Summary of Position: Altimmune is seeking a dynamic and strategic Medical Director to lead Medical Affairs activities with a focus on metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), alcohol-related liver disease (ALD), and alcohol use disorder (AUD). This individual will play a critical role as the company transitions into Phase 3 development, shaping the medical affairs strategy, driving external engagement, and partnering cross-functionally to ensure successful development and future commercialization of our lead asset, pemvidutide.
This role requires a highly collaborative leader who can operate effectively in a fast-paced, clinical-stage biotech environment, with strong experience in hepatology, gastroenterology, or endocrinology, and a deep understanding of late-stage clinical development and pre-launch planning. This role reports to the Senior Director, Medical Affairs and Scientific Communications, and is hybrid, with 2-4 days a week in the Morristown, NJ office.
Essential Functions:Medical Strategy & Scientific Leadership- Develop and execute the global Medical Affairs strategy across MASH, ALD, and AUD, aligned with clinical development milestones and anticipated commercialization.
- Translate clinical and real-world data into impactful scientific insights to support internal decision-making, medical strategy, and external communications.
- Provide medical input into disease area strategy, lifecycle planning, and indication prioritization.
External KOL Engagement Strategy & Insights Generations- Design and implement a comprehensive KOL engagement strategy across the MASH, AUD, and ALD portfolio.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with key opinion leaders, investigators, and academic centers globally. Support the Phase 3 program globally.
- Lead scientific exchange through advisory boards, 1:1 engagements, congress activities, and investigator meetings.
- Gather and synthesize external insights to inform strategy and development plans.
Evidence Generation - Contribute to the publication strategy and plans, such as abstracts, manuscripts, and congress presentations.
- Identify evidence gaps and drive investigator-sponsored studies, registries, or real-world evidence initiatives as appropriate.
- Ensure consistency, scientific integrity, and accuracy across all medical & scientific communications materials. Serve as the subject matter expert for medical review of scientific documents and publications.
Cross-Functional Partnership and Pre-Launch Readiness- Serve as a key medical partner to Clinical Development, contributing to Phase 2 and Phase 3 study design, endpoint strategy, and interpretation of data.
- Collaborate closely with Commercial (as appropriate for stage) to ensure alignment with early brand strategy, KOL engagement (such as speaker programs, regional engagement), and to prepare for pemvidutide launch, establish value proposition, and develop market shaping efforts.
- Partner with Regulatory, Market Access, Program Lead, and HEOR to support evidence generation strategies, labeling considerations, and payer-relevant data planning.
- Contribute to building scalable Medical Affairs capabilities appropriate for a growing biotech organization.
- Anticipate and prepare for pre-launch and launch activities, including contributing to scientific communications, medical education, and disease awareness initiatives.
Job Requirements (Essential knowledge, skills, and attributes): - MD strongly preferred, with 10+ years of progressive experience, or a DO, PharmD, or PhD in a relevant life sciences discipline with 12+ years of progressive experience in the biotech/pharmaceutical industry. Significant experience in Medical Affairs and/or Clinical Development is preferred.
- Demonstrated expertise in hepatology, gastroenterology, or endocrinology; experience in MASH/NASH, ALD, and/or AUD strongly preferred.
- Experience supporting late-phase (Phase 2/3) clinical programs and pre-launch planning in a small or mid-sized biotech environment.
Skills & Competencies- Strong strategic thinking with the ability to translate science into actionable medical strategy.
- Excellent communication and storytelling skills; ability to craft a compelling scientific narrative.
- Ability to influence and align senior leadership on complex scientific and strategic priorities and cross-functional teams without direct authority.
- Experience engaging with KOLs and leading external scientific interactions.
- Comfortably operating in a resource-constrained, fast-moving environment with high ownership.
Key Success Factors- Establishes a clear and credible scientific narrative for the asset across indications.
- Builds a high-quality, insight-driven KOL network that informs development and commercialization strategies.
- Effectively integrates Medical Affairs into clinical and commercial decision-making.
- Anticipates future needs and builds foundational capabilities for Phase 3 and beyond.
