Director, Patient Community and Professional Relations

Overview

Are you interested in making a world of difference in cancer care?

Cancer strikes more than 10 million people worldwide each year. As the leading medical society representing doctors who care for people with cancer, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is committed to conquering cancer through research, education, and promotion of the highest quality care.

ASCO is a flexible, high-performance membership organization where employees collaborate to support our mission through evidence, care, and impact. Together with Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation, we foster a culture that prioritizes customer-centricity, emphasizes teamwork, and commits to quality. Our culture, ASCO Works – Our Way of Working, has long enabled workplace flexibility and embraced technology to help us achieve balance.

ASCO offers competitive salaries, an excellent benefits package, and opportunities to participate in professional development programs. To learn what it’s like to work at ASCO, remove this link

ASCO is hiring for a new and exciting role as Director, Patient Community and Professional Relations to provide strategic direction for ASCO’s engagement with the community of people living with cancer and cancer survivors, caregivers and organizations, and serve as a facilitator for mission-based professional relationships.

This position will be key in leading the management of patient engagement programming and acts as the primary liaison to coordinate collaborations with professional oncology organizations. The Director harmonizes cross-functional efforts to ensure meaningful engagement with external partners and maximize collective impact across ASCO’s strategic pillars: research, education, and quality.

This position is hybrid with a primary location in Alexandria, VA. We anticipate the hire to be onsite approximately 2-3 days per week.

• Develop the engagement strategy for external oncology professional organizations and serve as the central operational liaison to execute Memoranda of Understanding MOUs and facilitate cross-departmental collaborations that support ASCO’s mission.
• Lead the strategic direction, design, and execution of ASCO’s Patient Advocacy Engagement, including the implementation of the 2025 ASCO Framework for Engagement with the Patient Community and the oversight of annual meeting programming, networking events, and international initiatives.
• Ensure the systematic infusion of the patient voice across the organization by directing representation of patient perspectives on ASCO panels, advisory groups, editorial boards, and volunteer committees to advance research and care quality.
• Cultivate and maintain high-impact relationships within the cancer patient community serving as the primary liaison to patient organizations to strengthen partnerships and align goals.
• Collaborate with internal departments to create and manage content focused on the cancer patient community across ASCO’s research, policy, quality, and education pillars.
• Manage the cross-departmental budget and sponsorship lifecycle for patient community engagement and non-profit partnerships, including tracking requests, establishing approval criteria, and reporting annual data to executive leadership.

• Bachelors degree in public health or equivalent years of experience.
• 8+ years of related experience, including working in or with patient advocacy or patient community.
• Experience managing strategic partnerships or coalitions, including the implementation of formal agreements such as MOUs with professional organizations or external stakeholders.
• Proven success in engaging diverse stakeholders, including patient advocates and professional medical associations, to establish strategic partnerships that advance key organizational goals. Demonstrated experience in strategic leadership and program management.
• Proven ability to manage budgets.

• A master's degree in a relevant field such as public health or related experience in non-profit management; or work within professional medical associations. Familiarity with the…