Hesham Hamdy

Strategic Planning & Alignment

• Partner with senior leadership to develop and implement regional marketing plans, aligning HQ strategy with local market needs to ensure sustainable and profitable growth.
• Collaboratively shaped portfolio strategy using market data and research insights, maintaining alignment with global direction.
• Supported cross-functional collaboration for short & long-term forecasting and annual business planning across key MEA markets.

Market Insights & External Engagement

• Leveraged market research, competitive intelligence, and performance analytics to provide actionable insights that informed portfolio strategy and tactical execution.
• Engaged with regional key opinion leaders, and external stakeholders to enhance brand visibility and strengthen partnerships in psychiatry and neurology.

Execution & Market Impact

• Facilitated execution of signed-off marketing plans, coordinating across regional teams for consistent delivery.
• Guided a team of marketing professionals in delivering successful product launches and promotional campaigns, including kick-off programs for new brands to ensure effective market entry.
• Developed regional content for detailing materials across online and offline channels, ensuring consistency and compliance.
• Expanded the use of social media to raise mental health awareness in the MEA region and enhance patient reach.
• Applied data-driven decision-making to guide innovative and customer-focused marketing strategies.

Team Leadership & Development

• Oversaw and coached the regional marketing team, ensuring alignment, execution excellence, and strong internal communication.
• Mentored local marketing teams to build capability and achieve consistent execution standards.

Governance & Efficiency

• Managed regional promotional budgets and compliance processes, ensuring efficiency, accountability, and adherence to regulatory standards.

Key Highlights:

• Enabled MEA region to achieve sustained profit growth with a CAGR of 12% (over 3 years) by leveraging the available strategic opportunities in the key markets.
• Restructured the marketing team to drive adoption of digital-first promotion, resulting in measurable increases in HCP engagement across key markets.
• Defended value leadership in N06A, maintained the market share gain momentum in N02C2 & N05A1 markets achieving double digit growth rates.

Strategic Planning & Alignment

• Developed regional brand strategies and annual plans for the Lundbeck psychiatry portfolio, ensuring consistency with HQ direction and regional market needs.
• Identified growth opportunities and contributed strategic levers to enhance performance and optimize mature portfolio profitability.

Market Insights & Analytics

• Conducted ATU projects, market research, and competitor monitoring to inform tactical planning.
• Applied insights to refine promotional focus and support risk mitigation.

Execution & Market Impact

• Managed the signed off regional promotional campaigns and tactical brand activities across assigned markets.
• Started some initiatives related to the transition to multi-channel communication initiatives, introducing the first digital elements into regional campaigns.

External Engagement & Advocacy

• Built relationships with KOLs, and regional speakers to enhance brand visibility.
• Coordinated speaker management and regional events, and developed a pool of brand advocates in collaboration with local affiliates.

Team & Governance

• Monitored product P&L and regional promotional budgets, ensuring accountability and efficiency.
• Supported and coached an assigned Field Product Manager to build role competencies and provide progress feedback to market managers.

Key Highlights:

• Global recognitions for maintaining the positive growth trend & defending the market leadership of the N06A legacy product (Escitalopram) through innovation in marketing mix and optimizing the share of voice despite the presence of generics
• Leveraging local antipsychotic market opportunities impacting the strong uptake of the oral antipsychotic (Brexpiprazole) in UAE despite being launched during COVID-19 lockdown

I had the below assignment with allocation of 25% of my capacity in it

• Built business cases for market entry, with a key focus on Algeria, by analyzing opportunities and operational requirements.
• Developed the annual business plan for North Africa, including team allocation, workload distribution, and commercial priorities.
• Aligned North Africa commercial strategies with regional leadership and HQ priorities to ensure consistency and compliance.
• Managed day-to-day commercial operations with strategic partners across North African countries to ensure execution excellence.
• Monitored partner performance during cycle meetings, aligning on strategic objectives and tactical delivery.
• Supported the area with French-language promotional materials to address local needs and strengthen engagement.
• Ensured stock availability to market by following up on inventory flow and coordinating with partners.
• Tracked in-market sales and performance versus targets and phasing to maintain accountability and drive corrective actions.
• Ensured all commercial operations, promotional activities, and stock management adhered to corporate, legal, and regulatory compliance standards.
• Analyzed market dynamics and performance data to identify and leverage new commercial opportunities.

Key Highlights:

• Successfully launched and secured strong market uptake for a key Alzheimer's disease brand in Morocco and Tunisia.
• Achieved reimbursement approval for the latest innovative MDD treatment in Morocco, enhancing patient access and market potential.
• Delivered double-digit growth in antidepressant therapy in Tunisia and Morocco, regaining market momentum despite generic competition and transition from a former partner.

• Managed the neurology portfolio, focusing on Alzheimer's disease and antipsychotic brands across the MENA region.
• Successfully launched two antipsychotic brands, developing and executing launch plans in coordination with local affiliates.
• Oversaw legacy antidepressant brands, driving late lifecycle management and co-positioning versus strategic portfolio priorities.
• Designed and rolled out tactical launch campaigns to strengthen market entry and establish product positioning.
• Conducted market research and ATU studies to gather insights and support tactical adjustments.
• Engaged with KOLs in neurology and psychiatry through speaker programs and scientific events to support brand adoption.

Key Highlights:

• Collaborated with regional marketing team to build & implement the regional co-promotion strategy for our antidepressant portfolio that resulted in a double digital growth for both brands.
• Successful launch and one of the best global uptakes of our atypical long acting once monthly injectable reaching the global aspiration of one in three patients in the second year of launch.
• Best global KOL engagement platform (SPARK MEA).

• Expanded scope to include business development activities, building business cases for potential products to enhance portfolio profitability.
• Managed pre-launch activities for a new antipsychotic in-licensed from MSD, overseeing regional readiness.
• Conducted opportunity assessments in North African markets, including Morocco and Tunisia, to evaluate entry potential.
• Developed business cases across therapeutic areas, including antipsychotics, sleep disorders, and Parkinson's disease.

Key Highlights:

• Introduction of a new interactive meeting experience for KOLs leveraging story telling and creating 8 different personalized paths based on KOL choices within the engagement experience.

4Took on first regional responsibility with full P&L ownership for the Alzheimer's disease portfolio across the Middle East.

• Designed and implemented the complete marketing mix and developed regional promotional content tailored to market needs.
• Led key regional activities to maintain a strong share of voice and competitive positioning across the region.
• Supported product lifecycle activities, working closely with affiliates to ensure execution excellence.
• Engaged with KOLs to strengthen brand presence in neurology.
• Collaborated with external consultancy firms to streamline projects and conduct profitability assessments.

Key Highlights:

• Achieved and defended market leadership in N07D market and maintained a double digit growth trend year over year for 4 years in row.
• Achieved best global campaign twice in 2012 and 2014.

• Optimized implementation of marketing strategy developed by the regional office
• Develop local tactical marketing plans for Saudi Arabia
• Lead & Motivate Saudi Field force, develop & mentor territorial micro marketing plans & activities
• Effective KOL lobbying in the Saudi market (both Neurologists and Psychiatrists)

Key Highlights:

• Captured Market leadership for the first time in the N06A market in Saudi Arabia.
• Achieved Market leadership in N07D market from year 2 of launch.

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