Medical Science Liaison, Medical Solutions Lead, South Central Region

Company Description

Deciphera, a member of ONO, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing important new medicines to improve the lives of people with cancer. We are leveraging our proprietary switch-control kinase inhibitor platform and deep expertise in kinase biology to develop a broad portfolio of innovative medicines.

Enabled by our proprietary drug discovery platform, Deciphera has developed a diverse pipeline of wholly-owned drug candidates. QINLOCK® (ripretinib) is Deciphera’s switch control inhibitor developed for the treatment of fourth-line GIST. QINLOCK is approved in Australia, Canada, China, the European Union, Hong Kong, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.  We wholly own QINLOCK and all of our drug candidates with the exception of a development and commercialization out-license agreement for QINLOCK in Greater China. In addition to QINLOCK, we have identified and advanced multiple product candidates from our platform into clinical studies, including vimseltinib and DCC-3116.  

See here for more details on our portfolio.

We offer an outstanding culture and opportunity for personal and professional growth guided by our “PATHS” Core Values and how we work together. We are proud to be Great Place to Work Certified 2023 and rank #25 on Fortune’s Best Places to Work Small and Midsized Biotech Companies in 2023. Find more details about our award-winning culture here. 

Job Description

The Role:

We are seeking a senior level, experienced Medical Science Liaison (MSL), field-based scientific/clinical expert that will report to the Senior Director, MSLs within the Medical Affairs (MA) department. The MSL is a highly trained professional with strong clinical and/or scientific backgrounds who must have excellent communication skills. The MSL is responsible for identifying, developing, and managing relationships with current and future Healthcare Providers (HCPs) in academic and community practices. This person will have mentorship and oversight responsibilities within the MSL structure for an assigned portion of the U.S

This position is a remote, field-based position with significant in-person travel required across your assigned region, as well as ride-alongs with other US MSLs in their assigned regions. Role will also include virtual engagement with customers across the US

What You’ll Do:

• Exchange complex medical & scientific information with the oncology community.
• Develop valued and productive scientific relationships with Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and other disease experts.
• Provide medical/scientific presentations to internal & external groups.
• Provide internal Medical stakeholders with feedback and insights from interactions and discussions with HCPs. Deciphera prefers the majority of HCP interactions take place face-to-face with some virtual interaction component as well.
• Assist with awareness of company-sponsored clinical trials and investigator-initiated trials (ISTs).
• Provide support at professional meetings, including staffing exhibits, collecting competitive intelligence, and developing tools that support the function.
• Adhere to corporate and healthcare compliance guidance in all activities, including those related to clinical trials, scientific interactions with internal and external groups, and responses to unsolicited requests for medical/scientific information.
• Maintain clinical, scientific, and technical expertise in specific therapeutic areas; review scientific journals, attend scientific and key technical meetings.
• Represent the company and Medical Affairs during exchanges with the medical/scientific community.
• Establish and maintain ongoing long-term collaborative peer-to-peer relationships with Oncologists, and other relevant HCPs within their assigned territory.
• Respond to and document unsolicited requests for scientific information for Deciphera’s programs and other products, including those in development.
• Engage with assigned Medical Groups to support their scientific and research needs as consistent with Deciphera’s Medical Affairs strategy.
• Facilitate investigator interactions with Medical Directors and other internal stakeholders.

In addition to the MSL responsibilities outlined above (~70% of role), this expanded role, who will serve as Medical Solutions Lead, will also have additional responsibilities, as designated and assigned by the Sr. Director, MSLs, which may include:

• Lead, in collaboration with the Scientific Directors, the creation of scientific materials for field medical use (proactive and reactive slide decks and other appropriate collaterals for use in scientific exchange)
• Contribute to the execution of congress strategy including assisting with content development for medical booth, non-promotional symposiums, KOL engagement plan.
• Assist with the development and delivery of training materials and programs in collaboration with the DCPH training department and MA leadership to ensure MSLs have appropriate levels of expertise in disease states and with relevant products.
• Assist with curriculum development, onboarding, and continual training of the MSLs, as well as complete field observations/assessments. 
• Aid in the development and execution of top-quality education strategies and activities to provide disease state, mechanism of action, product, and MSL best practices training for the MSL team (i.e. facilitate journal clubs, lead best practice calls etc.).
• Development of MSL-focused slide decks and training modules with assessments on disease state, therapeutic landscape, competitive intelligence, DCPH asset specific data, etc.
• These responsibilities will make up about 30% of role

Qualifications

What You’ll Bring:

• Advanced degree in an appropriate, job-related discipline is preferred, with a PharmD, PhD, MD, RN/NP, or PA-C being highly preferred.
• 8+ years of experience in oncological malignancies or a rare disease therapeutic area, preferred.
• 8+ years of experience as a field based MSL, or similar l MA experience, such as MSL trainer, Senior MSL, Medical Communications/Collateral generation, preferred.
• 8+ years of experience in industry (e.g., biotech/pharmaceutical/medical device company, Contract Research Organization), academic research, or public health is preferred. Clinical experience would be considered in lieu of industry experience.
• Experience with clinical research, publication activities, congress/conference and presenting scientific data.
• Experience creating MSL training materials as well as coaching and training field based MSL teams is a plus.
• Strong experience with PowerPoint, Word, and Excel; must be able to create and edit content with minimal assistance and an eye for accuracy and detail.
• Experience with Veeva CRM (or other CRM) and Veeva Vault, as well as SharePoint and/or BOX is preferred.
• Ability to effectively build relationships and work with KOLs. Significant face to face interactions will be required.
• Think strategically; apply knowledge and analytical skills in a highly regulated environment; and align medical and commercial strategies.
• Ability to summarize complex information and present in a clear, concise, and scientifically accurate manner to a range of audiences.
• Knowledge of ICH guidelines, FDA Drug Regulations with respect to DDMAC, PhRMA Principles on Conduct of Clinical Trials and Communication of Clinical Trial Results, and OIG Compliance Program Guidance for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers.
• Excellent communication skills
• Strong problem solving, decision-making, influencing, and negotiation skills.
• While there is a virtual component of this position, must be able to travel up to 70% (including some weekends and overnight), in assigned region as well as across US as needed; monthly travel to Waltham HQ is expected.
• Must live within assigned region.

Additional Information

Deciphera offers competitive compensation and a comprehensive benefits package that includes the following:

• Non-accrual paid time off
• Summer vacation bonus
• Global, company-wide summer and winter shutdowns
• An annual lifestyle allowance
• Monthly cell phone stipend
• Internal rewards and recognition program
• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• 401(k) retirement plan
• Life and Supplemental life insurance for family 
• Short- and Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Health savings account
• Flexible spending account for either health care and/or dependent care
• Family Planning benefit

Deciphera, a member of ONO, is a company headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. Our state-of-the-art research facility is located in Lawrence, Kansas and our European operations are run out of Switzerland.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY INFORMATION

Deciphera is committed to equal employment opportunity and values diversity. To ensure that we comply with reporting requirements and to learn more about how we can increase diversity in our candidate pool, we invite you to voluntarily provide demographic information in a confidential survey at the end of this application. Providing this information is optional. It will not be accessible or used in the hiring process, and has no effect on your opportunity for employment. This information will also be treated confidentially.  Our commitment to increasing diversity in our candidate pool does not affect our commitment to equal employment opportunity, including our ongoing commitment to make all hiring and other employment decisions solely on a nondiscriminatory basis.