Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk
References from this period: 5 LinkedIn recommendations, full text. They vouch for the role, not for any one claim.
Proof points: 7
| Role | Product | Situation | Task | Action | Result | Year | Skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk | GenAI proof of concept for automating compliance reviews Agentic RAG proof of concept for compliance reviews, with a Figma plugin | Every release of health software needed sign-off from medical, legal and regulatory reviewers. The process was built for marketing materials, not software: every screen was manually captured as a PDF and reviewed manually, stacking the regulatory risk to the end of the development cycle and sometimes adding months to delivery. | Test whether an LLM could take on the review so product teams could shift left: fail in design, not at review. Two acceptance tests set up front: useful to product teams, and catches what the manual review catches. | Used an internal LLM sandbox to build a RAG model of the guidelines and regulations, producing a full audit trail per submission. Built a prototype agent that plugged into Figma so designers could query the guidelines before investing effort. Pitched it to senior leadership & tested with product team. | Product team loved it. The proof of concept showed a clear path to much faster release cycles, but the timing was 12 months too early & the business was not ready for AI. Tom moved to help the Wegovy Pill launch. | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | AI, GenAI, regulated, compliance, pharma, healthcare, discovery, prototyping, ways of working, launch, marketing, team leadership, stakeholders |
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk (contributed, one of a team) | Wegovy Pill launch Wegovy Pill launch, consumer workstream | Pitched for and invited onto the launch team for a company-critical initiative to inject new thinking (very unusual for a digital role). Digital, packaging and direct distribution sat in separate silos, each with its own assumptions. | Lead the HQ consumer workstream. | Applied subscription-model thinking to connect the physical product to digital fulfilment: QR codes on the boxes linking to the digital experience, and work with production on bundling three boxes in a tertiary carton. | Contributed to the largest pharma launch on record. | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | pharma, healthcare, patients, growth, retention, launch, marketing, SaaS, team leadership, international, consumer, budget |
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk | CagriSema Digital discovery programme for CagriSema, the company's top drug asset | CagriSema was the first drug to span two therapy areas, diabetes and obesity. Each business unit ran independently with their own priorities and budgets. | Define what digital initiatives should accompany the drug, get both business units to agree, and get it funded. | Started with the problem, and uncovering the new user journeys to create a shared understanding of the problem space across both units. Then ideation: 128 candidate ideas, cut to a shortlist of 5, assumption-tested with prototypes, 4 recommended, each with a funding-gated rollout. Navigated the programme through internal governance. | Funding secured for a portfolio of 4 digital initiatives (a first). Aligned two business units on a common digital strategy (also a first). | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | AI, GenAI, regulated, compliance, pharma, healthcare, patients, discovery, prototyping, incubation, ways of working, growth, retention, funnels, experimentation, launch, brand, team leadership, stakeholders, consumer, budget |
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk | Digital Incubation Digital incubation unit for branded digital engagement, evaluating build, buy and partner solutions | Asked after Wegovycare to scale its ways of working across the product organisation: to work across silos and help move the organisation from solution-first project thinking to a product model with an outcomes focus. | Build the unit that shapes the organisation's next big bets, and make problem-first the default. | Built the incubation unit entirely through influence. Designed a portfolio model and a gated incubation pipeline. Wrote the discovery playbook. Coached the incubation PMs. Secured funding and managed resourcing and cross-charges for the incubation teams. Evaluated build, buy and partner options for each bet. | Moved the business from solution-first to problem-first, and from output to outcomes. | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | AI, GenAI, regulated, compliance, pharma, healthcare, patients, discovery, incubation, ways of working, growth, retention, funnels, experimentation, launch, brand, team leadership, stakeholders, consumer, budget |
