Medical Science Liaison Benelux

The posting

Job description

Medical and Scientific Liaison, Benelux DEPARTMENT Medical LOCATION Benelux WORKING MODEL Field-based role FUNCTION Medical Affairs

Objective of the role The experienced Medical and Scientific Liaison will operate as a senior field-based scientific leader within the Medical team, providing expert input into the development, prioritisation and execution of the medical strategy across the Benelux region. As a trusted strategic partner to healthcare professionals, key opinion leaders and internal stakeholders, you will lead high-level scientific exchange and bring a strong external perspective into the organisation. You will interpret scientific developments, stakeholder needs and field insights, translating them into clear strategic recommendations that help shape medical priorities, evidence-generation plans and stakeholder-engagement approaches. Beyond delivering excellence in the field, you will act as a senior therapy-area expert and an influential cross-functional partner. You will provide informed challenge and guidance, identify emerging opportunities and risks, and help ensure that the medical strategy remains scientifically robust, externally relevant and effectively implemented. While contributing strategically to medical planning and stakeholder engagement, this role remains fundamentally rooted in high-quality field-based scientific exchange, serving as the primary medical interface between Shionogi and the external healthcare community. This includes developing trusted scientific relationships, generating actionable insights and facilitating balanced, evidence-based scientific dialogue with healthcare stakeholders.

Key responsibilities

Scientific exchange and stakeholder engagement

• Act as the field-based scientific representative of Medical Affairs across the Benelux region.
• Conduct high-quality scientific exchange in a strictly non-promotional manner, including the discussion of new on-label data and complex scientific questions that cannot be addressed by Key Account Managers.
• Establish, develop and maintain long-term scientific relationships with healthcare professionals, key opinion leaders, researchers and other relevant stakeholders.
• Hold scientific exchange meetings with healthcare professionals and healthcare-system decision-makers to gather insights, exchange information through scientific dialogue and discuss research.
• Act as a trusted scientific partner, facilitating balanced, evidence-based discussions that improve understanding of disease areas, treatment pathways and emerging clinical evidence.
• Introduce the MSL role to external stakeholders and establish a consistent point of contact for scientific exchange.
• Engage with patient advocacy groups to understand patients’ concerns and needs.
• Communicate relevant safety concerns and new risk information appropriately.

Strategic medical contribution

• Serve as a senior scientific expert within the organisation, bringing external perspectives and therapeutic-area insights into strategic decision-making.
• Contribute strategically to the development, refinement and execution of the medical plan, using field insights and scientific expertise to inform priorities, evidence-generation activities and stakeholder-engagement approaches.
• Act as a conduit between the external healthcare environment and Shionogi, ensuring that field intelligence, unmet needs and emerging trends are translated into actionable medical recommendations.
• Identify emerging scientific trends, unmet medical needs, opportunities and risks to support evidence-based decision-making.
• Contribute to evidence-generation activities, including company-sponsored studies and investigator-initiated trials.
• Contribute scientific expertise to launch planning and lifecycle-management initiatives.

Cross-functional collaboration

• Work cross-functionally with Medical, Sales, Market Access and Marketing colleagues to support business and medical objectives.
• Provide scientific and medical education to members of the sales force, covering disease areas, therapeutic areas, company products, scientific updates and relevant literature.
• Support Medical Information activities as required, including assistance with complex medical and scientific enquiries.
• Share actionable insights and strategic recommendations gathered through external stakeholder interactions.

Scientific expertise and external engagement

• Maintain deep expertise within the relevant therapeutic areas and remain current with scientific developments, clinical-practice trends, treatment guidelines and emerging evidence.
• Attend relevant medical and scientific congresses, sessions and symposia as part of the Medical team, maintaining expertise and building relationships with key opinion leaders.
• Respond to medical information enquiries from healthcare professionals.
• Document interactions with key opinion leaders and healthcare professionals in the approved customer relationship management system, in accordance with company and data-privacy policies.

