product and disease area strategies, as well as ambitious practice change initiatives, at a global level. This requires a deep understanding of healthcare system pathways, regulatory landscapes, market access, and competitive dynamics. The Senior GMAL consistently delivers innovative, disruptive solutions to shape markets, challenges status quo thinking, and uses digital, AI and data capabilities to identify opportunities, preparing for launch and life cycle management.

Medical Evidence Leadership: Senior GMALs lead the evidence generation strategy—demonstrating advanced experience in clinical research, interventional trials (Phases 2–4), and real-world evidence (RWE) programs. They shape and drive groundbreaking clinical trials, registries, and RWE studies aligned with brand, access, and practice-changing objectives. They guide the optimisation, communication, and strategic roll-out of data across scientific platforms, ensuring AstraZeneca delivers differentiated evidence that supports the needs of regulatory, payer, and healthcare providers. Clinical research, patient outcomes expertise, and deep understanding of treatment protocols underpin their ability to address evolving evidence requirements.

Advanced Scientific & Digital Engagement: The Senior GMAL blends scientific expertise with strong digital acumen. They leverage digital health, AI, advanced analytics, and data platforms to transform evidence communication, personalize stakeholder engagement, and enhance patient outcomes. They are the voice of medical—crafting compelling narratives, driving digital dissemination of evidence, and ensuring accurate, impactful, and compliant scientific communications.

Guiding and Influencing Stakeholders: With significant expertise in internal and external engagement, the Senior GMAL builds and sustains powerful relationships across the healthcare ecosystem—including global and regional KOLs, professional societies, regulators, payers, patient organizations, technology innovators, and health systems. Their credibility and influence enable them to mobilize support for medical strategy, evidence generation, and healthcare change initiatives. They mentor and guide cross-functional teams, championing scientific leadership and strategic collaboration.

Regulatory Insight & Compliance: The Senior GMAL possesses keen regulatory understanding and ensures clinical trial and evidence generation initiatives are designed for both scientific and regulatory success. They anticipate evolving regulatory and payer requirements for evidence, ensuring high quality, compliant data generation and communication at every stage.

Essential for the role:

Advanced degree in a relevant discipline required (MD, PhD, PharmD

At least 5 years of relevant experience in the pharmaceutical industry (Medical, Marketing, R&D, Market Access) or leadership experience in health systems, academia, research, or other relevant healthcare settings.

Demonstrated leadership in complex, global healthcare environments, including shaping strategy, driving performance, leading large and diverse cross-functional teams, and delivering major product, evidence, or healthcare transformation initiatives.

Significant expertise and strategic insight into healthcare system pathways, regulatory landscapes, market-shaping, and external stakeholder engagement.

Strong track record of internal and external network building, collaboration across geographies and matrix teams, and effective mentoring of junior colleagues or peers.

Digital and AI proficiency, leveraging digital health tools, AI, and data platforms to advance evidence generation, communication, and healthcare transformation.

Deep understanding of patient care pathways, evolving treatment protocols, scientific literature, and contemporary approaches to healthcare transformation.

Proven ability to guide, influence, and align diverse stakeholders—including thought leaders, regulatory bodies, patient groups, and payer organisations.

Desirable for the role:

Recognized expertise in the relevant or related therapeutic area, evidenced by clinical practice, research leadership, or significant external engagement — ideally in cardiovascular or renal disease, including hypertension, chronic kidney disease, heart failure, or the broader cardiorenal / cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) spectrum. Cardiologists, nephrologists, and cardiovascular-renal scientists are especially encouraged.

Candidates from other therapy areas with strong transferable Medical Affairs leadership, launch, and evidence-generation experience who can rapidly build cardiovascular-renal expertise are also encouraged.

Substantial pharmaceutical industry experience, particularly within Medical Affairs and global product or disease-area leadership.

Advanced experience designing, leading, and interpreting clinical research programs, including pivotal clinical trials (Ph2–Ph4), practice-changing RWE studies, and innovative evidence-generation approaches.

Broad experience beyond Medical Affairs, for example in Marketing, R&D, or Market Access.

Established relationships with global KOLs, professional societies, regulators, digital health partners, and innovative healthcare organisations or a demonstrated ability to build such networks rapidly.

Track record of launching new products or indications across diverse markets (e.g., US, China, EU), and successfully developing and executing global medical strategies.

AstraZeneca offers an environment built on innovation and curiosity where difference is valued and questioning minds are encouraged to challenge convention; teams reflect the diversity of the communities they serve, work closely together across disciplines and geographies, embrace digital and data to solve complex challenges at pace, learn continuously through shared insight and feedback, and channel their entrepreneurial spirit into developing the next generation of therapeutics that improve outcomes for patients and society.

If this role matches your experience and ambitions, apply now to join us on this journey!

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of