Associate Director - Forecasting

Job Description

Associate Director - Forecasting

Human Health Forecasting is a global function encompassing long-range pharmaceutical asset forecasting pan lifecycle across Human Health (Oncology, Vaccines, Hospital Specialty / Primary care). Assets include early and late stage molecules in clinical development and marketed as well as companies under considerations by business development for partnering and/ or acquisition. Forecasting deliverables feed pan division planning and decision making for functional areas such as finance, manufacturing, product development and commercial. In addition to ensuring a high-quality deliverable, the role requires driving synergies across divisions, fostering innovation and best practices, creating solutions to bring speed, scale and shareability to our planning processes. 

We are looking for a lead within the Forecasting team located in Pune for forecasting tools, methodologies, and capabilities, including demand forecasting automation. You will have an entrepreneurial spirit, an understanding of healthcare & technology, and a demonstrated record of leading multiple delivery teams building forecasting solutions for actionable insights. You are a strong leader, can work independently, and deal well with ambiguity through strong collaboration across the stakeholder community.

Primary responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Lead the development, implementation, and optimization of forecasting tools and processes.
• Design, develop and optimize forecasting capabilities after evaluating forecasting tools, software, and technologies to enhance forecasting accuracy, efficiency, and effectiveness.
• Design and implement best-in-class forecasting methodologies and models, leveraging statistical techniques, time-series analysis, and advanced algorithms, as per evolving industry best practices and emerging trends
• Leverage machine learning algorithms, automation, and data visualization to improve forecasting processes and outputs.
• Responsible for managing the team delivering monthly forecast at SKU level for all forecastable SKU’s (~5k+ SKU’s) every month for about 70+ markets
• Collaborate across stakeholders – our company, Supply Chain, Human Health, Finance, Country Demand Planners, Regional and Global Demand planners, and senior leadership – to drive automation and centralization of forecasts, ensuring forecast accuracy improves over time.

• Expected span of control (~10-15, including contracted employees); in addition to this, participate in selection, talent development and trainings of our company employees.

Qualification and skills:

• Engineering / Management / Pharma post-graduates with 12+ years of experience in the relevant roles; with at least 4-5 years of experience in pharmaceutical strategic or demand forecasting
• Demonstrated leadership and management in driving innovation and automation leveraging advanced statistical and analytics techniques (expertise in AI/ ML will be added advantage)
• Proficiency in formulating business questions based on stakeholder insight requirements and experience in developing both machine learning and descriptive algorithms or modeling using such languages as Python, R, SAS, etc
• Proven data science experience leveraging advanced statistical methods, Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence, Natural Language Processing (NLP) modeling, and model evaluation is a plus.
• Experienced in working with diverse groups, in managing ambiguity
• Excellent business acumen, with the ability to understand business processes and commercial strategies in detail at both global and region/country levels – and translate these into detailed business requirements/questions that power analytics.
• Strong analytical skills; an aptitude for problem solving and strategic thinking

Our Human Health Division maintains a “patient first, profits later” ideology. The organization is comprised of sales, marketing, market access, digital analytics and commercial professionals who are passionate about their role in bringing our medicines to our customers worldwide.

We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing diverse, talented, and committed people together. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when diverse ideas come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively. We are an equal opportunity employer, committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace.

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Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

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Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Required Skills:

Business Analysis, Marketing, Numerical Analysis, Project Management, Stakeholder Relationship Management, Strategic Planning

Preferred Skills:

Job Posting End Date:

07/9/2024

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.