Director, Sustainability Strategy & Engagement – Merck

Merck seeks a Director of Sustainability Strategy & Engagement in Rahway, NJ, to lead the sustainability strategy and engage with stakeholders. This role involves refining sustainability objectives, collaborating with corporate executives, advising on best practices, and supporting regulatory reporting. Candidates should have a BA/BS and 10+ years of relevant experience, particularly in the pharmaceutical sector, with strong leadership and collaboration skills.
Location: Rahway, New Jersey, United States

Overview: The Director, Sustainability Strategy & Engagement will join the Company as a member of Social Impact & Sustainability (SIS), serving as a strategic consulting lead for the sustainability areas of focus. This leader will be familiar with the landscape and help drive outcomes that create value in alignment with our strategic roadmap and establish best practices. This person should have a successful track record of achievement, strong leadership, and business acumen to serve as a trusted advisor with cross-functional leaders to provide insights on highly complex and/or sensitive economic and social issues that have the potential to impact the Company’s reputation and license to operate. The candidate selected for this role will work under the guidance of the Associate Vice President, Sustainability Strategy & Engagement, in a fast-paced and changing environment with a rapidly evolving set of expectations from all stakeholder groups.

The SIS team is dynamic and entrepreneurial, focused on achieving results through collaboration and staying ahead of external developments. We are dedicated to incorporating responsible practices into our operations. We strive to advance our sustainability commitments, manage sustainability reporting, and utilize data and tools effectively, all while engaging stakeholders to drive support and involvement.

Roles/Responsibilities:
• Lead the ongoing refinement and implementation of the company’s sustainability strategy that is aligned with the company’s business approach and define clear guidelines to meet the sustainability objectives.
• Proactively collaborate and facilitate dialogue with internal stakeholders, including corporate executives, to assure ongoing support for and develop strategies and tactics to address key issues within the focus areas, including the identification and tracking of key metrics and goals as appropriate.
• Help advise leadership on global best practices, risks and opportunities, through monitoring and analyzing strategies, trends, policies, and programs.
• Develop and maintain strong relationships with key internal and external stakeholders. This includes implementing strategies to meet stakeholder (customer, government, investor, employee) expectations and participating in internal working groups with cross-functional peers to ensure sustainability progress.
• Provide strategic leadership in the update of the multi-year sustainability strategic roadmap, aligned with company strategic priorities. Collaborate with key business units/leaders on the development and execution of key activities on the roadmap.
• Support regulatory reporting requirements (i.e. CSRD, CSDD) alongside Finance and the Sustainability strategic reporting team.

Qualifications:

Education Minimum: BA/BS Required
• 10+ years of experience in any of the following: sustainability, corporate responsibility, enterprise risk, human resources, compliance, finance.
• Experience in managing sustainability issues and tracking industry-wide trends, preferably with an emphasis on the pharmaceutical industry
• Self-starter with a track record of leading collaborative efforts with cross functional teams and working effectively at all levels of an organization
• Ability to build coalitions, influence, and build credibility and trust while driving outcomes and holding others accountable
• Strong consulting skills with the ability to quickly assess situations, identify gaps and possible solutions
• A high-level strategic thinker who is capable of staying on top of tactical execution, exercises exceptional judgment, and operates independently
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Proven project management skills and the ability to juggle multiple tasks and competing priorities
• Superior research and analytical skills
• Budget and KPI management

Preferred Experience / Skill: Experience working in the pharmaceutical industry or a related industry (hospital, public health, etc.)