VP, Commercial Partnerships (remote with 50% travel)

Shields Health Solutions  |  Strategic Sales Leadership

ROLE OVERVIEW

Shields Health Solutions is seeking a VP of Commercial Partnerships who combines the consultative instincts of a trusted advisor with the analytical rigor of a seasoned strategist. This is a complex, multi-stakeholder enterprise sale into some of the most sophisticated non-profit health systems in the country. Success requires the ability to diagnose each health system's operational, financial, and clinical challenges, model the impact of a Shields partnership with precision, and build conviction across C-Suite and pharmacy leadership simultaneously.

The successful candidate will navigate mission-driven governance structures, capital stewardship expectations, and board-level accountability that define non-profit health system decision-making and will translate those dynamics into a compelling, evidence-based case for partnership.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Analytically-Driven Sales Strategy

• Conduct deep-dive analysis of each target health system including payer mix, specialty pharmacy volume, 340B program status, revenue cycle performance, and competitive positioning to build a hypothesis-driven point of view before the first conversation.
• Build institution-specific financial models and pro formas that quantify the operational and economic impact of a Shields partnership, tailored to the CFO, Chief Strategy Officer, or VP of Finance as the primary decision audience.
• Translate complex pharmacy and financial data into clear, board-ready narratives that align Shields' capabilities to the health system's strategic and mission priorities.
• Leverage Salesforce to maintain a rigorous pipeline, forecast with discipline, and track deal velocity and stakeholder engagement across multi-quarter sales cycles.

Executive Stakeholder Navigation

• Engage C-Suite leaders CEO, CFO, Chief Strategy Officer, and CMO with a command of both the strategic and financial dimensions of specialty pharmacy, positioning Shields as a long-term operating and revenue partner rather than a vendor.
• Anticipate and systematically address executive-level objections common in non-profit systems: governance concerns, IT integration risk, mission alignment, community benefit obligations, and capital allocation constraints.
• Build multi-threaded relationships across the enterprise to ensure no single champion dependency aligning both clinical and administrative stakeholders through a structured engagement strategy.
• Partner with the CCO to develop territory-level strategic plans that reflect each system's operating environment and readiness for partnership.

Pharmacy Stakeholder Expertise

• Engage VP of Pharmacy, Director of Pharmacy, and clinical pharmacy leaders with substantive knowledge of specialty pharmacy operations, accreditation requirements (URAC, ACHC), formulary dynamics, and clinical program design.
• Demonstrate fluency in pharmacy-specific challenges including hub services, limited distribution drugs (LDDs), specialty drug economics, payer contracting, and the intersection of 340B with specialty pharmacy margin.
• Navigate pharmacy stakeholder skepticism often rooted in concerns about autonomy, staff integration, and clinical model changes with evidence-based reassurance grounded in comparable health system outcomes.
• Serve as the internal voice of the pharmacy and clinical stakeholder throughout the deal cycle, ensuring operational credibility is maintained from first call through contract execution.

Non-Profit Health System Expertise

• Bring a genuine understanding of the non-profit health system operating environment: mission-driven culture, community health obligations, governance through boards of trustees, thin operating margins, and heightened scrutiny on strategic partnerships.
• Frame the Shields partnership in terms that resonate with non-profit priorities community access to specialty care, patient outcomes, workforce alignment, and revenue optimization.
• Navigate the extended decision-making cycles, multi-committee approval processes, and consensus-building dynamics that characterize non-profit health system procurement.
• Manage legal, compliance, and contracting processes in partnership with health system and Shields counsel, with sensitivity to regulatory and mission-related constraints unique to non-profit entities.

Market Intelligence & Thought Leadership

• Stay current on specialty pharmacy policy developments, CMS reimbursement trends, 340B regulatory activity, and health system M&A dynamics that affect the competitive landscape.
• Provide structured competitive intelligence back to Shields leadership, identifying emerging objections, alternative solutions prospects are evaluating, and market shifts that warrant strategic response.
• Facilitate a disciplined handoff of closed partnerships to operational leadership, maintaining relationship continuity through implementation.

QUALIFICATIONS

• 10+ years of enterprise sales experience, with a demonstrated track record closing complex, multi-stakeholder deals in healthcare ideally in specialty pharmacy, revenue cycle, or health system services.
• Direct experience selling into non-profit health systems required; comfort navigating mission-driven governance, board accountability, and community benefit obligations is essential.
• Strong analytical foundation: ability to build and present financial models, ROI analyses, and operational pro formas tailored to CFO and finance committee audiences.
• Deep knowledge of specialty pharmacy including 340B program mechanics, payer contracting, specialty drug economics, clinical program design, and pharmacy operations sufficient to earn credibility with VP/Director-level pharmacy leaders.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multi-threaded, multi-quarter sales cycles with discipline: structured pipeline management, consistent CRM hygiene (Salesforce), and accurate forecasting.
• Expert consultative seller: skilled at uncovering underlying organizational concerns, reframing objections with data, and guiding consensus across clinical, operational, and financial stakeholders.
• Bachelor's degree required; MBA or graduate degree in health administration, public health, or a related field strongly preferred.
• Ability and willingness to travel up to 50% of the time.

Shields Health Solutions partners with 80+ health systems across the country to build and grow best-in-class specialty pharmacy programs. We bring the operational expertise, clinical infrastructure, and financial rigor that health systems need to compete — and win — in specialty pharmacy.