Strategic Marketplace Director - Great Lakes (Milwaukee)

We’re here for one reason and one reason only – to cure cancer. Every moment is dedicated to developing treatments and every action moves us one step closer to our goal. We’ve made incredible scientific breakthroughs and our pioneering personalized CAR T-cell therapies have changed the paradigm. But we're not finished yet.

Join Kite, as we make even bigger advances in cancer therapies, and help shape where our business and medical science goes next.

We believe every employee deserves a great leader. People Leaders are the cornerstone to the employee experience at Gilead and Kite. As a people leader now or in the future, you are the key driver in evolving our culture and creating an environment where every employee feels included, developed and empowered to fulfil their aspirations. Join Kite and help create more tomorrows.

Job Description

The Marketplace Director reports to the Area Leader, East Cellular Therapy Team and is accountable for the overall business performance of a defined regional marketplace. This role serves as the single point of accountability for regional demand generation, account engagement, and execution of territory strategies, partnering closely with cross functional field and headquarters stakeholders to drive sustainable growth and patient access across the portfolio of Kite CAR-T cell therapies.

The Marketplace Director operates with an ownership mindset, leads through influence in a matrix environment, and ensures teams are enabled, aligned, and accountable to deliver results.

Territory: Great Lakes

This is a field-based position based in the Great Lakes. Candidates should reside within the geography

Key Responsibilities:

Marketplace & Strategy Leadership

• Own regional business results by leading the development, execution, and monitoring of integrated territory strategies aligned to brand and organizational goals.
• Establish regional priorities and align cross functional partners (e.g., medical, market access, marketing, payer, logistics ) to drive coordinated execution.
• Deliver insights on current and future marketplace dynamics, including evaluation and recommendations for ATC expansion.
• Lead team to identify Drivers and Barriers in complex marketplace settings that lead to the development of tailored, strategic account plans by the Cell Therapy Account Manager.

Account & Stakeholder Engagement

• Lead the regional approach to Key Account Management across ATC and Community in partnership with Market Access, Medical, Marketing, and other stakeholders.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key decision makers and influencers across ATC and key community accounts, including KOLs, C suite leaders, and Cell Therapy Service Line stakeholders.
• Remove barriers to access and execution by engaging stakeholders at appropriate levels across the territory.

People Leadership & Performance Management

• Lead, coach, and develop managers and field teams to strengthen selling skills, clinical and operational acumen, and customer focus.
• Drive performance management by clearly communicating expectations, conducting timely mid year and annual reviews, and providing ongoing feedback.
• Conduct regular 1:1s and field engagement to assess account progress, close gaps, and reinforce best practices.
• Develop a World Class Culture within your Marketplace, establish trust and support Kite Culture initiatives. Attract, retain, and develop top talent, including individualized development and succession planning.
• Foster a speak up culture grounded in trust, accountability, and organizational values. (Consider moving under People Leadership Section)

Demand Generation & Marketplace Execution

• Oversee regional demand generation through coordinated customer engagement across ATC and community targets.
• Partner with sales training, operations, and marketing to improve field effectiveness, efficiency, and execution quality.
• Establish mechanisms to track account activity against goals and ensure consistent follow through.

ATC Expansion

• Support market access account teams in evaluating and developing strategic ATC footprint expansion plans.
• Collaborate with Market Access partners to share insights, priorities, and updates related to expansion opportunities.

Compliance & Governance

• Ensure all activities are conducted in compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and company policies, including protection of patient data.

Basic Qualifications

• PhD with 8+ years of experience, or
• Master’s degree with 10+ years of experience, or
• Bachelor’s degree with 12+ years of experience

Preferred Qualifications

• 12+ years in pharmaceutical or biotechnology industries, Hematology/Rare Disease
• 5+ years of people leadership experience
• Deep hematology/oncology clinical, operational, and account management expertise (academic and community)
• Strong performance management, coaching, and talent development capabilities
• Demonstrated success achieving business targets and leading in matrix environments
• Excellent strategic thinking, negotiation, communication, and influencing skills
• Strong knowledge of compliance, regulatory requirements, and good business conduct

The salary range for this position is: $205,615.00 - $266,090.00. Kite considers a variety of factors when determining base compensation, including experience, qualifications, and geographic location. These considerations mean actual compensation will vary. This position may also be eligible for a discretionary annual bonus, discretionary stock-based long-term incentives (eligibility may vary based on role), paid time off, and a benefits package. Benefits include company-sponsored medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans*.

For additional benefits information, visit:

• Eligible employees may participate in benefit plans, subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable plans.

Kite is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development of innovative cancer immunotherapies with a goal of providing rapid, long-term durable response and eliminating the burden of chronic care. The company is focused on chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) and T cell receptor (TCR) engineered cell therapies designed to empower the immune system's ability to recognize and kill tumors. Kite is based in Santa Monica, CA. For more information on Kite, please visit Sign up to follow @KitePharma on Twitter at

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Kite Pharma is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment, and is dedicated to fostering an inclusive work environment comprised of diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences. Employment decisions regarding recruitment and selection will be made without discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, genetic information or characteristic, gender identity and expression, veteran status, or other non-job related characteristics or other prohibited grounds specified in applicable federal, state and local laws. In order to ensure reasonable accommodation for individuals protected by Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Act of 1974, and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, applicants who require accommodation in the job application process may contact View email address on apply.placed-app.com for assistance.

For more information about equal employment opportunity protections, please view the 'Know Your Rights' poster.

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Kite Pharma will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, (c) consistent with the legal duty to furnish information; or (d) otherwise protected by law.

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Kite Pharma provides a work environment free of harassment and prohibited conduct. We promote and support individual differences and diversity of thoughts and opinion.

For Current Kite Pharma Employees and Contractors:

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