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk | Product Operations standards, artefacts, ways of working | A wider remit across the product pipeline, to complete the move to a product operating model. | Establish metrics across a portfolio of 12 products. | Set product artefacts and quality standards: gate model and deliverables, product-ops metrics, portfolio reports, business case templates, problem and north-star statements. | Helped product teams connect work to commercial outcomes. | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | AI, GenAI, regulated, compliance, pharma, healthcare, patients, discovery, incubation, ways of working, growth, retention, funnels, experimentation, launch, brand, team leadership, stakeholders, consumer, budget |
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk | Head of Patient Products Patient Solutions, a portfolio of consumer engagement products (companion apps adjacent to the medicines) | Interim reorg of product teams before the Wegovy Pill project. | Lead 6 experienced PMs building consumer engagement products, managing by outcomes; for a period, before moving into the pill team where the need was greatest. | Individual coaching and weekly experiment sharing; made individual product metrics public. | Broke product silos, established weekly demos and experiment sharing, encouraged learning loops. | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | AI, GenAI, regulated, compliance, pharma, healthcare, patients, discovery, incubation, ways of working, growth, retention, funnels, experimentation, launch, brand, team leadership, stakeholders, consumer, budget |
| Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk | project steercos Chaired project steercos. Flipped the format from status updates to interactive co-creation | Steercos were project management checklists: project not product focused, and unsuited for high-uncertainty discovery-stage products. | Chair project steercos. | Flipped the format from status updates to interactive co-creation. | Cross-functional VPs moved from product sceptics to advocates. | Feb 2022 - Feb 2026 | AI, GenAI, regulated, compliance, pharma, healthcare, patients, discovery, incubation, ways of working, growth, retention, funnels, experimentation, launch, brand, team leadership, stakeholders, consumer, budget |
Tell me about your senior role at Novo
source: Tom's own account
Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk (Feb 2022 - Feb 2026). Senior IC product role working across silos on complex, high-impact initiatives.
Work includes:
- Consumer lead for the Wegovy Pill launch, driving prescription growth
- Pitched and built a GenAI proof of concept for automating compliance reviews
- Led a six-month discovery programme for the company's top drug asset, securing funding for a portfolio of digital initiatives
- Introduced a digital incubation model that shifted the organisation from output to outcomes
- Head of product operations. Helped product teams connect work to commercial outcomes.
Direct answers
- CagriSema was the first drug to span two therapy areas, diabetes and obesity. Each business unit ran independently with its own priorities and budgets, so the discovery programme ran on influence.
- The discovery funnel: 128 candidate ideas, a shortlist of 5, assumption-tested, 4 recommended and funded, each with a funding-gated rollout.
- The organisation worked in a solution-first project model. The incubation model was built to move it to a product model with an outcomes focus.
- Product Operations: standards, artefacts, ways of working. I know what good looks like because I've done it.
- Digital Incubation: I established and led a digital product incubation unit, evaluating build, buy and partner solutions. It moved the business from solution-first to problem-first; CagriSema was its hardest test.
- Head of Patient Products: led 6 experienced PMs building consumer engagement products, for a period, before moving into the pill team where the need was greatest. Management by outcomes.
- Interim reorg of product teams before the Wegovy Pill project. Individual coaching and weekly experiment sharing; made individual product metrics public. Broke product silos, established weekly demos and experiment sharing, encouraged learning loops.
- Given a wider remit to work across the product pipeline and complete the transition to a product operating model.
- Established metrics across a diverse portfolio (12 products).
- Built first cross-portfolio view of product team costs and capacity, started conversation around ROI.
- Established product artefacts & quality standards across the product org, eg: gate model & deliverables, product-ops metrics, portfolio reports, business case templates, problem/north-star statements.
- Mentored PMs to move from delivery-led outputs to commercial outcomes.
- Secured funding, managed resourcing and cross-charges for incubation teams.
- Designed portfolio model and gated incubation pipeline for branded digital engagement.
- Shifted cross-functional VPs from product sceptics to advocates.
- Chaired project steercos. Steercos were project management checklists: project not product focused, and unsuited for high-uncertainty discovery-stage products. Flipped the format from status updates to interactive co-creation, shifting cross-functional VPs from product sceptics to advocates.
- Pitched 'Rybelsus Beyond The Pill' to Senior Management, an ambitious cross-functional pipeline for generating learnings & extending staytime. A small pilot is underway.
- I lobbied Novo to switch sales data to a cohort retention model and failed.
