Job title: [KOREA] Head of Commercial Operations
Location: Seoul, Seoul, South Korea
Employment type: Full-time
Company Description
Santen is a specialized life sciences company with a proud 130-year heritage focused exclusively on ophthalmology. As a Japan-originated, global company with our footprint in over 60 countries, we are dedicated to delivering innovative treatments and digital solutions for eye health and addressing vision-related social issues for people around the world.
As an affiliate of Santen Global, guided by our vision of “Happiness with Vision,” Santen Korea is committed to improving patients' lives through innovative eye care solutions, scientific excellence, and strong partnerships with healthcare professionals.
As we continue to expand our business, we are seeking a dedicated, strategic, and talented Head of Commercial Operations to join our team in Seoul, Korea.
The Head of Commercial Operations drives Commercial Excellence by translating brand and product strategies into effective sales execution plans that support business growth and deliver the company's vision. The role develops customer-focused commercial strategies based on Right Targeting, Right Message, and Right Resource Allocation, enhances sales force effectiveness, monitors execution performance, and collaborates cross-functionally to maximize commercial impact.
In addition, this position leads capability-building initiatives to strengthen the scientific knowledge, communication skills, and strategic execution capabilities of the commercial organization.
Job Description
What you will do
- Lead the development and execution of Commercial Excellence (CE) strategies, translating brand and product strategies into actionable sales plans that drive business growth and market success.
- Partner closely with Sales and Patient Journey Solutions (PJS) teams to establish strategic priorities, optimize execution processes, and ensure alignment between commercial strategy and field activities.
- Monitor and analyze KGI/KPI performance, identify key success factors and barriers, and drive continuous improvement through effective PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) management.
- Collaborate with regional Asia Commercial Excellence and cross-functional teams to share best practices, address business challenges, and advance omnichannel and commercial excellence initiatives.
- Leverage internal and external data to generate actionable insights, support strategic decision-making, enhance sales force effectiveness, and strengthen brand performance.
- Oversee CRM operations and omnichannel projects, ensuring effective system utilization, process optimization, and continuous improvement of commercial execution capabilities.
- Lead the development and implementation of Medical Representative (MR) training programs, building capabilities in scientific knowledge, customer engagement, communication, and strategic execution.
- Drive target-setting, performance evaluation, and incentive processes, ensuring fair, transparent, and strategic allocation of targets while supporting performance management across the commercial organization.
Qualifications
What you will bring to the role
- Bachelor's degree or above in a related field.
- Minimum 7 years of experience in pharmaceutical sales, field force leadership, marketing, or other commercial roles, with at least 7 years of Commercial Excellence, Sales Effectiveness, or related commercial operations experience.
- Strong knowledge of ophthalmology and a solid understanding of the Korean pharmaceutical and healthcare market, preferably within eye care.
- Proven expertise in Commercial Excellence principles, including sales force effectiveness, customer targeting, resource allocation, performance management, and omnichannel engagement.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex data into actionable business insights.
- Advanced proficiency in data analysis and reporting tools, including Excel, PowerPoint, and Business Intelligence (BI) platforms.
- Excellent stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration skills, with the ability to influence and drive strategic initiatives across the organization.
- Strong communication and presentation skills, with business-level proficiency in English (written and spoken).
Additional Information
Grow your career at Santen
A career at Santen is an opportunity to make a difference. Through our long-term vision outlined in Santen 2030, we are committed to be a Social Innovator - addressing the social and economic needs of people with visual impairments. We have team members around the world using their diverse talents to unlock new modalities and drive innovations for patient outcomes, education and treatment. At Santen, we believe in empowering all our team members with flexible ways of working and a highly inclusive work environment.
The Santen Group is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to building diverse teams and ensuring a safe and inclusive physical and virtual workplace for every one of our team members. All employment decisions are based on business needs, role requirements and individual qualifications regardless of race, color, ethnicity, national origin/ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/ expression, age, disability, medical condition, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
If you require any kind of accommodation during our recruitment process, please let the recruiter from our team know.
Please use the attached Resume Format template when you submit the resume.
Submit in 2 languages please. (Korean & English or Korean & Japanese)