Call for Applications

Business Development and Partnerships Director

Location: Geneva, Switzerland

Contract: open-ended employment

Travel requirements: extensive travelling required, up to 50% of working time, within and outside EU, including LMICs.

The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) is a United Nations-backed public health organisation working to increase access to, and facilitate the development of, life-saving medicines for low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Through its innovative business model, MPP partners with civil society, governments, international organisations, industry, patient groups, and other stakeholders to prioritise and license needed medicines and pool intellectual property to encourage generic manufacture and the development of new formulations. MPP’s mandate covers patented medicines for infectious diseases – HIV, TB, hepatitis C and also non-communicable diseases including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, in addition to COVID-19 treatments and technologies and more recently maternal health.

MPP aims to improve access to medicines and health technologies, particularly in LMICs, and facilitate further innovation through nonexclusive voluntary licensing. MPP operates as a non-profit voluntary licensing mechanism through partnerships with originator pharmaceutical companies and generic manufacturers that facilitate access and promote innovation. MPP negotiates licences with patent holders and then sublicenses to multiple manufacturers, who develop and supply the licensed medicines, including new formulations and combinations. The treatments are made available in a defined set of LMICs, sometimes in exchange for royalties.

The MPP’s model has received positive endorsements from the World Health Organization, the Access to Medicine Index, the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), UNAIDS, the Lancet Commission on Essential Medicines for Universal Health Coverage, the United Nations High Level Panel on Access to Medicines, the G20 and many governments.

In 2021 WHO together with MPP and a global consortium of partners launched the mRNA Technology Transfer Programme. The mRNA Technology Transfer Programme was set up to address the inequalities in access to vaccines in LMICs that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic. The objectives of the Programme are to establish and enhance sustainable mRNA vaccine manufacturing capacity and to develop skilled human capital in the regions where mRNA vaccine manufacturing capacity is established or can be enhanced.

, please see our website, www.medicinespatentpool.org.

About the Role

The Business Development and Partnerships Director is responsible for developing new business opportunities with pharmaceutical companies and research institutions and managing relationships with Medicines Patent Pool licensors and sub-licensees. The role holder will work closely with all MPP workstreams to negotiate and agree appropriate licensing arrangements to achieve the public health objectives of the Medicines Patent Pool. As a member of the MPP Executive Leadership Team, the role provides strategic business input and guidance to ensure effective collaboration between MPP, originators and sub-licensees.

The Business Development and Partnerships Director reports directly to the Executive Director and leads the business development workstream including the in-licensing team, alliance management team based in India, and the scientific and medical affairs team. All together the workstream counts 15 staff, of which four will report directly to the future incumbent.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• Research and build a robust portfolio of business opportunities, including scientific assessment, market and industry trends, new technologies and delivery systems with strong impact on public health
• Establish and nurture strong relationships with patent holders (pharmaceutical companies and research institutes).
• Oversee sublicensing work, from identifying key potential partners to supporting them with development and regulatory pathways for early regulatory submissions.
• Develop and update market projections for therapies of interest to MPP; implement market shaping activities with other public health stakeholders; manage and guide MPP’s market shaping efforts through strategic collaboration with other public health stakeholders
• Work cross-functionally with the MPP Policy department to continuously measure and demonstrate the human and financial impact of MPP’s voluntary licensing and access agreements.
• Oversee the MPP Indian liaison office management in conjunction with the COO. Provide strategic guidance for and support MPP’s participation in paediatric initiatives.
• Work with other ELT members to shape and implement business strategies fostering a collegial responsibility.
• Nurture the MPP commitment to public health goals and a mission-driven culture, creating stimulating and supportive work environment for the business development department and the broader organisation
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Executive Director.

Essential Requirements:

• Advanced university degree in economics, business administration, law, public health, or another relevant field, or equivalent professional qualifications.
• At least 15 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical sector with a successful track record of business development, strategy development, and stakeholder relations.
• Experience and knowledge in public health with issues related to access to medicines and intellectual property.
• Fluency in English; knowledge of another UN language a plus

• Pharmaceutical sector expertise in the areas of devising business development strategies, managing complex strategic partnerships, industry dynamics, value chain analysis, and financial modelling
• Exceptional communication, relationship-building, and negotiation skills, with the ability to engage various stakeholders.
• Working knowledge of technology transfer
• Working knowledge of patented treatments on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines and related scientific matters
• Working knowledge of intellectual property-related issues
• Sound experience in and knowledge of international health policy, pharmaceutical policies and public health
• Proven management capacity at a senior level with experience in leading multicultural teams, setting clear goals, and maintaining focus on priorities.
• Demonstrated negotiation skills

Personal Qualities

• Demonstrable personal commitment to advancing public health goals aligned with the Medicines Patent Pool mission.
• Personable, persuasive, and skilled in relationship-building at senior levels
• Proven ability to network effectively, fostering productive relationships across a wide range of organisations, and at all levels
• A strong entrepreneurial mindset with a creative, solution-oriented approach to identifying new opportunities and accommodating various stakeholders’ needs.
• Adaptability and resilience with the ability to manage complexities, and deal with ambiguity and change
• Culturally sensitive, respectful of different work styles and able to collaborate effectively within multicultural settings.
• Team-oriented leader, with a supportive, collaborative approach to managing people and projects

It is the policy and practice of the Medicines Patent Pool to provide equal employment to qualified individuals (employees and applicants) regardless of their race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, nationality, ethnic origin, marital status, disability, and to conform to all applicable laws and regulations.

Salary is commensurate with experience. The Medicines Patent Pool offers an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Please send a cover letter and CV to our recruitment partner, oprandi & partner, Dr Bruno Peterer, Senior Partner at peterer@oprandi.ch, +41 79 471 70 32 by 8 December 2024