As a follow up to her 2025 Commercial Analytics Trends blog, Smith Hanley Executive Recruiter, Eda Zullo, discusses pharma commercial analytics salaries across levels and specialties.
VP/Senior Director/Director
As Eda discussed in the December blog the flurry of hiring and desire to retain good employees during and after the pandemic pushed Director salaries consistently at and above $200K. Senior Director positions are more common in smaller companies and startups but do come with a bump in base salary to $250K and greater. VP positions are much rarer but at large pharma companies the base salary compensation is usually at $400K or greater. Smaller firms utilize the VP title to attract quality candidates who have the expertise to drive their new commercial analytics operations and are more likely to pay $350K and greater.
One new development in pharma commercial analytics salaries at all three of these levels is the need to be hands-on. No longer are these leaders expected to only manage staff and internal clients. They must be hands-on with the data and the advanced analytics. As the level of sophistication in analytics continues to improve at a break-neck pace, Directors and above have to understand the applications and the implications of the results at a very detailed level.
Senior Manager and Associate Director
Across all applications within Commercial Analytics including Forecasting, Sales Analytics, Sales Force Effectiveness, Sales Operations, Data Science, Advanced Analytics, Market Access, Brand Analytics and Sales Analytics, pharma commercial analytics salaries are consistent. Senior Managers are at a base of $170K/$175K and Associate Directors make $180K/$185K. The bonus can vary slightly with Senior Managers getting 15% and Associate Directors targeted at 17.5%. While base salaries and bonuses are a set level in most firms, stellar performers at either level can increase their compensation through work recognized as excellent.
Manager
Manager roles tend to be filled by consultants. Eighty percent of candidates in these roles are international candidates and to move from consultant to employee of big or small U.S. pharma companies, Managers must get hands-on U.S. pharma experience. Even if the experience is with U.S. products in India or China, that typically isn’t adequate to be hired on staff in the U.S. Managers earn up to a $140K base salary.
2025 Hiring?
Candidates and companies continue to be conservative in their desire to job hunt or hire. The market has started to settle down particularly in contrast to the upheaval of 2023 and early 2024, but the industry is waiting to gauge the impact of the incoming President. Passive candidates want to check many boxes to make a move. First on the list is a promotion in title and compensation, but they want this without giving up a flexibility in their schedule that has become the norm. A willingness to relocate will mean more opportunities will be available.
