US General Counsel & Chief Compliance Officer

at  Ascendis Pharma

Ascendis Pharma is a dynamic, fast-growing global biopharmaceutical company with locations in Denmark, Europe, and the United States. Today, we’re advancing programs in Endocrinology Rare Disease and Oncology.
Here at Ascendis, we pride ourselves on exceptional science, visionary leadership, and skilled and passionate colleagues.
Guided by our core values of Patients, Science, and Passion, we use our TransCon® drug development platform to fulfill our mission of developing new and potentially best-in-class therapies to address unmet medical needs.
Our culture fosters a place where skilled, adaptable, and highly resourceful professionals can truly make their mark. We offer a dynamic workplace for employees to grow and develop their skills.
The General Counsel/Chief Compliance Officer (GC/CCO) will be responsible for legal and compliance matters in Ascendis Pharma’s US operations. The GC/CCO will manage and oversee a team of legal and compliance professionals and will be responsible for business conduct in accordance with Ascendis Pharma’s global legal and compliance framework. The ideal candidate will possess attributes that allow them to fulfil the following responsibilities:

Compliance

• Oversee the development, adaptation, implementation, monitoring and maintenance of compliance policies and procedures in accordance with Ascendis Pharma’s global compliance framework and processes
• Serve as primary point of contact for compliance audits and queries
• Ensure compliance related education and training for relevant employees
• Annual risk assessment and review
• Monitor the continually changing US compliance environment to ensure ongoing compliance.

Legal

• Oversee drafting, review and advice on commercial contracts including distributor contracts, NDAs, vendor contracts, HCP contracts, consulting agreements etc.
• Serve as member of Ascendis Pharma’s US Pricing Committee
• Oversee Ascendis Pharma’s state and federal price reporting compliance in collaboration with Market Access, Finance, other stakeholders and external vendors
• Continuously advise on potential risks and suggest strategies to mitigate risks
• Effectively and efficiently manage relationships with outside counsel including pricing, distribution etc.
• Oversee and manage support to relevant Ascendis Pharma functions, including HR and Finance

REQUIREMENTS:

Qualifications

• 15+ years legal and compliance experience with a focus/specialty in the pharmaceutical industry, with at least 5 years’ experience in senior legal and compliance role
• JD Degree from an accredited law school and top academic credentials
• Excellent problem solving and communication skills that allow you to make clear recommendations that will help us achieve our business objectives
• Ability to mentor and manage compliance and legal staff
• The GC/CCO must be able to collaborate on all levels of our organization and to work closely with Ascendis Pharma corporate headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark. The GC/CCO must have a can-do attitude, be solution oriented and have the ability to think and act holistically. The GC/CCO must have excellent interpersonal skills and be a proven people leader. Experience from a similar role in a commercial stage biotech company is a requirement.
• The GC/CCO will report to our Head of US Commercial with a dotted line reference to the global heads of Corporate Compliance and Corporate Legal, respectively.

Please refer the Job description for details