Head of Commercial, Dermatology

Position Overview

We are seeking an accomplished and strategic Head of Commercial to build and lead the commercial organization for a late-stage biotechnology company preparing for its first product launch in dermatology.

Key Responsibilities

Develop and execute the comprehensive commercial strategy for the company's lead dermatology asset and future pipeline opportunities.
Lead all launch readiness activities, ensuring organizational preparedness across sales, marketing, market access, patient services, distribution, and commercial operations.
Establish launch milestones, governance structures, and key performance indicators to support successful commercialization.
Create long-range strategic plans, including revenue forecasts, market share objectives, and lifecycle management initiatives.
Identify commercial risks and opportunities while developing mitigation strategies to maximize launch success.
Build and lead a high-performing dermatology commercial organization capable of supporting launch and sustained growth.
Develop organizational structure, talent strategy, and succession planning for commercial functions.
Recruit, develop, and retain top commercial talent while fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, innovation, and execution excellence.
Lead development of brand positioning, customer segmentation, messaging architecture, and omnichannel engagement strategies.
Direct market research activities and leverage customer insights to inform strategic decision making.
Design and build the dermatology sales organization, including field force sizing, territory alignment, incentive compensation, and deployment strategy.
Drive execution excellence through robust sales training, coaching, and performance management programs.
Develop payer, reimbursement, pricing, and market access strategies to optimize patient access and product uptake.
Oversee contracting, payer engagement, specialty pharmacy relationships, and patient support service programs.
Partner closely with HEOR, Market Access, and Medical Affairs teams to support value proposition development and access initiatives.
Build and scale commercial infrastructure, including forecasting, incentive compensation, CRM systems, data analytics, business intelligence, and field reporting capabilities.
Establish performance dashboards and metrics to monitor commercial effectiveness and drive data-driven decision making.
Lead demand forecasting, annual planning, budgeting, and resource allocation processes.
Monitor competitive intelligence, market trends, physician adoption patterns, and prescribing dynamics to inform business strategy.
Collaborate closely with Medical Affairs to support KOL engagement, scientific exchange activities, and commercialization planning.

Required Qualifications

Dermatology experience is required.
Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Life Sciences, or a related discipline.
Advanced degree preferred (MBA, PharmD, PhD, or equivalent).
15+ years of progressive pharmaceutical or biotechnology commercial leadership experience.
Minimum of 10 years of dermatology commercial experience, including specialty biologics and/or immunology products.
Demonstrated success leading at least one significant dermatology product launch from pre-launch through commercialization.
Proven experience building commercial organizations within emerging biotechnology companies.
Strong understanding of dermatology market dynamics, payer landscapes, specialty pharmacy distribution models, and physician adoption drivers.
Experience managing significant commercial budgets and P&L responsibility.

Preferred Experience

Experience launching therapies in medical dermatology, immunology, inflammatory skin diseases, or rare dermatologic conditions.
Prior leadership experience in a pre-commercial or first-launch biotech environment.
Experience commercializing products with annual revenue potential exceeding $250 million.
Existing relationships with leading dermatology KOLs, integrated delivery networks, specialty pharmacies, and payer organizations.
Experience working closely with investors, Boards of Directors, and executive leadership teams.

Leadership Competencies

Strategic and enterprise-minded leader capable of balancing long-term vision with near-term execution.
Strong builder mentality with experience creating organizations, processes, and infrastructure from the ground up.
Demonstrated ability to influence across highly matrixed organizations.
Exceptional communication and executive presence.
Data-driven decision maker with strong business and financial acumen.
Proven ability to attract, develop, and retain top commercial talent.
Thrives in fast-paced, entrepreneurial biotech environments.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate will have held leadership roles such as Head of Commercial, Vice President of Commercial, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, General Manager, or Franchise Leader within a biotechnology or specialty pharmaceutical organization. Candidates should possess direct experience leading the commercialization of dermatology therapies and building commercial infrastructure in preparation for launch.

Experience with products in atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, hidradenitis suppurativa, prurigo nodularis, vitiligo, alopecia areata, acne, rosacea, or other medical dermatology indications is highly preferred.