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Director, Marketing - Thought Leader Engagement Strategy

San Diego, CA

Are you ready to join a team committed to making a meaningful impact on cancer treatment through the discovery and development of precision medicines? At Kura Oncology, you have an opportunity to be a part of something bigger, with a lasting impact that you can be proud of.

At Kura Oncology, we are working to change the paradigm and improve the science of cancer treatment. As an organization, we strive to cultivate a diverse and talented professional culture driven to develop precision medicine therapeutics.

As we continue to build a leading biotech organization with a strong culture, a patient-focused mindset and a team focused on relentless execution, we are looking for innovative, passionate professionals to join us and make our vision a reality.

To succeed at Kura, you will need to have a demonstrated ability for excellence in drug discovery and development and a roll-up your sleeves attitude. The ideal candidate will possess a values-driven work style where integrity and grit drive all behaviors, decisions, and actions.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

Join us as we embark on an exciting journey in transforming the treatment landscape of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Marketing Director, Thought Leader Engagement Strategy to lead the development and execution of thought leader engagement strategies supporting KOMZIFTI® (ziftomenib) in relapsed/refractory (R/R) NPM1-mutant AML.

Reporting to the Senior Director of Brand Strategy and Marketing, this individual will serve as the strategic architect behind Opinion Leader (OL) engagement, advocacy development, insight generation, advisory board strategy, speaker bureau, and congress strategy. This role will be responsible for transforming field-based observations into actionable business recommendations that influence brand strategy and commercial execution.

Working in close partnership with Regional Marketing, Brand Marketing, Medical Affairs, Market Access, Sales Leadership, and Compliance, this individual will identify emerging trends, prioritize engagement opportunities, shape advocacy development plans and identify insights to improve outcomes for patients with NPM1-m AML.

The successful candidate will bring deep oncology marketing experience, strong OL engagement expertise, and a demonstrated ability to translate strategic insights into impactful educational and engagement programs.

Responsibilities

OL Engagement Strategy

  • Develop and execute the overall OL engagement strategy in alignment with brand objectives and customer needs.
  • Identify emerging trends in HCP engagement and implement new models that enhance physician education, interaction, and experience.
  • Partner closely with Field Regional Marketing, Medical Affairs, Sales, Market Access, Commercial Operations, and Corporate Communications to ensure coordinated customer engagement strategies.

OL Mapping

  • Create and maintain national and regional thought leader segmentation frameworks.
  • Develop annual and quarterly engagement plans aligned with brand objectives.
  • Build influence maps that identify key networks, referral patterns, and centers of excellence.
  • Continuously assess evolving stakeholder landscapes and emerging thought leaders.

Advocacy Development

  • Design and execute advocacy development strategies for priority thought leaders.
  • Establish advocacy goals and progression plans for key OLs.
  • Develop strategies to engage neutral or competitive physicians.
  • Monitor advocacy movement and influence over time.

Insight Generation & Strategic Interpretation

  • Lead the process for capturing, synthesizing, and prioritizing KOL-generated insights.
  • Transform qualitative observations into strategic recommendations.
  • Identify emerging market trends, competitive threats, unmet needs, and opportunities.
  • Develop executive-level analyses that deliver actionable recommendations to the commercial organization.

Speaker Bureau & Peer-to-Peer Education

  • Own speaker bureau strategy, including content, speaker identification, recruitment, training, development, and performance management in collaboration with regional marketing.
  • Evaluate program effectiveness and continuously evolve the speaker program model to maximize physician engagement and educational impact.
  • Develop innovative peer-to-peer education approaches that address the evolving speaker program environment.

Advisory Boards & Customer Insights

  • Lead planning and execution of advisory boards and other physician insight-gathering initiatives.
  • Partner with cross-functional stakeholders to define objectives and discussion topics.
  • Develop advisory board discussion decks
  • Synthesize insights into actionable recommendations that inform brand strategy, customer engagement, and future commercial initiatives.

Congress Strategy & Execution

  • Lead commercial congress strategy and execution for major national and regional hematology and oncology meetings.
  • Develop congress-related engagement tactics, events, and customer experiences that support brand objectives.
  • Assess congress outcomes and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.

Ensure all above activities are conducted in compliance with company policies and regulatory requirements.

The preceding job description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to the job.

JOB SPECIFICATIONS:

Required Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree (MBA, PharmD, PhD, MPH, or equivalent) preferred.
  • 8+ years of biotechnology or pharmaceutical industry experience with significant oncology marketing experience; hematology experience strongly preferred.
  • Demonstrated experience leading OL engagement initiatives, including speaker programs, advisory boards, KOL engagement, and congress activities.
  • Proven ability to develop and execute strategic customer engagement plans in regulated environment
  • Skilled at transforming observations into business decisions.
  • Proven ability to operate in a fast paced, dynamic environment of a fully integrated biotech company, driving ideas with a focus on innovation and patient centricity.
  • Strong cross-functional leadership skills with experience partnering across Commercial, Medical Affairs, Sales, Regulatory, Legal, and Compliance.
  • Comfortable influencing without direct authority.
  • Excellent communication, presentation, and relationship-building skills.
  • Experience managing external agencies and vendors.
  • Ability to travel up to 30%.

Preferred Qualifications

  • AML and/or hematologic malignancy experience.
  • Oncology product launch experience.
  • Experience developing innovative physician engagement approaches beyond traditional speaker programs.
  • Experience leveraging digital and omnichannel channels to enhance HCP engagement.
  • Sales experience or strong partnership with field sales organizations.

The base range for this role is $234,000 - $262,000. Individual pay may vary based on additional factors, including, and without limitation, job-related skills, experience, work location, and relevant education or training. Kura's compensation package also includes generous benefits, equity, and participation in an annual target bonus.

#LI-RM1

 

 

Kura’s Values that are used for candidate selection and performance assessments:

  • We work as one for patients
  • We are goal-focused and deliver with excellence
  • We are science-driven courageous innovators
  • We strive to bring out the best in each other and ourselves

The Kura Package

  • Career advancement/ development opportunities
  • Competitive comp package
  • Bonus
  • 401K + Employer contributions
  • Generous stock options
  • ESPP Plan
  • 20 days of PTO to start
  • 18 Holidays  (Including Summer & Winter Break)
  • Generous Benefits Package with a variety of plans available with a substantial employer match
  • Paid Paternity/Maternity Leave
  • In-Office Catered lunches
  • Home Office Setup
  • Lifestyle Spending Stipend
  • Commuter Stipend (Boston Office)
  • Regular employee social activities, including happy hours, monthly birthday celebrations, Kura Koffee Talks, and much more!

Kura Oncology is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering and developing innovative precision medicines to help patients with cancer lead better, longer lives.

Through our deep understanding of cancer biology and decades of experience in precision oncology, we are studying the underlying causes of treatment resistance. This enables us to design smart combination regimens with other cancer therapies to target tumors from multiple directions, with the goal of improving long-term clinical benefit.

Kura developed and is commercializing KOMZIFTI® (ziftomenib), the FDA-approved once-daily, oral menin inhibitor for the treatment of adults with relapsed or refractory NPM1-mutated acute myeloid leukemia, and continues to pioneer advancements in menin inhibition and farnesyl transferase inhibition. For additional information, please visit Kura’s website at www.kuraoncology.com and follow us on X and LinkedIn.

Kura Oncology is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. 

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