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Senior Director, Payer Engagement (Market Access) #4605
GRAILUnited Statesfull_timeVerifiedPosted 31 Mar 2026
💰 $288,000/yr($201,000/yr – $288,000/yr)
About the role
Our mission is to detect cancer early, when it can be cured. We are working to change the trajectory of cancer mortality and bring stakeholders together to adopt innovative, safe, and effective technologies that can transform cancer care.
We are a healthcare company, pioneering new technologies to advance early cancer detection. We have built a multi-disciplinary organization of scientists, engineers, and physicians and we are using the power of next-generation sequencing (NGS), population-scale clinical studies, and state-of-the-art computer science and data science to overcome one of medicine’s greatest challenges.
GRAIL is headquartered in the bay area of California, with locations in Washington, D.C., North Carolina, and the United Kingdom. It is supported by leading global investors and pharmaceutical, technology, and healthcare companies.
For more information, please visit grail.com
GRAIL is seeking a Senior Director, Payer Engagement to lead and scale our payer-facing strategy during a critical phase of commercialization and growth. This individual will manage a team of Account Leads responsible for developing and advancing a robust pipeline of payer engagements, pilots, partnerships, and coverage-enabling activities. The ideal candidate brings a strong track record of payer relationship management, team leadership, and cross-functional influence, with the ability to translate clinical and economic value into compelling payer narratives. This role is based in Durham, North Carolina. It offers a flexible work arrangement, with the ability to work from GRAIL's office or from home. Our current flexible work arrangement policy requires that a minimum of 40%, or 16 hours, of your total work week be on-site. Your specific schedule, determined in collaboration with your manager, will align with team and business needs and could exceed the 40% requirement for the site. At our Durham campus, Tuesdays and Thursdays are the key days where we encourage on-site presence to engage in events and on-site activities.
We are a healthcare company, pioneering new technologies to advance early cancer detection. We have built a multi-disciplinary organization of scientists, engineers, and physicians and we are using the power of next-generation sequencing (NGS), population-scale clinical studies, and state-of-the-art computer science and data science to overcome one of medicine’s greatest challenges.
GRAIL is headquartered in the bay area of California, with locations in Washington, D.C., North Carolina, and the United Kingdom. It is supported by leading global investors and pharmaceutical, technology, and healthcare companies.
For more information, please visit grail.com
GRAIL is seeking a Senior Director, Payer Engagement to lead and scale our payer-facing strategy during a critical phase of commercialization and growth. This individual will manage a team of Account Leads responsible for developing and advancing a robust pipeline of payer engagements, pilots, partnerships, and coverage-enabling activities. The ideal candidate brings a strong track record of payer relationship management, team leadership, and cross-functional influence, with the ability to translate clinical and economic value into compelling payer narratives. This role is based in Durham, North Carolina. It offers a flexible work arrangement, with the ability to work from GRAIL's office or from home. Our current flexible work arrangement policy requires that a minimum of 40%, or 16 hours, of your total work week be on-site. Your specific schedule, determined in collaboration with your manager, will align with team and business needs and could exceed the 40% requirement for the site. At our Durham campus, Tuesdays and Thursdays are the key days where we encourage on-site presence to engage in events and on-site activities.
Responsibilities:
- Develop and execute a comprehensive payer engagement strategy aligned with corporate and commercialization objectives
- Lead proactive outreach and relationship-building with national, regional, and local payers across commercial, Medicare Advantage, and Medicaid segments
- Serve as a senior representative of the company in high-level payer discussions, including establishing and leading quarterly executive meetings
- Drive a structured pipeline of payer activities, including introductory meetings, value discussions, pilots, data evaluations, and pathways toward coverage and access
- Build and maintain visibility into payer engagement pipelines, progress, and outcomes, tracking key performance indicators such as payer interest, pilot conversions, and coverage readiness
- Provide regular updates to executive leadership, translating payer engagement outcomes and feedback into actionable insights and recommendations
- Lead, mentor, and scale a team of Payer Account Leads, setting clear goals, performance metrics, and accountability while coaching on payer messaging, negotiation strategies, and stakeholder management
- Negotiate complex payer contracts and develop collaborative project opportunities, including those requiring cross-functional support for evidence generation
- Partner closely with Market Access, HEOR, Medical Affairs, Commercial, Government Affairs, and clinical development teams to ensure aligned, compliant, and payer-relevant engagement
- Inform evidence-generation and commercialization priorities by incorporating payer feedback into clinical, real-world, and economic strategies
- Understand and anticipate payer and partner needs across the system of care to ensure appropriate, compliant access to the company’s products
- Ensure access to GRAIL's products are achieved and in a compliant manner
- These responsibilities summarize the role’s primary responsibilities and are not an exhaustive list. They may change at the company’s discretion.
Required Qualifications:
- BS/BA degree preferably with a science/ healthcare major and/or advanced science, public health or allied healthcare degree
- 10+ years expertise in working with payer and policy executive stakeholders, with an understanding of value-drivers across all levels within the institutions. This includes deep knowledge of reimbursement pathways, system channel strategies (employer benefits, health plans, community engagements) care delivery at the provider level, and patient engagement strategies.
- Demonstrated track record of successfully closing payer negotiations that resulted in meaningful, expanded insurance coverage.
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