AstraZeneca

Executive Director, Cancer Vaccine Discovery 

AstraZeneca$225K — $338K *
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • PhD or equivalent in immunology, oncology, molecular biology, biochemistry or related field with 10+ years industry experience.
  • Proven experience developing novel immunological approaches to deploy immunity against tumors.
  • Proven expertise in immune profiling, tumor modeling, systems biology, and/or immune oncology.
  • Experience working in cross-functional teams to leverage diverse expertise.
  • Demonstrated ability in developing and implementing novel vaccine methods.
  • Experience supporting or leading interdisciplinary vaccine discovery initiatives.
  • Proven leadership and management capabilities with junior colleagues.
  • Strong experience in budget development and control.

Responsibilities

  • Develop a diverse portfolio of cancer vaccine projects.
  • Create a strategic framework for target discovery and product development.
  • Lead a team to enhance immunity to various cancers using available platforms.
  • Oversee the cancer vaccine portfolio across early discovery and research stages.
  • Establish strategic internal relationships across various functions.
  • Manage academic and external partnerships for vaccine development.
  • Foster collaborations for discover combinatorial treatment strategies.
  • Build strong ties with senior stakeholders in Research and Global Project Teams.
  • Ensure transparent communication of project results and associated risks.
  • Define training standards for junior colleagues based on industry best practices.

Benefits

  • 401(k) retirement plan participation.
  • Paid vacation and holidays.
  • Paid leaves.
  • Health benefits, including medical, dental, and vision coverage.
  • Short-term incentive bonus opportunities.
  • Participation in equity-based long-term incentive programs.
Full Job Description

The Head of Cancer Vaccines in Infectious Diseases is responsible for leading efforts to develop and deliver strategies to program the immune system to recognize and eliminate malignant cells. The candidate will build a strategy to leverage the diverse modalities available at AstraZeneca to deploy polyclonal immunity against a range of tumor targets. The candidate will lead a team of scientists and cross-functional experts to build programs. The team will explore different strategies to identify novel candidates, validate neo-antigens, deliver mRNA, amplify immunity, driving early clearance and long-term durable surveillance. The role will be responsible for influencing senior internal stakeholders and manage external and internal collaborations to deliver effective solutions. In addition, the candidate must recruit, develop, and retain a strong, cutting-edge team—fostering a high-performance, innovative culture; building capabilities across immunology, oncology, and translational sciences; and establishing clear operating mechanisms to accelerate decision-making and delivery.

Typical Accountabilities

  • Develop a portfolio of cancer vaccine projects

  • Develop a strategy to support target discovery and product development and ensure cross functional strategic alignment.

  • Lead team to deploy immunity to a range of cancers, leveraging the diverse available platforms.

  • Oversee development of a portfolio of cancer vaccines across early discovery and research pipeline

  • Establish strategic relationships across the organization and functions

  • Oversight and accountability of partnerships with academic or outsourced partners

  • Develop internal and external partnerships to explore combinatorial strategies

  • Create and foster effective relationships with senior and executive stakeholders in Research, Bioprocess Development,

  • Clinical and Translational Medicine and Global Project Teams to ensure alignment across functions

  • Responsible for ensuring all projects within their area and their teams clearly and objectively communicate results, as well as their associated risks, uncertainties and limitations

  • Define the training standards for junior colleagues in line with best practices and principles

Qualifications

  • PhD or equivalent in immunology, oncology, molecular biology, biochemistry or a related discipline with 10+ yrs industry experience

  • Proven experience developing novel immunological approaches to deploy immunity to fight tumors

  • Proven experience with immune profiling, tumor modelling, systems biology, and/or immune oncology

  • Experience working in a cross-functional team to maximize expertise and accelerate success

  • Experience developing and implementing novel methods to support vaccine development

  • Experience supporting or leading interdisciplinary vaccine discovery or development programs

  • Proven experience leading and managing junior colleagues

  • Proven experience developing and controlling budgets

  • Excellent written and verbal communication, business analysis, and consultancy skills

The annual base pay for this position ranges from $225,900.80 - $338,851.20 USD. Hourly and salaried non-exempt employees will also be paid overtime pay when working qualifying overtime hours. Base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. In addition, our positions offer a short-term incentive bonus opportunity; eligibility toparticipatein our equity-based long-term incentive program (salaried roles), to receive a retirement contribution (hourly roles), and commission payment eligibility (sales roles). Benefits offered included a qualified retirement program [401(k) plan]; paid vacation and holidays; paid leaves; and, health benefits including medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coveragein accordance withthe terms and conditions of the applicable plans.Additionaldetails of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment. If hired, employee will be in an at-will position and the Company reserves the right to modify base pay (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, Company or individual department/team performance, and market factors.

Date Posted

20-Aug-2026

Closing Date

26-Aug-2026

About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca is a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical company that specializes in the research, development, and manufacturing of prescription drugs. The company was formed in 1999 through the merger of Astra AB and Zeneca Group plc. AstraZeneca's products are used to treat a wide range of medical conditions, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and diabetes. The company has operations in over 100 countries and employs more than 76,000 people worldwide. AstraZeneca is committed to developing innovative medicines that improve the health and well-being of people around the world.
Learn more about AstraZeneca
Size
83,100 employees
Market Cap
$211.5 billion
Industry
Net Income
$3.1 billion
Founded
1999
5 Year Trend
+10.2%
Revenue
$26.6 billion
NASDAQ

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