Executive Director, Head of Scientific Communications

Why Join Us?   Be a hero for our rare disease patients   At Ultragenyx, we fundamentally believe that taking real impactful action to care for the needs of patients and our people is always the right thing to do. To achieve this goal, our vision is to lead the future of rare disease medicine. For us, this means going where other biopharma companies won’t go – challenging the status quo and creating a new model that advances our field so more patients and caregivers can benefit from life-changing treatments. We do this by following the science, applying a novel rapid development approach, making innovative medicines at fair and reasonable prices, and creating a collaborative ecosystem to reach patients in ways that are most meaningful for them.    Our commitment and care for patients extends to our people, so culture is an essential cornerstone for Ultragenyx. We remain continuously focused on creating a supportive and inclusive environment of profound learning and growth – so employees can thrive in all areas of their lives, in and outside of work. Ultimately, we want to be an organization where we would be proud for our family, friends and children to work.   If you want to have a meaningful impact, do the best work of your career, and grow a lot, both professionally and personally, come join our team.

Position Summary:

The Executive Director, Head of Scientific Communications, will lead the strategy and execution of Ultragenyx’s global scientific communications to ensure scientific and clinical data are translated into clear, credible, and impactful narratives, enabling stakeholders to make the best evidence-based decisions possible to improve outcomes for patients with rare diseases. This leader will directly manage the Medical Communications and Medical Information functions and provide strategic oversight of Publication Planning through a dotted-line reporting relationship to ensure a unified, end-to-end approach to evidence dissemination. Working closely with Global Medical Leads, regional teams, HEOR, and other medical and cross-functional partners, this role ensures scientific alignment, message consistency, and operational excellence across all communication channels and audiences. 

ultrainnovative – Tackle rare and dynamic challenges

Work Model: 

Remote: Officially documented as working full-time from home, with travel to Ultragenyx's offices or other locations on occasion as needed.

Responsibilities:

1. Lead the global scientific communications strategy across all therapeutic areas and lifecycle stages, aligning with the company’s scientific platform, integrated evidence plans (IEPs), and launch readiness priorities. 
2. Supervise and direct the creation of medical communications strategies and publication plans led by the indication Medical Communications, Publication Planning, and Med Information leads in accordance with annual medical and brand plans. 
3. Oversee Medical Communications and Medical Information functions, including congress strategy, core scientific narrative development, FAQs, data decks, and field training materials. 
4. Provide strategic oversight of the Publications team (dotted line) to ensure integration of publication strategy, evidence dissemination, and alignment with medical narrative and IEPs. 
5. Elevate Ultragenyx’s scientific storytelling, translate complex data into compelling, credible narratives tailored for HCP, payer, and patient audiences. 
6. Drive global consistency of scientific messages across functions, regions, and programs throughout pre-, peri-, and post-launch phases. 
7. Implement standards, tools, and metrics to improve content quality, review efficiency, and traceability (in collaboration with Medical Operations & Excellence). 
8. Serve as a scientific communications thought partner to Global Medical Leads and other partners on data presentation, communication strategy, and insight integration. 
9. Ensure alignment across global, regional, and local medical publication plans. 
10. Recruit, mentor, and develop a high-performing team that embodies excellence, collaboration, and scientific rigor. 
11. Supervise or review publications, slide presentations, and other scientific materials for content