National Thought Leader Liaison

National Thought Leader Liaison

Reports to: Director of Marketing – Retina
Department: Retina Marketing

Location: Field-Based / Remote with business travel requirements

COMPANY

Thea Pharma Inc. is the newly established US commercial organization of French-based pharmaceutical company, Laboratoires Théa (Clermont-Ferrand). Thea Pharma markets a suite of leading eye-care drugs that have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including ZOLYMBUS™, IYUZEH™, Zioptan®, Cosopt®, Cosopt® PF, Azasite®, Akten®, and Betimol®, as well as AcellFX™ Acellular Amniotic Membrane and the portfolio of iVIZIA dry-eye drops and eyelid hygiene products. By focusing its parent company’s passion and expertise within the U.S. market, Thea Pharma’s goal is to deliver uncompromising care that enables all stakeholders to envision the future of ophthalmic treatment with eyes wide open.

Position Summary

The National Thought Leader Liaison – Retina is a high-impact, field-based position responsible for driving regional and national Key Opinion Leader (KOL) engagement, managing peer-to-peer educational strategies, and executing commercial thought leadership initiatives. This individual will play a vital role in supporting the historic launch of Théa’s first buy-and-bill product, CYKLX.

Reporting directly to the Director of Marketing – Retina, the National Thought Leader Liaison

bridges field insights and brand strategy. The ideal candidate possesses deep expertise in the retina therapeutic area, an intimate understanding of buy-and-bill economics, and a proven track record of compliant, high-impact relationship management with top-tier healthcare professionals (HCPs).

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. KOL Engagement & Relationship Management

• Tier-1 Advocacy: Systematically identify, profile, and cultivate collaborative relationships with national and regional retina specialists, academic influencers, and rising stars.
• Insight Generation: Capture and synthesize field-level behavioral insights, clinical perspectives, and competitive intelligence to inform the home office marketing strategy.
• Account Alignment: Coordinate institutional engagement strategies for top-tier academic medical centers and influential retina fellowships within the assigned geography.
• Private Equity Strategy: Work closely with sales and marketing teams to align on a strategy to ensure uptake in large PE accounts.

2. Peer-to-Peer Marketing & Speaker Bureau Execution

• Speaker Bureau Optimization: Execute the regional recruitment, training, and operational management of the official CYKLX Speaker Bureau, ensuring strict compliance and high-quality clinical delivery.
• Educational Programming: Oversee the strategic deployment of peer-to-peer educational programs, ensuring localized tactics align with global branding and core messaging frameworks.
• Content Alignment: Partner with participating speakers to ensure clear understanding of approved scientific data, buy-and-bill workflows, and product positioning.

3. Congress, Convention & Medical Society Strategy

• Commanding Presence: Execute the corporate presence at major regional and national medical congresses (e.g., ASRS, AAO, Retina Society).
• Scientific Engagement: Manage corporate touchpoints during congresses, including product theaters, advisory boards, and high-value HCP interactions at the scientific booth.

4. Cross-Functional Launch Collaboration

• Commercial Synergy: Work in lockstep with Sales leadership and Market Access teams to ensure field-level strategies seamlessly pull through payer wins and support practice workflows.
• Training & Medical Alignment: Partner with Training and Medical Affairs to identify ongoing clinical and educational needs within the Retina community.
• Practice Workflows: Address complex buy-and-bill operational inquiries by leveraging an expert-level understanding of specialty distribution, J-codes, and ASP-based dynamics.

5. Create Regional Marketing Tactics and Strategies

• Work closely with marketing leads to identify strategies: brand planning and continuous monitoring of regional metrics.
• KOL tactics such as whitepapers, speaker decks, podcasts, etc
• Regional Ad board Execution

FUNCTIONAL COMPETENCIES & EXPECTATIONS

• KOL Advocacy: Nurturing tier-1 academic relationships and maximizing thought leader advocacy compliant with industry guidelines.
• Buy-and-Bill Competency: Solid grasp of reimbursement mechanics, specialty distribution, and practice management workflows.
• Strategic Collaboration: Working seamlessly across Marketing, Sales, Market Access, and Medical Affairs to execute a flawless launch.

QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or advanced scientific degree preferred.
• 5+ years of pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical device commercial experience (Marketing, Sales, or Medical Affairs).
• Minimum 2-3 years of dedicated experience within the Retina or Ophthalmology marketplace is strictly required.

• Launch & Reimbursement Experience: Proven track record supporting a buy-and-bill biologic or injectable asset within a highly competitive specialist environment.
• Established Network: Existing, compliant relationships with prominent regional or national retina Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs).
• Travel Requirement: Ability to travel up to 60-70% (including regular weekend medical congresses, evening speaker programs, and visits to the Waltham office for collaboration).
• This role is open at the Thought Leader Liaison or Sr. Thought Leader Liaison level. The specific title and compensation will be aligned with the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and internal equity.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS & WORK ENVIRONMENT

This position requires prolonged sitting. Additionally, requires eye-hand coordination and manual dexterity enough to operate a keyboard, photocopier, telephone, and other office equipment. Requires normal range of hearing and vision to record, prepare, and communicate appropriately. Additional physical requirements include hearing spoken communication clearly.

• Can hear accurately the spoken word with moderate office noise
• Can apply deductive reasoning and understand complicated issues
• Can follow instructions and work rules and company policies
• Can follow safety and security practices
• Can meet deadlines and effectively deal with work stress
• Can accurately communicate ideas, facts and technical information
• Can maintain confidentiality of certain information

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

BENEFITS AND PERKS

Thea offers a full suite of employee benefits, including employer-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance; a generous schedule of paid time off (PTO); life and disability insurance; paid parental leave; and a competitive 401(k) company match. Thea is a flexible and entrepreneurial work environment where you will enjoy an inclusive culture and the opportunity to have your voice and ideas directly shape the future of the company.

For U.S. locations that require disclosure of compensation, the starting pay for this role is between $97k to $247k. The estimated salary range reflects an anticipated range for this position. The actual base salary offered may depend on a variety of factors.

EEO STATEMENT

Thea Pharma Inc. is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. At Thea, we not only support the diversity of our employee population, we celebrate the way our team member’s unique backgrounds and experiences contribute to the success of our company. Thea does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. Thea Pharma Inc. does not tolerate harassment or discrimination of any kind.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Your information will be kept confidential according to EEO Guidelines.

Attention: Job Scam Alert

Thea Pharma Inc. has recently become aware of fraudulent job recruitment emails and postings from individuals claiming to represent the Company. These postings seek personal and financial information in connection with fraudulent opportunities for employment. If you suspect any fraudulent activity or misrepresentation in connection with a Thea job opportunity, please report it to [email protected].

To verify an open role please check our official careers page at https://theapharmainc.com/careers/.