Director, Public Health Engagement Marketing

Job Description

Our company is a global health care leader with a diversified portfolio of prescription medicines, vaccines and animal health products. The difference between potential and achievement lies in the spark that fuels innovation and inventiveness; this is the space where we have codified it’s legacy for over a century. Our company's success is backed by ethical integrity, forward momentum, and an inspiring mission to achieve new milestones in global healthcare.

Our Global Human Health Division abides by a “patient first, profits later” ideology. Results-driven and ambitious, this team of individuals represents a functional balance between meeting company objectives and the needs of people around the world.

The organization is comprised of sales and marketing professionals who are passionate about their role in bringing prescription medicines, vaccines, and other medical products to our customers worldwide.

Role Summary

The Director, Public Health Marketing leads portfolio-level public health marketing strategy for the U.S. Vaccines Business Unit, driving engagement with consumers, customers, stakeholders, and trusted voices to advance vaccine confidence, access, acceptance, and uptake.

This role is accountable for translating public health and market insights into integrated, omnichannel marketing and ecosystem activation strategies that deliver business impact while strengthening partnerships across the public health ecosystem.

This role will lead a team committed to expanding vaccine acceptance and uptake, mobilizing customers and stakeholders behind our vaccine portfolio, strengthening the systems that make vaccination easier, and proactively shaping the ecosystem to stay ahead of tomorrows challenges

Role Responsibilities:

Lead Four Strategic Capabilities

1. Improve Vaccine Acceptance and Uptake

Develop and execute omni-channel consumer strategies that increase vaccine confidence, acceptance, and uptake across prioritized consumer and patient segments

Partner with brand teams to align and coordinate portfolio marketing and brand priorities.

2. Mobilize Customers and Stakeholders

Engage and align public health customers, advocacy organizations, professional societies, and key stakeholders behind portfolio objectives.

Develop tools, resources, and digital engagement strategies that enable stakeholders to effectively engage customers.

3. Strengthen and Optimize the Vaccination Ecosystem

Identify opportunities to improve vaccine access, delivery, and ecosystem effectiveness.

Partner across the healthcare and public health landscape to address barriers and enable sustainable vaccination solutions.

4. Anticipate and Mitigate Ecosystem Threats and Opportunities

Monitor behavioral, programmatic, funding, competitive, and healthcare trends impacting portfolio performance.

Drive proactive planning and recommendations to address emerging risks and capitalize on opportunities.

Enterprise Leadership

Lead and develop a high-performing, inclusive team of 5 Associate Directors and lead a digital engagement team to support content development and execution.

Create and guide execution of strategic priorities across the Public Health Marketing organization.

Serve as the subject matter expert on public health stakeholders, customer dynamics, and ecosystem trends.

Drive alignment and collaboration across Brand Marketing, Customer Engagement, Communications, Medical Affairs, Policy, IAM, Contracting, and Field teams.

Lead annual planning, performance measurement, and budget management

Minimum/Preferred Education Requirements

Minimum – BS/BA

Preferred – MBA/MA/MPH

Required Experience and Skills:

8+ years of experience in marketing, public health, market access, policy, stakeholder engagement, or related commercial functions.

Proven success developing and executing strategic and omnichannel marketing initiatives.

Strong stakeholder management skills with experience influencing and partnering with senior internal and external stakeholders.

Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams and drive organizational alignment.

Strong innovative, analytical, and strategic problem-solving skills.

Experience leveraging data, insights, and performance metrics to drive decisions and optimize results.

Exceptional communication, presentation, and change leadership capabilities.

Track record of building, developing, and enabling high-performing teams through inclusive leadership.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

U.S. vaccines commercial, public health, and policy experience.

Deep understanding of the vaccine and public health ecosystem.

Experience working with CDC, public health agencies, professional societies, advocacy organizations, and other vaccine stakeholders

Experience with customer analytics, digital engagement, and omnichannel customer strategies

Demonstrated success driving vaccine confidence, access, equity, and uptake initiatives

Leadership Profile

A strategic, innovative, and collaborative leader who combines deep public health expertise with strong marketing acumen to mobilize stakeholders, strengthen the vaccination ecosystem, and drive sustainable portfolio growth and public health impact.

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.

Required Skills:

Accountability, Accountability, Adaptability, Animal Vaccination, Change Leadership, Creativity, Customer Engagement, Digital Marketing, Global Health, Market Access, Marketing Automation, Marketing Budget Management, Marketing Initiatives, Market Research, Medical Affairs, Omnichannel Marketing, Organizational Alignment, People Leadership, Pharmaceutical Sales Marketing, Proactive Planning, Product Launches, Public Health, Public Health Research, Stakeholder Engagement, Stakeholder Management {+ 2 more}

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.  As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.  For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

EEOC Know Your Rights

EEOC GINA Supplement​

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

Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts

The salary range for this role is

$190,800.00 - $300,300.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits.  Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits .

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

San Francisco Residents Only:  We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only:  We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully 

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:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

25%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

1st - Day

Valid Driving License:

Yes

Hazardous Material(s):

n/a

Job Posting End Date:

08/15/2026 *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.

Requisition ID:R410086