AstraZeneca

MLR Planning Manager

AstraZeneca$151K — $226K *
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree
  • 5 - 7 years in pharmaceutical marketing operations or healthcare agency roles
  • Proven leadership experience
  • Experience managing supplier partners
  • Self-starter with program management skills
  • Strong oral and written communication abilities
  • Experience in cross-functional team collaboration
  • Familiarity with project management platforms

Responsibilities

  • Lead the MLR review process for promotional materials to ensure compliance and accuracy
  • Establish proactive partnerships across teams to align on brand priorities
  • Champion adherence to marketing standards and coach teams to improve processes
  • Define MLR strategies for product launches and label updates
  • Create MLR planning approaches for congresses and major brand events
  • Lead and manage an MLR Planning Associate team to prioritize assets
  • Facilitate pre-MLR consults to improve content alignment and approval efficiency
  • Analyze review cycle data to refine processes and identify bottlenecks

Benefits

  • Qualified retirement programs
  • Paid time off including vacation, holidays, and leaves
  • Health, dental, and vision coverage
  • Opportunity for short-term incentive bonuses
  • Equity-based awards for salaried roles
  • Flexible in-person working arrangements
Full Job Description
MLR Planning Manager

Location: Gaithersburg, MD

Introduction to role:

Are you ready to orchestrate the Medical, Legal, and Regulatory process so that breakthrough brand messages are approved and ready the moment labels launch? In this role, you connect science to market by ensuring every promotional and disease awareness asset is accurate, compliant and on time-so healthcare professionals and patients receive the right information at the right moment.

You will join a global team that powers launches and major brand landmarks by simplifying processes, using data to guide decisions and bringing diverse experts together to move fast without compromising standards. Can you align brand priorities with reviewer capacity to hit critical dates without sacrificing compliance or quality?

Your impact will be visible from day one: you will lead Day 0 planning for new products and indications, shape the MLR strategy for congresses and campaigns, and coach a team that keeps reviews flowing smoothly. Ultimately, your leadership will help transform innovative science into clear, compliant communications that advance patient care and build our brands.

Accountabilities:

End-to-End MLR Orchestration: Lead and coordinate timely review and approval of promotional and disease awareness materials, ensuring medical accuracy and regulatory compliance that enables assets to launch on schedule.

Stakeholder Leadership: Build strong, proactive partnerships across Marketing, Medical, Legal, Regulatory, Agency and Content Delivery teams to align on brand priorities, resolve issues early and maintain momentum.

Standards and Governance: Champion adherence to our Marketing Guide, acting as a subject matter expert on approval processes and compliance guidelines; coach teams on what "good" looks like to reduce rework and cycle time.

Day 0 Launch Readiness: Define and implement the MLR planning strategy for new product and indication launches, data releases and label updates to ensure assets are ready for immediate deployment upon approval, aligned to brand strategy.

Campaigns and Events: Set the MLR planning approach for congresses and other major brand activities; translate event objectives into a prioritized asset plan that manages reviewer capacity and protects critical path timelines.

Team Leadership and Capacity Management: Lead an MLR Planning Associate team responsible for prioritizing assets, balancing reviewer workload, and maintaining visibility of progress and risks across portfolios.

Consult Process Enablement: Facilitate pre-MLR consults so content owners and reviewers align on guidance upfront, decreasing late-stage changes and improving first-pass approval rates.

Risk Management and Communication: Use PM platforms to track achievements, surface risks and communicate status clearly to partners; drive decisions that safeguard timelines and compliance.

Continuous Improvement: Analyze review cycle data to identify bottlenecks, refine operating mechanisms and scale best practices that make the process more efficient and predictable across brands.

Essential Skills/Experience
  • Bachelor's degree
  • 5 - 7 years of relevant professional experience, with a focus on pharmaceutical marketing operations or healthcare related agency roles
  • Demonstrated success in People leadership
  • Experience with managing supplier partners
  • Independent self-starter with demonstrated program management skillset
  • Demonstrated strong oral and written communications
  • Ability to effectively work in a cross-functional team environment
  • Experience using various PM platforms to plan, manage and communicate project risks / progress
  • Ability to lead and influence without formal authority
  • Demonstrated success leading program management of strategic and/or business critical initiatives without formal authority


Desirable Skills/Experience:
  • Knowledge of the MLR process that ensures timely reviews and approval of assets that are accurate and compliant
  • Experience with Digital and Omnichannel campaigns
  • Understanding of scientific and/or commercial marketplace respective to biopharmaceutical therapeutic area(s)


The annual base pay for this position ranges from $151,081 to $226,662. Our positions offer eligibility for various incentives-an opportunity to receive short-term incentive bonuses, equity-based awards for salaried roles and commissions for sales roles. Benefits offered include qualified retirement programs, paid time off (i.e., vacation, holiday, and leaves), as well as health, dental, and vision coverage in accordance with the terms of the applicable plans.

When we put unexpected teams in the same room, we unleash bold thinking with the power to inspire life-changing medicines. In-person working gives us the platform we need to connect, work at pace and challenge perceptions. That's why we work, on average, a minimum of three days per week from the office. But that doesn't mean we're not flexible. We balance the expectation of being in the office while respecting individual flexibility. Join us in our unique and ambitious world.

Step into this pivotal role and lead the engine that converts science into timely, compliant communications that shape brands and improve patient outcomes!

Date Posted
11-Aug-2026

Closing Date

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca is a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical company that specializes in the research, development, and manufacturing of prescription drugs. The company was formed in 1999 through the merger of Astra AB and Zeneca Group plc. AstraZeneca's products are used to treat a wide range of medical conditions, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and diabetes. The company has operations in over 100 countries and employs more than 76,000 people worldwide. AstraZeneca is committed to developing innovative medicines that improve the health and well-being of people around the world.
Learn more about AstraZeneca
Size
83,100 employees
Market Cap
$211.5 billion
Industry
Net Income
$3.1 billion
Founded
1999
5 Year Trend
+10.2%
Revenue
$26.6 billion
NASDAQ

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