Pre-launch responsibilities Where applicable, you will also:

• Contribute to or lead the identification and mapping of key opinion leaders, prioritising engagement according to the company’s scientific objectives and Medical Plan.
• Develop appropriate key opinion leader engagement plans connected to study development, data releases, publications and product launches.
• Conduct introductory meetings with key opinion leaders and other healthcare professionals to understand their areas of expertise, therapeutic responsibilities and professional interests.
• Exchange appropriate scientific information about unapproved products with current or prospective investigators where it is relevant to proposed research.
• Conduct formal medical insight surveys to gather appropriate insights relating to unapproved products.
• Deliver scientific presentations designed to answer medical or scientific questions without suggesting or identifying a specific product that is not approved in the relevant country.
• Support scientific events, including advisory boards and medical education meetings, to facilitate clinical discussion of new study results, educational gaps, disease areas and unmet medical needs.

What are we looking for? To succeed in this role, you will bring:

• A bachelor’s degree in pharmacy, biology, microbiology, medicine or a closely related scientific discipline.
• A PhD or other relevant postgraduate qualification in pharmacy, biology, microbiology or medicine would be valuable.
• At least two years’ experience working as an MSL with hospital pharmaceutical products.
• Experience working in infectious diseases or microbiology.
• Experience working as an MSL within specialty care, particularly with hospital medicines.
• The ability to enter a new therapy area and rapidly develop strong knowledge of the disease area and relevant product data.
• Demonstrated experience launching new pharmaceutical products or improving medical engagement with established products.
• Experience working cross-functionally with Sales and Market Access teams.
• Experience working with in-country Marketing and above-country Medical teams would be valuable.
• Experience working in the Netherlands, Denmark or Sweden, with experience across more than one of these countries being advantageous.
• Experience working within both large and small or mid-sized pharmaceutical organisations would be valuable.
• Demonstrated ability to build and sustain productive scientific relationships with healthcare professionals and key opinion leaders through credible scientific engagement.
• The ability to translate complex clinical and scientific data into clear, meaningful discussions with external stakeholders and internal cross-functional teams.
• An understanding of health economics.
• Experience using digital engagement tools successfully.
• The ability to critically evaluate scientific publications and produce clear scientific summaries.
• A strong understanding of clinical-trial methodology, implementation and the interpretation of clinical data.
• The ability to search for, analyse and synthesise scientific information relating to therapeutic areas, Shionogi medicines and competitor medicines.
• A detailed understanding of the relevant country requirements governing promotional and non-promotional activities within the pharmaceutical industry.
• A strong understanding of the pharmaceutical industry and the local healthcare environment, including current challenges and developments.
• An understanding of the basic requirements of Good Clinical Practice and practical knowledge of handling Medical Information enquiries.
• Excellent verbal, written and presentation skills, including the ability to communicate complex scientific information clearly.
• Strong interpersonal, influencing and relationship-building capabilities.
• The ability to identify and communicate meaningful insights from customer meetings.
• Strategic and organisational planning capabilities, with excellent planning and prioritisation skills.
• The ability to manage your own time, daily activities and interactions with healthcare professionals to achieve business objectives.
• Strong cross-functional engagement and collaboration skills.
• The ability to consider issues from both the healthcare professional and patient perspective.
• Professional maturity and credibility when engaging with external stakeholders.
• The ability to work independently for extended periods and adapt daily plans to changing business requirements.
• An entrepreneurial approach and the willingness to identify new ways of working with colleagues and customers.
• High standards of ethical and honest behaviour.
• Strong computer literacy, including online research, PubMed or Medline literature searches and commonly used technologies.
• A valid driving licence.
• The ability to travel within the territory for approximately 70% to 80% of your time.
• The ability to travel internationally when required for scientific congresses or company meetings, normally less than 10% of your time.
• Fluency in English and Dutch is required.
• French-language capability is highly desirable.
• Cross-cultural awareness and sensitivity.

Why Shionogi? At Shionogi, you will have the opportunity to work in a scientifically focused environment where Medical Affairs plays an important role in improving understanding of disease, supporting evidence generation and enabling meaningful scientific exchange. You will work independently in the field while remaining an integral member of a collaborative, cross-functional team. This role offers the opportunity to combine strategic medical contribution with highly visible field engagement, influencing medical priorities while building trusted scientific partnerships across the Benelux region. ApplyIf you are an experienced Medical and Scientific Liaison with a strong scientific background, established stakeholder-engagement skills and an interest in hospital medicines, we would welcome your application.