Position summary

The Lead, Product Sustainability Strategy, develops and implements overarching strategies for product sustainability, enabling Takeda to credibly articulate product-level environmental performance for customer tenders and its Planet strategy. The role partners across Commercial, Regulatory, Medical, Legal, and Corporate Sustainability to design, substantiate, approve, and govern sustainability-related product claims and narratives and establishes and continuously improves the global Sustainability Product Claims governance framework.

Why this role matters

This role lets Takeda compete in tenders that require verified sustainability information while protecting against greenwashing and non-compliant claims. By building the governance framework, substantiating product-level narratives with defensible data, and integrating them into brand plans, the Lead strengthens Takeda's product sustainability credibility across its portfolio and markets.

Key responsibilities

• Narrative strategy: Lead the design and implementation of product sustainability narrative strategies for priority brands and pipeline assets, aligned with enterprise goals, brand strategies, and customer tender requirements.
• Claims guardrails: Collaborate with Regulatory Affairs, Legal, Compliance, and Pharmacovigilance to define guardrails for sustainability claims, ensure evidence standards, and oversee review and approval.
• Data and evidence: Work with Environmental Sustainability Operations and DD&T to define data requirements, methodologies, and metrics to substantiate claims, maintaining traceable, defensible, audit-ready documentation.
• Governance framework: Design, implement, and mature the Sustainability Product Claims governance framework (roles, decision rights, operating procedures, documentation standards, escalation).
• Translation: Translate complex technical assessments (e.g. LCA outputs, emissions data) into compelling, differentiated product sustainability narratives and claims.
• Integration: Partner with Commercial, Marketing, Market Access, and Medical Affairs to integrate narratives into brand plans and materials in compliance with regulatory and promotional standards.
• Governance forums, monitoring, and capability: Co-lead cross-functional governance forums, monitor external regulatory and stakeholder trends, deliver training and playbooks, engage external partners, and proactively mitigate greenwashing and reputational risks.

Team and stakeholders

The role partners across Commercial, Regulatory, Medical, Legal, Compliance, Pharmacovigilance, Corporate Sustainability, Environmental Sustainability Operations, DD&T, Marketing, Market Access, and Medical Affairs, and engages external partners such as industry associations, NGOs, and consultancies.

Key details

• Location: Lexington, Massachusetts.
• Compensation: US base salary range of $154,400 to $242,550, depending on qualifications, experience, and location.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree required, preferably in a scientific discipline, communications, business, or engineering; advanced degree (MSc, MPH, MBA, PharmD, JD) preferred.
• Typically 8+ years of relevant experience in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, healthcare, consumer goods, or a related regulated industry, including significant experience in sustainability, ESG, brand/portfolio marketing, medical affairs, regulatory affairs, or communications.
• Demonstrated track record developing or governing product-related claims, narratives, or communications with Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance partners.
• Strong program/project management, excellent communication distilling complex technical content, and proven ability to work in a highly matrixed global organization.
• Experience with sustainability/ESG strategies, environmental impact assessments, or LCA strongly preferred; pharma/healthcare regulatory and promotional standards highly desirable.