Head of Corporate & State Government Affairs

The Opportunity

The United States sits at the heart of AstraZeneca's ambition — a market where the intersection of science, policy, and access determines whether life-changing medicines reach the patients who need them most. With our goal to significantly grow our US presence and impact by 2030, the decisions made in state capitals across America — on pricing, access, reimbursement, and regulation — have direct and immediate consequences for our ability to deliver on that ambition and to sustain the commercial foundation that funds our science.

This is the leader who stands between AstraZeneca and that risk. And who turns that environment into opportunity.

The US State Government Affairs Lead is one of the most consequential roles in our US business:

• Carries enterprise-wide responsibility for all state legislative and regulatory strategy across all 50 states
• Represents AstraZeneca's interests in an era of unprecedented policy complexity
• Does not wait for the political environment to move — shapes it
• Does not escalate to the leadership team — is the leadership team
• Does not manage a function — builds a national capability recognised inside and outside the organisation as best in class

This is a full member of the US Corporate Affairs Leadership Team, operating with the authority, visibility, and accountability that designation demands. It requires a leader of rare calibre — someone who combines:

• Deep policy expertise with commercial acumen
• Executive presence with team-building instinct
• Strategic vision with the operational discipline to execute across the most complex legislative landscape in the world

The Context

The U.S. state policy environment has never been more dynamic or more consequential for our industry:

• Prescription Drug Affordability Boards, 340B programme pressures, PBM reform, Medicaid policy shifts, and state-level pricing legislation are moving at speed
• The political dynamics that drive them shift with every election cycle, every legislative session, and every headline
• A single state law can establish a national precedent
• A single legislative session can reshape market access for an entire portfolio

The leader we appoint must walk in with their eyes fully open to this environment — and be energised by it.

What You Will Lead:

Commercial & Financial Stewardship

• Own and manage the full US State Government Affairs budget, allocating resources with the discipline and strategic judgment of a business leader
• Make clear-eyed decisions about where investment drives the greatest return — in external counsel, trade association engagement, advocacy infrastructure, and coalition development
• Report on return on investment with transparency and rigour to senior leadership
• Translate policy risk and opportunity into language that resonates in the boardroom, grounded in a deep understanding of the commercial priorities of the US business

Enterprise State Policy Strategy

• Serve as the enterprise authority on all U.S. state government affairs, setting and driving the national policy agenda for AstraZeneca across all 50 states
• Represent unified enterprise positions on the defining policy issues of our time — 340B, PDABs, PBM reform, Medicaid, and state pricing legislation — with the speed, precision, and strategic coherence that protecting our US market position demands
• Anticipate threats before they materialise, build the coalitions needed to defend our positions, and identify the policy opportunities that others miss
• Lead strategic decision-making on state public policy across all therapeutic areas within AstraZeneca's portfolio
• Create strategies and campaigns to optimise outcomes and defend against harmful legislative and regulatory proposals
• Identify, analyse, and act on emerging state legislative and regulatory matters with speed and enterprise-level impact

Executive Leadership & Board-Level Counsel

• Operate as a trusted advisor to SET-level and senior executive leadership, providing boardroom-ready counsel on U.S. state policy with the authority and confidence to shape decisions at the highest level
• Be the person in the room — representing this function, this team, and this organisation with the presence and credibility the role demands, without need for a senior buffer
• Contribute to enterprise strategy as a full member of the US Corporate Affairs Leadership Team, well beyond the boundaries of government affairs
• Engage with external thought leaders, state governors, legislative leaders, trade associations, think tanks, and third-party allies to shape the external policy environment