Director of Payer Strategy

Director of Payer Strategy

Location: Remote with business travel requirements including visits to the Waltham office for collaboration and alignment.

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 Director of Payer Strategy will possess deep expertise and a successful track record in developing, implementing, and optimizing market access strategies that ensure broad and sustainable payer coverage across commercial and government healthcare markets. This individual will serve as the strategic business owner for payer access while overseeing external payer account management vendors responsible for executing payer engagement activities.

The role requires strong collaboration across the U.S. Commercial organization to define market access strategies, establish account priorities, oversee execution, and continuously monitor performance to optimize formulary access, reimbursement, and patient affordability. This leader will translate corporate objectives into actionable payer strategies while ensuring external partners effectively execute against established goals and performance expectations.

This position will partner closely with Commercial Leadership, Hub Services, Provider Access & Reimbursement, Sales, Marketing, Medical Affairs, Regulatory, Legal, Compliance, Finance, Commercial Operations, Analytics, Distribution, and external payer account management organizations to ensure successful commercialization and market access across Théa’s product portfolio. This role reports to the Head of Market Access.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Lead the development, execution, and continuous optimization of Théa’s payer strategy across commercial and government healthcare markets.
• Serve as the primary business owner for third-party payer account management vendors responsible for national and regional payer engagement.
• Develop strategic payer engagement plans, account prioritization, value propositions, evidence strategies, and market access objectives aligned with commercial goals.
• Establish vendor governance programs including routine business reviews, performance scorecards, strategic planning sessions, and operational oversight.
• Develop and monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Management by Objectives (MBOs), account performance metrics, formulary access measures, pull-through effectiveness, and executive dashboards to evaluate vendor performance and overall market access success.
• Partner with external payer account teams to establish annual account plans, engagement strategies, negotiation priorities, and tactical execution plans while maintaining accountability for performance outcomes.
• Monitor payer coverage decisions, utilization management policies, prior authorization requirements, reimbursement trends, competitive dynamics, and market access barriers while proactively recommending strategic actions.
• Collaborate with Medical Affairs, HEOR, Marketing, and Commercial Operations to develop payer value propositions, clinical messaging, economic evidence, and customer-facing resources supporting payer engagement.
• Partner with Patient Support Services and Provider Access & Reimbursement to ensure payer strategies are effectively operationalized through patient support programs, reimbursement resources, and provider education.
• Work collaboratively with Sales Leadership and Commercial Operations to develop field communication strategies, pull-through initiatives, and customer education supporting market access objectives.
• Identify evolving healthcare policy, reimbursement, legislative, and regulatory trends that may impact market access while communicating implications and recommendations to Commercial Leadership.
• Lead market access planning and execution for product launches, including payer strategy development, vendor readiness, account targeting, access analytics, and launch performance monitoring.
• Develop and manage departmental budgets, vendor contracts, consulting relationships, and strategic initiatives supporting market access objectives.
• Utilize internal and external market intelligence, claims data, payer analytics, competitive intelligence, and business performance metrics to inform strategic decisions and continuously improve access performance.
• Ensure all payer engagement activities comply with applicable healthcare regulations, company policies, and compliance standards.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Deep understanding of commercial and government payer markets, managed care, reimbursement, formulary management, healthcare policy, and pharmaceutical market access.
• Demonstrated experience developing payer strategies and managing payer account organizations or third-party market access vendors.
• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical product launches, payer evidence requirements, contracting principles, and reimbursement strategy.
• Experience developing strategic account plans, KPIs, executive dashboards, vendor scorecards, and business performance reporting.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret claims data, payer analytics, competitive intelligence, and market trends to support strategic decision-making.
• Proven ability to influence and lead cross-functional initiatives involving Commercial, Medical Affairs, Marketing, Sales, Finance, Patient Services, and Provider Access organizations.
• Excellent executive communication and presentation skills with demonstrated ability to influence senior leadership and external partners.
• Strong vendor management, negotiation, and relationship management skills with the ability to hold external partners accountable for execution and results.
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in a fast-paced commercial environment supporting multiple product launches and evolving market access strategies.
• Strong understanding of pharmaceutical regulatory requirements, healthcare compliance, and appropriate interactions with healthcare decision-makers.
• Extensive proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, Outlook) and market access analytics platforms.
• Travel requirement: Approximately 40–50%, including overnight travel.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s degree required; MBA, PharmD, MPH, or other advanced degree preferred.
• 12+ years of progressive pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or specialty healthcare experience with significant responsibility in market access, managed markets, payer strategy, national accounts, or reimbursement.
• 5+ years of leadership experience managing payer account teams, managed markets organizations, or third-party market access vendors.
• Product launch experience required, including development and execution of payer access strategies.
• Experience supporting buy-and-bill and specialty pharmaceutical products strongly preferred.
• Experience in ophthalmology or specialty pharmaceuticals preferred.
• Demonstrated success developing national market access strategies, managing complex payer relationships, leading cross-functional commercial initiatives, and delivering measurable improvements in payer access and reimbursement performance.

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 

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 $230k to $265k. 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
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To verify an open role please check our official careers page at https://theapharmainc.com/careers/