Associate Director Account Management

About the role

This opportunity will be hybrid or remote, but the remote position is only applicable for those that are not within commutable distance to the primary site noted in posting. If commutable, the position will be hybrid. Please note that standard commute is (less than) <50 miles.

Role Summary

Each Integrated Account Management (IAM) Customer Manager (CM) at our company delivers best-in-class, end-to-end contracting services, providing affordable patient access through customer and internal relationships that they develop. The Utilization Based Contracting Team (UBC) manages payer contracting relationships that are central to our company commercial and government business.

The UBC CM connects and interprets customer, field, and headquarters perspectives to deliver customer contracts. In close partnership with the designated National Account Director (NAD), this role relies on deep customer knowledge, close collaboration with internal stakeholders, and analytical acumen to serve as the internal-facing customer advocate.

The CM manages the end-to-end contract lifecycle from development through implementation in coordination with field personnel for our health plan and PBM contracts. Incumbents in this role must have advanced proficiency in both cross-functional (e.g., communication, project management) and domain-specific (e.g., access strategy, financial acumen) competencies.

Primary Responsibilities

• Manages end-to-end contract process by drafting, revising, and negotiating utilization-based contracts for pharmaceutical and medical benefit products.
• Serves as internal-facing counterpart to NAD to drive activities such as:
• Implementation and negotiation of contracting initiatives.
• Evaluation/review of account performance and segment trends to optimize net sales for our company products.
• Balance improved customer performance with our company business objectives.
• Identification and execution of contracting opportunities that meet profitability and access objectives.
• Engagement with our company Senior Leadership to conduct business reviews, suggest strategic approaches to navigate customer relationships, and identify opportunities to optimize internal business objectives.
• Development and implementation of Customer Account Plans.
• Establishes and maintains meaningful relationships with internal and external contract decision makers.
• Drives collaboration among our company stakeholders (e.g., CCE, Finance, Payer Marketing) to work toward agreements that are mutually beneficial to the Customer and Our company.
• Interprets legal language and understands its implications to develop Terms & Conditions (T&C), including identifying business-related areas of risk and exposure, in partnership with commercial attorneys or other internal counsel.
• Understands rules and contracting processes; uses that knowledge to identify creative solutions to successfully negotiate with internal our company teams and/or Customers.
• Coordinates financial, trend, or data modeling analytic results and implications to support negotiations.
• Oversees internal evaluations and analyses of customer contracts.
• Utilizes data analytics techniques to inform inputs/outputs of sophisticated analyses; can draw logically sound, data-driven conclusions about contract scenarios.
• Accurately applies appropriate analogy models and customer understanding to best recommend discounting options with customer financial modeling and profitability metrics.
• Monitors marketplace trends and regulatory changes that could influence contracts.
• Proactively gathers and analyzes product level information from other CMs and collaborates with Payer Marketing to guide payer marketing strategies.
• Demonstrates awareness of and sensitivity by creating experiences for all customers and coworkers.
• Utilizes strengths and acceptance in team members, customers, or other individual stakeholders (e.g., in background or experience) to improve own performance.

Additional Qualifications and Experience

Required

• BA/BS degree or equivalent
• Proven account management capability with PBM, MCO, and Health Plan accounts
• Proven ability to negotiate, finalize, and execute on contracts
• Proven ability to deliver high accuracy financial analyses and communicate results to senior leadership
• Proven ability to drive key initiatives to completion and deliver results on time
• Proven ability to set clear priorities, adapt quickly, and deliver results in a fast-moving environment
• Proven ability to think strategically, build strong relationships, make sound business decisions, analyze complex issues, and turn plans into action

Required Skills

Account Management, Account Management, Account Planning, Accounts Development, Account Strategies, Bidding Process, Commercial Contract Management, Contract Agreements, Contracting Strategies, Contract Management, Contracts Analysis, Cross-Functional Leadership, Customer Advocacy, Customer-Focused, Customer Relationships, Data Analysis, Financial Acumen, Financial Analysis, Managed Accounts, Market Access, Market Research, Negotiation Planning, Operational Delivery, Payer Marketing, Pharmaceutical Industry {+ 7 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.
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• 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.

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• The primary location for this posting is: USA - REMOTE - REMOTE

Pay and benefits

Where required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.

The salary range for the primary location of this role is

$142,400.00 - $224,100.00

This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of 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.

Additional location(s): Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.

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: No relocation
• VISA Sponsorship: No

Travel Requirements

• 10%
• Flexible Work Arrangements: Remote
• Shift: 1st - Day
• Valid Driving License: No
• Hazardous Material(s): n/a
• Job Posting End Date: 11/11/2026

Additional information

*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.