Executive Director, Portfolio Management, Rare

About Acadia Pharmaceuticals

Acadia is advancing breakthroughs in neuroscience to elevate life. For 30 years we have been working at the forefront of healthcare to bring vital solutions to people who need them most. We developed and commercialized the first and only FDA-approved drug to treat hallucinations and delusions associated with Parkinson’s disease psychosis and the first and only FDA-approved drug for the treatment of Rett syndrome. Our clinical-stage development efforts are focused on Prader-Willi syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease psychosis and multiple other programs targeting neuropsychiatric symptoms in central nervous system disorders. For more information, visit us at Acadia.com and follow us on LinkedIn and X.

Please note that this position is based in Princeton, NJ. Acadia's hybrid model requires this role to work in our office three days per week on average.

Position Summary

This position serves a key leadership role in the organization as the portfolio program leader in support of the cross-functional strategy for the programs (assets) in the Rare Disease franchise. This role contributes to the creation of the portfolio and program strategies, collaborating with the commercial franchise leadership, strategic product planning, and research and development (R&D) organization to successfully deliver on the corporate goals.  The Executive Director is accountable for leadership and execution of program plans within the portfolio, including leading the asset strategy teams, ensuring effective communication across the wider cross-functional organization and translating decisions into action. 

Primary Responsibilities

• Lead Asset Strategy Teams (ASTs) for Rare Disease Franchise by driving the teams to execute on the strategic vision of the Rare Disease portfolio.
• Drive planning for key drug development stage-gate decision points after Phase 1 and co-chair stage-gate committee for Rare Disease franchise.
• Manages an integrated program budget and resource plan in partnership with Finance team member and functional line representatives and sub-teams.
• Facilitate resource planning, including financial and capacity assessments for Rare Disease franchise.
• Partner with Strategic Product Planning function to establish or update Target Product Profiles (TPPs) for the Rare Disease portfolio that are aligned with the Strategic Value Proposition for the initial development and life-cycle management of the asset.
• Coordinate formation of the ASTs for Rare Disease Franchise programs following a Go to Phase 2 (POC) decision at Stage Gate 3 and knowledge transfer from the Early-Stage AST members or Alliance Delivery Teams (ADTs) for partnered programs.
• Collaborate with Research and Development (R&D) Operations team to ensure development team plans and timelines align with the strategic goals for the portfolio. 
• Ensure clear translation of the Strategic Value Proposition for each asset into an integrated strategic development plan for each program.
• Proactively communicate contract milestones, scientific and financial obligations to ASTs for partnered programs to make well-informed strategic recommendations and decisions.
• Proactively conduct risk management, and contingency and scenario planning across disciplines, ensure transparent communication of risks and escalate to executive management with appropriate speed.
• Lead and facilitate decision analysis with the team including development and assessment of outcome scenarios with alternative development options, robust go/no go decision criteria, probability of technical and regulatory success (PTRS), and value and investment implications.
• Ensure a coordinated approach across portfolio managers to ensure aligned execution and consistent reporting across stakeholders (ie, financial planning and analytics, executive leadership team and board of directors).
• Other duties as assigned.

Education/Experience/Skills