Medical Director (Publications)

At Real Chemistry, making the world a healthier place isn’t just an aspiration—it’s our everyday reality. Our drive to transform healthcare is informed by our blend of deep scientific expertise, human-centred creativity, and AI-driven insights, fostering a unique environment where innovation thrives and our people are impact-obsessed. As a global agency, we provide a full suite of services across healthcare communications and marketing to our clients, including top players in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.

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Discover your purpose. Embrace innovation. Experience #LifeatRealChem.

Real Chemistry is looking for a Medical Director, Publications to join our growing team!   

The Medical Director leads scientific strategy and content delivery across assigned accounts or programs, bringing deep publication expertise and the versatility to support broader medical affairs deliverables. This role serves as a senior scientific partner to clients and internal teams, helping translate evidence into credible, compliant, and strategically aligned communications across publication and non-publication channels.  

The role leads publication strategy and execution while contributing to broader medical affairs content and evidence dissemination across key scientific communication channels. This position connects publication planning with broader medical affairs priorities, stakeholder needs, and integrated scientific communication programs. 

This is a hybrid role, based in any of our US offices—New York City, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Carmel (IN), or Lambertville (NJ)—or remotely within the US, depending on team and business needs. We are also open to remote applicants in Canada. This role requires working eastern US hours.  

What you’ll do:  

Publication Strategy & Planning 

• Develop and execute publication strategies aligned with client objectives, evidence priorities, and broader medical affairs goals
• Lead strategy for manuscripts, abstracts, posters, congress activity, plain language summaries, and other dissemination formats
• Guide evidence gaps, sequencing, target journals/congresses, author engagement, and publication impact measurement 

Broader Medical Affairs Strategy & Deliverables 

• Provide scientific direction for selected medical affairs deliverables, including platforms, core decks, advisory board materials, medical education content, field medical tools, and congress resources
• Translate clinical, HEOR, real-world evidence, and published data into clear narratives for publication and medical affairs channels
• Connect publication outputs with broader evidence dissemination, omnichannel engagement, and medical education needs 

Scientific Communication 

• Provide senior scientific oversight to ensure accuracy, clarity, balance, and strategic alignment across deliverables
• Lead or direct writing, review, and refinement of manuscripts, congress materials, scientific platforms, core narratives, and related content
• Maintain consistent scientific messaging across publication plans, medical affairs materials, congress activity, and account deliverables 

Client Leadership 

• Serve as a senior scientific and strategic contact for clients across publication and medical affairs workstreams
• Build trusted relationships and guide content priorities, data interpretation, audience needs, and dissemination formats
• Lead author, KOL, advisory board, steering committee, medical affairs, and cross-functional discussions where appropriate 

Operational Excellence 

• Ensure deliverables meet applicable quality, publication ethics, journal/congress, ICMJE, GPP, client, and internal standards
• Oversee progress, risks, review cycles, workflows, timelines, scope, resources, budgets, and client expectations
• Identify issues related to scientific accuracy, evidence interpretation, review complexity, timelines, and stakeholder alignment, and recommend solutions early 

Cross-functional Collaboration 

• Collaborate with medical affairs, publications operations, account, clinical, regulatory, analytics, editorial, design, strategy, and project management teams
• Share publication and medical affairs best practices to strengthen consistency, quality, and strategic alignment 

People Leadership 

• Provide leadership, mentorship, and feedback to writers, content leads, and cross-functional contributors
• Build team capability in publication strategy, medical affairs content, data interpretation, scientific storytelling, and quality standards 

Business Development 

• Support proposals, pitches, publication strategy recommendations, medical affairs content strategy, and organic growth opportunities
• Help shape scopes that reflect scientific complexity, stakeholder review needs, and delivery requirements 

This position is a perfect fit for you if:  

