External Meetings and Engagements Lead

Job Description Summary #LI-Hybrid Location: East Hanover, NJ, USA Relocation Support: This role is based in East Hanover, NJ. Novartis is unable to offer relocation support: please only apply if accessible. Sponsorship: Novartis is unable to offer sponsorship for this role. Travel: Approximately 20% domestic travel, based on business needs. Ready to shape how Novartis delivers meaningful external engagements at scale? As the External Meetings and Engagements Lead, you will set the strategic direction and operational standards for engagements with healthcare professionals and other external stakeholders across the U.S. organization. Leading a team and partnering closely with Ethics, Risk and Compliance, Legal, Medical, Commercial, Finance, Procurement, and technology teams, you will help create compliant, efficient, and high-quality experiences. You will also champion digital innovation and responsible use of artificial intelligence to simplify operations, strengthen governance, and continuously improve how external meetings and educational programs are delivered.   Job Description Key Responsibilities ·    Set the strategic direction for compliant, high-quality external meetings and engagements across the U.S. organization. ·    Lead end-to-end healthcare professional education and advisory board operations, from planning through reconciliation and closeout. ·    Own technology platforms supporting external engagements, driving usability, operational efficiency, and continuous platform improvement. ·    Partner with Ethics, Risk and Compliance, Legal, Medical, Commercial, Finance, and Procurement to strengthen governance and execution. ·    Drive scalable virtual and hybrid engagement solutions that improve experiences for presenters, attendees, and field teams. ·    Lead supplier performance through clear service expectations, performance measures, issue resolution, and continuous improvement. ·    Develop and inspire a high-performing team while leveraging artificial intelligence and automation to simplify meeting operations. Essential Requirements ·    Bachelor’s degree with relevant experience in pharmaceutical commercial operations or external engagement operations. ·    Direct people-management experience, including leading teams across multiple stakeholder or client groups. ·    Experience managing healthcare professional education, speaker programs, external meetings, project management, or related commercial operations. ·    Familiarity with compliance requirements, such as the Sunshine Act and transparency reporting, and experience ensuring adherence to regulations. ·    Proven experience managing suppliers, service delivery, performance measures, customer satisfaction, and budgets within an outsourced model. ·    Strong leadership, analytical, communication, and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to influence across complex cross-functional environments. ·    Ability to work from East Hanover, New Jersey under the hybrid model and travel domestically approximately 20%. Desirable Requirements ·    Master of Business Administration, Project Management certification, Six Sigma qualification, or comparable advanced credentials. ·    Experience applying artificial intelligence, automation, or digital tools to improve meeting management and operational efficiency. Why Novartis? At Novartis, our purpose is to reimagine medicine to improve and extend people’s lives. As External Meetings and Engagements Lead, you will have the opportunity to shape how high-quality, compliant engagements with healthcare professionals and other external stakeholders are delivered across the U.S. organization. You will collaborate across Ethics, Risk and Compliance, Legal, Medical, Commercial, Finance, Procurement, and te