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Vice President, Global Therapeutic Area Leader, Oncology

Fortrea


Job Location:

Durham, NC - USA

Yearly Salary: USD 200000 - 450000
Posted: 29 September 2026 (6 days ago)
Application Deadline: 27 December 2026
Vacancies: 1 Vacancy

Job Summary

Fortrea is hiring a Vice President Therapeutic Area Leader focused on oncology to provide global scientific strategic and operational leadership within this assigned Therapeutic Area. This role shapes and executes the global medical strategy within the oncology team / therapeutic area in alignment with enterprise objectives and under the direction of the Global Therapeutic Area Head. The role upholds scientific quality and compliant riskbased decisionmaking and leads consistent highquality delivery of therapeutic area activities across clients regions and delivery models.


The Vice President Therapeutic Area Leader will serve as a senior scientific partner to clients and supports enterprise and TA leadership in external scientific engagement representing Fortrea as a delegated and credible TA thought leader in the oncology space.


Success is demonstrated through strong people leadership execution and governance highperforming TA medical leadership trusted client relationships and measurable delivery and growth outcomes within the assigned Therapeutic Area scope.


Summary of Responsibilities:

  • Contribute to the definition of and lead execution of the global Therapeutic Area strategy aligned to enterprise objectives and client needs.
  • Translate TA science regulatory trends and market dynamics into scalable medical service offerings and execution roadmaps.
  • Provide TAspecific insights analysis and recommendations to support enterprise decisionmaking related to investment priorities operating model evolution and growth strategy.
  • Serve as a senior scientific partner to clients participating in senior client interactions and governance forums and engaging with executive stakeholders (e.g. CMO VP Global Therapeutic Area Expertise & Delivery / Global Therapeutic Area Head Safety Data Management Regulatory Operations Project Management and Commercial) to shape strategy and outcomes within assigned programs and accounts.
  • Lead or participate in scientific governance forums and provide medical oversight for complex or highrisk TA activities within assigned scope.
  • Serve as a final escalation point for complex medical scientific ethical and regulatory decisions recommending riskappropriate actions and escalating as appropriate to the Global Therapeutic Area Head or enterprise governance.
  • Ensure consistent application of established standards for scientific quality compliance and integrity balancing innovation with patient safety and data integrity and contribute to continuous improvement of process and governance.
  • Lead and mentor senior TA medical leaders within the assigned Therapeutic Area ensuring leadership development succession planning and capability continuity.
  • Coach partner with and advise Regional Heads of the TA medical team to align regional execution to global TA strategy strengthen leadership capability and collaboration and drive consistent scientific quality and high performance across geographies in coordination with TA and enterprise leadership.
  • Support and lead as appropriate enterprisewide talent culture and organisational effectiveness initiatives (e.g. talent reviews succession planning leadership development and engagement).
  • Partner crossfunctionally with Clinical Operations Regulatory Commercial Strategy and Data teams to embed Therapeutic Area perspectives into delivery and growth initiatives.
  • Drive innovation in TA medical services evidence generation approaches and engagement models within assigned scope including areas such as precision medicine immunooncology realworld evidence and digital health and Advanced Therapeutics.
  • Represent Fortrea externally to strengthen the Companys visibility and position within the contract research organization and broader medical/scientific environment through select strategic industry engagement and TA thought leadership including publications presentations and panel participation at national and international scientific and industry meetings as appropriate for the role and in alignment with enterprise positioning.
  • Support portfolio delivery through oversight of assigned programs ensuring adherence to established quality and compliance requirements and proactively identifying and escalating risks.
  • Support service development and technical positioning within the Therapeutic Area providing scientific and medical content for Client Engagement activities proposals bid defenses and client solution development.
  • Provide clinical and scientific input to due diligence activities as a contributor as required.
  • Own delivery excellence and scientific quality across assigned TA programs and clients ensuring compliant consistent execution across portfolio aligned with global strategy.
  • Travel up to 23 trips per month (domestic and/or international) as required.
  • Occasional travel to clients/site locations with occasional travel both domestic and international.
  • Perform other duties as needed or assigned.

Qualifications (Minimum Required):

  • MD / DO A MUST with board certification or speciaity training in oncology / hematoloty
  • Deep Therapeutic Area expert with specific relevant experience in (Oncology / Hematology) drug development and medical and scientific services including global medical portfolio Governance and Delivery and applicable regulatory and compliance frameworks.
  • Demonstrated executive-level judgment and decision-making in complex ambiguous environments.
  • Proven ability to lead and develop senior medical/scientific leaders and shape inclusive high-performing teams.
  • Strong stakeholder management and client-facing communication skills with the ability to influence at executive level.

Experience (Minimum Required):

  • Typically 10 years of progressive experience in one or more of the following medical fields: Oncology/Hematology within pharmaceutical biotech CRO and/or related environments.
  • Senior leadership experience in Medical and Scientific Services and/or Clinical Development roles within regulated drug development environments with accountability for strategy execution medical governance and highquality delivery.
  • Demonstrated experience engaging senior client and external stakeholders and contributing to business growth through solution shaping proposals and bid defenses and/or program or portfoliolevel development activities.
  • Proven ability to lead in global matrixed organizations providing oversight across regions and multiprogram portfolios with strong strategic thinking and problemsolving skills.
  • Deep knowledge of integrated global drug development including quality compliance and riskbased decisionmaking frameworks.

Preferred Qualifications Include:

  • Experience leading within a CRO and/or outsourced medical services model.
  • Track record of contributing to the build and scale of global Therapeutic Area capabilities operating models and governance practices.
  • Experience leading complex matrixed and geographically distributed medical/scientific organizations.
  • Scientific thought leadership evidenced by publications presentations and/or industry engagement (as appropriate).

Physical Demands / Work Environment:

Work Environment:

  • Work is performed in an office and/or home-based environment with exposure to electrical office equipment (namely standard office equipment and screen-based work).

Physical Requirements:

  • Frequently stationary for 6-8 hours per day.
  • Repetitive hand movement of both hands with the ability to make fast simple repeated movements of the fingers hands and wrists.
  • Occasional crouching stooping with frequent bending and twisting of upper body and neck.
  • Ability to access and use a variety of computer software developed both in-house and off-the-shelf.
  • Light to moderate lifting and carrying or moving of objects including luggage and laptop computer with a maximum lift of 15-20 lbs.
  • Regular and consistent attendance.
  • Varied hours may be required.

For US Based Candidates:

Pay Range:USD $200000-$450000 / annually

Benefits:All job offers will bebased on a candidates skills and prior relevant experience applicabledegrees/certificationsas well as internal equity and market -timeor part-time employees working 20 or more hours per week are eligible for comprehensive benefits including: Medical Dental Vision Life STD/LTD 401(K) Paid time off (PTO) or Flexible time off (FTO) Company bonus where applicable.

Application Deadline:09/30/26

Learn more about our EEO & Accommodations request here.


Required Experience:

Exec


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