- Decisions won at executive level: the CagriSema discovery funnel, 4 recommended and funded, each with a funding-gated rollout, done without mandate[NOVO.R2]; 'Rybelsus Beyond The Pill' pitched to Senior Management, a small pilot is underway[NOVO.R2]; the final round job interview at Novo, where the business set aside its solution-first brief[NOVO.R1.TRANSFORM]; the TREAT recommendation to the board, which wound down the business[LEO.R1]; the GX Networks rename of a Plc, including the stock market ticker, in 5 weeks[HOST.R1.REBRAND].
- The incubation unit was built through influence, with no formal mandate, and its discovery playbook was his[NOVO.R2].
source: Tom's own account, direct answers
Related
- Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk: tell me about Wegovy pill NOVO.R2.WEGOVY
- Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk: tell me about the GenAI project NOVO.R2.GENAI
- Ask: why are you leaving Novo TQ.LEAVING
Tell me about Wegovy Pill
source: Tom's own account
I worked on the Wegovy Pill launch team as Consumer Lead. One of my roles was to challenge assumptions and inject product thinking into a company-critical initiative.
Direct answers
- I rethought the user journey and created a simple structural fix to drive prescription growth.
- I worked closely with the US affiliate for the Wegovy Pill launch.
- Invited into company-critical Wegovy pill launch to challenge assumptions on digital, packaging, and direct distribution.
- Used subscription-model thinking to link packaging to digital fulfilment for biggest ever pharma launch.
- Aligned silos to create unified physical-to-digital experience.
- Designed unified physical-to-digital experience to increase prescriptions for company-critical launch.
- Selected for one-year placement on the company's most critical drug launch, representing the consumer voice in a science-first organisation.
- Brought new commercial thinking by reframing adherence through a SaaS retention lens.
- Wegovy Pill launch, 2025: global consumer lead on the launch team in strategic marketing; led the consumer workstream (digital, packaging, direct distribution) and took part in commercial launch planning (budget, strategy, packaging); the launch reached 1M patients in 16 weeks, with volumes owned by others; led the workstream, then handed it over to the US[NOVO.R2.WEGOVY]. Did not lead commercial planning.
source: Tom's own account, direct answers
Related
- Associate Product Director at Novo Nordisk: have you built anything with GenAI NOVO.R2.GENAI
- Wegovycare: tell me about Wegovycare NOVO.R1
- Ask: what motivates you META.COMPASS
Tell me about a GenAI project
source: Tom's own account
When developing health software, every release needs extensive regulatory review by medical, legal and regulatory experts (pharma calls it MLR). The process was designed for simple marketing materials, not sophisticated software - but it hadn't evolved.
In practice, every screen had to be captured in PDF format and reviewed individually. The result: significant delays (backlogs could mean months), huge documentation overhead, and an anti-pattern where you had to fully develop everything before getting sign-off.
I used an internal LLM sandbox to create a RAG model that captured the various guidelines and regulations. Now we could automatically document and review each submission with a full audit trail - the review team only had to rubber-stamp the release.
I also built a prototype agent that plugged into Figma, so designers could query the guidelines before investing too much effort. This allowed product teams to shift left - fail in design, not at review.
The product teams loved it. Organisational priorities later shifted and the project was handed to another team, but the proof of concept showed a clear path to dramatically faster release cycles.
Direct answers
- Why it stopped at POC: it was built to test value, not to harden. Product teams used the Figma plugin on real designs and liked it, but a reorg and a vendor contract that covered the compliance-assistant use case meant it never got the second test or a path to production, and I moved on to the Wegovy Pill launch[NOVO.R2.WEGOVY]. Two tests were set; the first was run.
- Rollout: the compliance RAG and the Figma agent were built for every product team's release review; the product teams loved it, and designers could query the guidelines in Figma, so teams could shift left; built the mandate to pitch for Generative AI regulatory reviews as a product and pitched senior leadership; organisational priorities later shifted and the project was handed to another team. Ways of working rolled out across organisations: design sprints, user testing and direct user interviews at LEO[LEO]; discovery, rapid prototyping and automated documentation at Novo, then a discovery playbook[NOVO.R1].
- Dated: the agentic RAG compliance proof of concept was built in January 2025, inside the Associate Product Director role; two acceptance tests were set up front and the first was run with product teams on real designs[NOVO.R2.GENAI].
source: Tom's own account, direct answers
Related
- AI: tell me about your AI experience THEME.AI
- Ask: what tools do you use META.TOOLS