Business Unit Leader - South Africa

At Johnson & Johnson, we believe health is everything. Our strength in healthcare innovation empowers us to build a world where complex diseases are prevented, treated, and cured, where treatments are smarter and less invasive, and solutions are personal. Through our expertise in Innovative Medicine and MedTech, we are uniquely positioned to innovate across the full spectrum of healthcare solutions today to deliver the breakthroughs of tomorrow, and profoundly impact health for humanity. Learn more at jnj.com.

As guided by Our Credo, Johnson & Johnson is responsible to our employees who work with us throughout the world. We provide an inclusive work environment where each person is considered as an individual. At Johnson & Johnson, we respect the diversity and dignity of our employees and recognize their merit.

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Johnson & Johnson MedTech is recruiting for a Business Unit Lead to be based in Johannesburg , South Africa.

About Surgery

Fueled by innovation at the intersection of biology and technology, we’re developing the next generation of smarter, less invasive, more personalized treatments.

Are you passionate about improving and expanding the possibilities of surgery? Ready to join a team that’s reimagining how we heal? Our Surgery team will give you the chance to deliver surgical technologies and solutions to surgeons and healthcare professionals around the world. Your contributions will help effectively treat some of the world’s most prevalent conditions such as obesity, cardiovascular disease and cancer. Patients are waiting.

Your unique talents will help patients on their journey to wellness. Learn more at https://www.jnj.com/medtech

Position Summary

The Business Unit Leader – South Africa, is responsible for driving sustainable growth, market expansion, and commercial excellence across Johnson & Johnson MedTech Surgery’s indirect and emerging markets throughout the Middle East and Africa region.

Reporting directly to the General Manager, MEA, this role leads the commercial strategy and execution across a diverse portfolio of distributor-led markets, ensuring achievement of sales, profitability, market share, and strategic business objectives. The role partners closely with Marketing, Professional Education, Strategic Capabilities, Supply Chain, Regulatory Affairs, Finance, and regional leadership teams to accelerate access to innovation and strengthen Johnson & Johnson MedTech’s position as the partner of choice across the region.

The Sales Director serves as a key member of the MEA Leadership Team and plays a critical role in shaping the future growth strategy for the region.

Key Responsibilities

Commercial Leadership & Business Performance

• Deliver sales, market share, profitability, and cash flow objectives across the Rest of MEA region.
• Develop and execute annual and long-range business plans aligned to regional and global priorities.
• Drive growth through focused portfolio deployment and market development, and lead forecasting and performance reviews.

Distributor & Channel Management

• Build and execute a distributor management strategy across Namibia, Lesotho and Eswatini, with clear governance, scorecards, and business reviews.
• Build distributor capabilities to improve commercial execution, market access, and customer engagement.
• Identify opportunities for channel optimization, market restructuring, and future direct-market expansion.

Strategic Market Development

• Identify and prioritize growth opportunities across key customer segments, sectors and specialties.
• Develop market entry, expansion, and competitive defense strategies for strategic Surgery platforms.
• Partner with governments, healthcare systems, hospital groups, and key opinion leaders, and assess new business models, partnerships, and investments.

Leadership & Talent Development

• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing commercial organization built on accountability, collaboration, and inclusion.
• Build capabilities for sustainable growth and succession planning, and role model Johnson & Johnson Credo values.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Marketing, Professional Education, Strategic Capabilities, Supply Chain, Regulatory Affairs, Finance, and Customer Service to deliver integrated business plans.
• Ensure successful product launches and align regional priorities with local market execution.

Customer & Stakeholder Engagement

• Build executive-level relationships with key customers, healthcare leaders, and government stakeholders.
• Represent Johnson & Johnson MedTech Surgery at industry forums and act as senior commercial sponsor for priority accounts.

Compliance & Governance

• Serve as statutory board member for MedTech South Africa.
• Ensure compliance with Johnson & Johnson policies, healthcare compliance requirements, and local regulations, upholding the highest standards of integrity, ethics, and risk management.
• Implement consistent distributor compliance and governance processes across the region.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Life Sciences, Healthcare, or related field.
• Significant commercial leadership experience within the medical device, healthcare, pharmaceutical, or related industry.
• Demonstrated success leading complex multi-country businesses across South Africa.
• Strong distributor management and channel leadership experience.
• Proven track record of delivering sustainable growth and market expansion.
• Experience leading and developing high-performing teams.
• Strong financial, strategic planning, and business acumen.

Preferred

• MBA or advanced business degree.
• Experience across South Africa healthcare markets.
• Experience working within a highly matrixed multinational organization.
• Experience supporting market transformation, direct market establishment, or business model evolution initiatives.

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