Ophthalmology Sales Representative – United States

Job Requirements

This posting is intended to proactively build a pipeline of talent for roles we anticipate may open in the future. It is not tied to an active vacancy at this time. By applying to this Pipeline Advertisement, candidates are expressing interest in being contacted for potential future opportunities that align with the role described.

Why Ophthalmology. Why Merck. Why now.

Merck is advancing research focused on retinal diseases and developing therapies aimed at protecting, restoring and improving vision for people living with eye diseases. For experienced professionals, this is an opportunity to apply your expertise in an area where scientific research, customer engagement and patient-focused work come together.

For those who want to combine scientific curiosity, customer engagement, strategic influence and meaningful impact, ophthalmology at Merck offers an opportunity to contribute to work connected to retinal disease research and customer partnership

Position Summary

Reporting to the Customer Team Leader, Ophthalmology Sales, the Ophthalmology Sales Representative / Clinical Specialist will execute territory and account-level plans across key customers who manage retinal vascular diseases. This role will support insight gathering, stakeholder mapping, disease state education before product approval, product launch readiness, customer engagement after approval, and disciplined commercial execution in alignment with national Ophthalmology priorities and district-level execution plans.

The role is critical to establishing how Merck shows up in the evolving Ophthalmology market through high-quality customer engagement, strong disease-state knowledge, clinical and business acumen, compliant execution, and patient-centric decision making.

• This is a field-based sales position that is responsible for an assigned territory.

• Candidates must be willing to travel to visit with customers in-person and for national sales meetings/industry conferences.

• Overnight travel may be required in some territories, estimated 0-25% of the time.

• Travel (%) varies based on candidate’s location within the geography.

Primary Responsibilities

• Execute territory and account-level plans that translate national Ophthalmology priorities, brand strategies, customer segmentation, and district execution plans into clear customer engagement activities, KPIs, and measurable outcomes.

• Support insight gathering and stakeholder mapping activities within the assigned territory, including appropriate disease state education before product approval and compliant customer engagement after approval.

• Drive product launch readiness and commercial growth at the territory level by executing approved customer engagement plans, supporting omnichannel pull-through, and aligning activities with district priorities.

• Lead engagement with key stakeholders in the Retina market, including retina specialists, ophthalmologists, optometrists, academic centers, organized customer accounts, practice administrators, office managers, and other priority customers.

• Demonstrate strong product, disease-state, marketplace, access, and customer knowledge, including local market dynamics, treatment patterns, competitive activity, practice workflow, reimbursement considerations, and buy-and-bill dynamics.

• Use approved resources, data, insights, customer feedback, and field observations to prioritize customers, refine account plans, and support disciplined, fact-based decision making.

• Partner closely with the Customer Team Leader, Field Reimbursement, Account Management, Market Access, Marketing, Sales Training, Sales Operations, Analytics, Compliance, and Medical Affairs, as appropriate, to align customer needs with approved resources.

• Participate actively in training, ongoing upskilling, launch preparation, district meetings, business reviews, and field activities to continuously improve execution and customer impact.

• Manage territory resources and operating activities responsibly, including approved educational resources, samples if applicable, local programs, customer engagement activities, and expense management in accordance with company policies.

• Execute all promotional, educational, customer engagement, and territory activities in accordance with company policies, industry standards, applicable regulations, and high ethical standards.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Life Sciences, Health Sciences, or related field required.

• Advanced degree or clinical/scientific education preferred.

Required Experience and Skills

• Minimum 3 years of pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, specialty sales, clinical specialist, account management, or related customer-facing healthcare experience.

• Demonstrated ability to execute territory or account plans, build trusted customer relationships, achieve business objectives, and use data to inform prioritization and follow-up.

• Strong communication, presentation, listening, and interpersonal skills with the ability to deliver information clearly, compliantly, and effectively to clinical and business stakeholders.

• Ability to learn and communicate scientific, clinical, marketplace, access, and product information using approved resources.

• Strong organizational skills, business ownership, attention to detail, and ability to manage territory priorities, CRM documentation, customer follow-up, and expense responsibilities.

• Strong understanding of compliant promotional practices and ability to conduct all activities in accordance with company policies, industry standards, and applicable regulations.

• Valid driver’s license required.

• Ability to travel as required for customer engagement, territory coverage, training, internal meetings, and business priorities.

Preferred Experience and Skills

• Current or recent experience in Ophthalmology, Retina, specialty pharmaceuticals, biologics, injectable therapies, buy-and-bill products, or complex launch environments.

• Experience engaging retina specialists, ophthalmologists, optometrists, academic centers, organized customer accounts, practice administrators, office managers, and healthcare system stakeholders.

• Understanding of retina practice operations, office workflow, patient access and reimbursement processes, payer dynamics, specialty distribution, GPO/MSO influence, buy-and-bill economics, and patient support considerations.

• Experience supporting product launches, territory growth, competitive market execution, or new market development in specialty markets.

• Strong customer orientation, business acumen, learning agility, resilience, and ability to execute in a dynamic and competitive market.

The salary range for this role is

$129,000 - $203,100

In addition to our total rewards package, this role is also eligible for our Sales Incentive Plan and company car.

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs.

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