Head Corporate Affairs EUCAN

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Job Description

At our heart we are committed colleagues. We offer interested people numerous opportunities and strongly believe in, and promote, diversity, equity, and inclusion. As a company we offer roles based on merit, welcoming candidates of any gender, age, religious belief, sexual orientation, race, color, ethnic or social origin, or disability.

Our team is growing and for this we need bright minds with creativity and flexibility – what talent do you have?

About the Role

The Head of Corporate Affairs role within the EUCAN region is responsible for Communications, Public Affairs, Patient Advocacy & Sustainability and is pivotal in engaging & aligning the corporate strategy with external and internal operating environments to address key challenges and opportunities. This role is responsible for driving the strategic imperatives of External Leadership and Sustainable Partnerships, shaping the Environment for Innovation, Growth and Competitiveness and Empowering Agile and Capable Corporate Affairs Functions ensuring that these align with the broader EUCAN StrategyvFramework and focused on Patient, People, and Planet.

The Head of Corporate Affairs will lead with excellence today to shape tomorrow, ensuring that all activities are anchored in Takeda’s overarching Purpose, Vision, Values (Patient-Trust-Reputation-Business), Imperatives, and strategic objectives. This role will foster a culture of collaboration, skills enhancement, and showcasing success, ultimately contributing to Takeda’s mission of bringing innovative medicines to patients around the world.

Corporate Affairs will strengthen Takeda’s position as a trusted, values-based leader in building sustainable policies and health systems to the benefit of patients, stakeholders, the planet and the business. This role will harness sustainable partnerships to strengthen healthcare systems, benefit patients and showcase Takeda’s environmental leadership.

How you will contribute

1. Strategic Leadership:

• Provide visionary leadership to the Corporate Affairs team, aligning initiatives with Takeda’s Global, GPD, and EUCAN Strategy Framework.

• Lead efforts to shape the external environment and drive the EU competitiveness agenda to support Takeda’s innovation, market readiness, and upcoming launches.

• Champion strategic cross-functional collaboration between Global, GPD, and EUCAN teams to maximize impact and organizational cohesion.

• Partnerships: 1) Build and maintain empowering, long-term partnerships that strengthen Takeda’s position in our strategically focused therapeutic areas / 2) Enhance Takeda’s external leadership by building sustainable partnerships that benefit patients, healthcare systems and business.

2. Corporate Reputation:

• Elevate Takeda’s corporate reputation by positioning Takeda as a global thought leader in innovation, digital health and sustainability.

• Drive executive visibility and thought leadership to influence key stakeholders and instill confidence in Takeda’s strategic direction.

• Enhance employee engagement, inspiring internal and external stakeholders by showcasing the strength of Takeda’s pipeline and long-term commitment to transformative healthcare.

3. Capabilities:

• Build future-ready capabilities by fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and agility across teams.

• Promote operational excellence through scalable models of content reuse, co-creation, and shared knowledge—empowering teams to amplify impact across therapeutic areas and brands.

• Drive the Corporate Affairs pathway initiative to upskill colleagues working in the LOCs and also region and unite with a One Corporate Affairs mindset demonstrating skills across communications, public affairs, patient advocacy and sustainability

• Promote a mindset of collaboration, innovation, and efficiency by embedding focus on co-creation, content re-use, and scaling across our strategically focused therapeutic areas and key brands

4. Communications

• Advance executive thought leadership, positioning Takeda’s EUCAN leaders, particularly the EUCAN President, as influential voices internally and externally, driving visibility and credibility across key platforms and audiences.

• Oversee strategic product communications to prepare the external environment for upcoming launches, ensuring alignment with policy, reputation, and patient access objectives.

• Provide expert leadership in issues and crisis management, guiding the organization through complex situations while protecting and enhancing corporate reputation.

• Strengthen internal communications and employee engagement by cultivating purpose-driven narratives that inspire confidence in Takeda’s pipeline, strategic vision, and long-term value.

• Manage and amplify EUCAN President communications across internal and external channels to ensure strategic alignment, enhance leadership presence, and foster trust across all stakeholder groups.

5. Sustainability

• Align a common understanding of sustainability across EUCAN by driving clarity on Takeda’s global commitments and translating them into regionally relevant priorities and actions.

• Embed sustainability principles across EUCAN’s business operations, decision-making, and value-creation strategies to ensure long-term impact and credibility.

• Connect internal and external environments by ensuring consistent and authentic storytelling on sustainability, reflecting both our actions and ambitions. Work closely with the global sustainability team and corporate EHS teams to align goals and support teams on measurement strategies to drive and measure impact

• Equip teams with clear, aligned messaging and compelling proof points to confidently engage external stakeholders, such as policymakers, media, partners, MEPs and patient organizations, on Takeda’s sustainability commitments and performance.

6. Public Affairs

• Champion Takeda’s leadership in shaping the EU Competitiveness and Innovation Agendas by actively engaging with EFPIA and driving alignment across relevant industry working groups.

• Serve as a strategic staffer to senior EUCAN leaders participating in EFPIA, providing coordination, policy insights, and positioning support to maximize Takeda’s influence in key forums.

• Lead the Corporate Affairs partnership agenda, working cross-functionally with Market Access and Public Policy teams to strengthen Takeda’s voice and value proposition in this critical area.

• Drive policy change to support Takeda’s business priorities by proactively engaging with EU institutions, particularly the European Parliament, to advocate for an environment that fosters innovation, access, and long-term sustainability.

• Maintain strong, credible relationships with policymakers, trade associations, and key stakeholders to ensure Takeda’s perspectives are reflected in policy discussions impacting our pipeline, patient access, and competitiveness.

7. Patient Advocacy

• Drive the Therapeutic Policy & Patient Advocacy programs to support Takeda’s leadership in therapy areas and deliver best-in-class launches.

• Strengthen relationships with key European patient organizations and ensure a patient-centric approach to EUCAN decisions

Expected skills

• University degree, preferably graduate degree

• 15 years plus pharmaceutical experience with focus on public policy, communications and patient advocacy

• Significant leadership experience, including leading of teams across multiple countries as well as multicultural experience

• Strong communicator, able to navigate complex external and internal landscapes and ability to stay calm under pressure

• Mindset of collaboration internally and externally – effectively able to drive impact through other stakeholders

• Strategic mindset and the ability to create a compelling future state for their organization

• High level of integrity, resilience, and adaptability. Uphold the Takeda value of Integrity, ensuring all actions are ethical and transparent.

• Preferably experience and connections in external affairs, including with key trade associations and European pharma bodies

• Strong focus on technology including use of AI and data to inform their strategies and decisions

Empowering our people to shine

At Takeda, we earn the trust of society and our customers through our values of Takeda-ism: Integrity, Fairness, Honesty, Perseverance. We incorporate these values in everything we do. They represent who we are and how we act. They help us make decisions that we can be proud of today and in the future. We enable our employees to develop their full potential. As a global top employer, we offer exciting career paths, promote innovation, and strive for top performance in everything we do. Takeda fosters an inclusive, collaborative, and international work environment where our teams are united by their relentless commitment to our goal of improving people's health and creating a better future for the world.

Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion

Takeda is committed to foster diversity, equality, and inclusion. Hiring decisions are based entirely on qualifications and are made regardless of gender, ethnic origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, or disability.

If you are interested in this opportunity, we look forward to receiving your application via our online tool!

Learn more at takedajobs.com

Locations

Zurich, Switzerland

Worker Type

Employee

Worker Sub-Type

Regular

Time Type

Full time