• Our Company values – Best Together, Impact-Obsessed, Excellence Expected, Evolve Always and Accountability with an “I” – really speak to you
• You are adaptable, resilient, proactive, resourceful, highly organized, and comfortable adjusting priorities as client and business needs evolve
• You bring scientific curiosity, collaborative instincts, strong prioritization skills, and a commitment to high-quality client service 

What you should have:   

• Degree in life sciences, medicine, pharmacy, public health, or related discipline required; advanced degree such as PhD, PharmD, MD, MPH, MSc, or equivalent experience preferred
• 6+ years of publications, medical affairs, or medical communications experience within an agency, pharmaceutical, biotech, academic, or related environment
• Advanced publication strategy, scientific leadership, and client advisory capability, complemented by strong working knowledge of broader medical affairs deliverables
• Strong command of publication ethics, ICMJE, GPP, journal/congress requirements, authorship considerations, and evidence dissemination best practices
• Ability to lead scientific content across publications, scientific platforms, core decks, advisory board materials, medical education content, congress assets, and field medical resources
• Excellent data interpretation, scientific writing, reviewing, and editorial judgment across clinical, HEOR, real-world evidence, and published data sources
• Ability to connect publication strategy with medical affairs objectives, audience needs, stakeholder engagement, and integrated communication planning
• Strong client, author, KOL, and cross-functional stakeholder management skills, with ability to lead teams under complex timelines while maintaining quality and scientific integrity
• Ability to model responsible AI use and identify AI-enabled workflow improvements for research, content development, quality checks, and evidence synthesis
• Demonstrated strength in publications required, with experience or strong working knowledge across broader medical affairs deliverables preferred 

Pay Range: $130,000.00-150,000.00
This is the pay range the Company believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting.  Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on job-related, non-discriminatory factors including but not limited to work experience, skills, certifications, and geographical location. The Company reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. 

Real Chemistry is proud to be Great Place to Work® certified; check out what our people shared about our culture and workplace on our Great Places to Work Profile here.

We believe we can do our best when feeling our best, which is why we’ve put together a benefits program designed to give you the support you and your family need at every stage of life. Real Chemistry offers a comprehensive benefit program and perks, tailored to your region. Globally, this includes offices in our key markets with free snacks to keep you running all day long, generous holiday and paid time off, options for private medical, dental, and vison plans, and support in saving for the future. Other perks include mental wellness coaching and support and access to more than 13,000 online classes with LinkedIn Learning.  Learn more about our great benefits and perks and search specific offerings in your region at: www.realchemistrybenefits.com.

At Real Chemistry, we believe we're at our best when we're connected. Our Real Hybrid and Regional Teams (Real HART) approach is designed to foster collaboration, learning, innovation, and meaningful relationships while providing flexibility where appropriate. Because our workforce spans multiple countries, regions, and client needs, work arrangements may vary by role and location. Some positions offer hybrid or remote flexibility, while others require regular in-office presence. For example, certain teams and regions, including some of our UK operations, have office-based requirements. Your recruiter will discuss the specific expectations for the role you're pursuing during the interview process and keep you informed throughout the hiring journey. For employees located within a one-hour commute of a Real Chemistry office, we require in-person attendance two days per week, either from a Real Chemistry office or when working onsite with clients. Employees in regions without a nearby office may work remotely and come together throughout the year for collaboration, culture-building, learning, and team connection opportunities. While these guidelines reflect our current workplace model, we understand that everyone’s circumstances are unique. If you require additional flexibility, we welcome an open conversation with your recruiter and our HR team to discuss your needs and determine what may be possible.

Real Chemistry is an Equal Opportunity employer. We continually strive to build and sustain an inclusive and equitable work environment where our employees feel empowered to leverage all they bring from their personal lived experience and professional expertise, to make our team the best in the industry. We encourage motivated and qualified applicants to apply without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, ethnic or national origin, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, marital information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local employment discrimination laws where Real Chemistry operates. Should you require accommodations throughout the interview process please let your recruiter know.

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