Sr. Manager, Promotional Planning & Marketing Operations

Job Description

Job Description

Senior Manager, Promotional Planning and Marketing Operations

At Vericel Corporation, we are pioneers in advanced cell therapies for sports medicine and severe burn care, transforming patient lives through cutting-edge regenerative medicine. Our commitment to innovation, patient-centered focus, and scientific excellence drives us to develop groundbreaking treatments including MACI (knee cartilage repair), Epicel and Nexobrid (burn care).

Position Summary

The Senior Manager, Promotional Planning and Marketing Operations leads Vericel’s marketing operations, including the Medical, Legal and Regulatory (MLR) review process, and provides centralized coordination across key Commercial initiatives. The role ensures all promotional resources, programs and campaigns move efficiently from planning through review, approval and execution in accordance with prospectively established timelines and while maintaining appropriate quality and compliance. 

Working across Marketing, Medical Affairs, Legal, Regulatory, Commercial Operations and agency partners, this individual drives continuous improvement, manages the promotional content portfolio, annual Promotional Calendar, as well as providing Commercial Leadership with clear visibility into priorities, timelines, risks and dependencies to support effective decision-making and execution. 

Schedule: This position is in-office from Monday – Thursday in our new Burlington, MA location, with flexibility to work remotely on Fridays.

Key Responsibilities:

Commercial Content & MLR Governance 

• Serve as the operational business owner for Vericel's MLR promotional review process and end-to-end promotional content lifecycle through Veeva PromoMats. 

• Establish and maintain governance, standards, procedures and service expectations that enable efficient, consistent and compliant content development and review. 

• Continuously improve the MLR operating model to increase speed and quality, while maintaining appropriate Medical, Legal and Regulatory oversight. 

• Coordinate content progression from concept through submission, review, approval, production, deployment, maintenance and retirement. 

• Ensure approved materials and associated documentation are appropriately maintained and distributed through Veeva PromoMats, Allego and other enterprise platforms. 

• Establish clear escalation pathways and facilitate timely resolution of content-review issues. 

Promotional Content Portfolio Management 

• Establish and maintain a centralized view of key Commercial initiatives, content, resources programs and campaigns across functions. 

• Develop consistent portfolio intake, prioritization, tracking and reporting practices. 

• Maintain visibility into project owners, milestones, decisions, dependencies, risks, capacity constraints and delivery commitments. 

• Identify cross-functional dependencies, competing priorities and potential execution risks early and drive resolution or appropriate escalation. 

• Provide Commercial Leadership with clear, decision-oriented portfolio reporting that enables prioritization and resource allocation. 

• Lead quarterly promotional portfolio reviews and ensure agreed actions and decisions are translated into execution.

Process Improvement & Technology Enablement 

• Lead continuous improvement initiatives that simplify workflows, eliminate unnecessary steps, reduce cycle time and improve execution reliability. 

• Establish templates, submission requirements, tools and best practices that improve first-pass quality and reduce rework. 

• Evaluate and implement appropriate automation, AI-enabled capabilities and technology enhancements that improve content development, MLR, portfolio management and reporting. 

Cross-Functional Leadership 

• Facilitate effective MLR meetings, portfolio reviews and cross-functional working sessions with clear objectives, decisions, accountability and follow-through. 

• Navigate differing functional priorities while maintaining scientific integrity, compliance, business objectives and execution speed. 

Metrics, Insights & Decision Support 

• Establish and maintain KPIs measuring content development and MLR cycle time, first-pass approval, review cycles, submission quality, on-time delivery and portfolio execution. Partner with Marketing and Commercial Analytics to incorporate available measures of resource utilization and promotional effectiveness.

Leadership Expectations 

• Operate as the business owner, not simply the administrator, of Commercial content and portfolio processes. 

• Anticipate issues and drive solutions before they become barriers to execution. 

• Create clarity and accountability in complex, cross-functional environments. 

• Challenge inefficient practices constructively and recommend practical solutions. 

• Demonstrate strong judgment when balancing speed, business priorities and compliance. 

• Champion continuous improvement, transparency and operational excellence. 

• Build trusted partnerships across Commercial, Medical, and all other enabling functions. 

• Mentor colleagues and promote scalable operating practices across the organization. 

Qualifications, Education, & Experience:

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, Marketing, Communications or a business-related discipline. 

• 7+ years of progressive experience in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, or another regulated healthcare environment. 

• 3+ years of direct experience leading MLR/promotional review, commercial content operations, or a closely related capability.