Career Category
Research
Job Description

Executive Director, Research - Technology & Innovation for Inflammation Discovery

What you will do

Let's do this. Let's change the world. In this vital role as Executive Director, Research - Technology & Innovation for Inflammation Discovery, you will lead early discovery inflammation research at Amgen from target identification through preclinical assessment to IND and FIH.

The Executive Director, Inflammation will provide strategic, scientific, and organizational leadership across Amgen's Inflammation Research portfolio, with accountability for advancing high-impact programs from early discovery through clinical and regulatory support.

This role will shape and execute disease-area strategy, guide portfolio prioritization, and lead cross-functional teams to deliver innovative therapeutic approaches for diseases that are driven by immunological and inflammatory mechanisms.

The Executive Director will serve as a senior scientific leader within Inflammation Research, representing the function across governance forums, portfolio reviews, and strategic initiatives. The role requires deep expertise in immunology and inflammatory disease biology, experience leading therapeutic programs with knowledge of both large and small molecule drug discovery, and the ability to influence senior stakeholders across Research, Development, Regulatory, Translational Medicine, and Commercial organizations.

The Executive Director will develop and lead the execution of an AI-enabled discovery strategy focused on leveraging innovation in myeloid, lymphoid, epithelial and/or stromal cell biology for development of novel interventions. This leader will direct the comprehensive integration of multimodal data, including human genetics, omics data, high-throughput screening outputs and advanced computational methodologies to inform target discovery and validation, innovative purpose-built modalities, and pipeline advancement of therapeutics aimed at modulating inflammation and improving outcomes for patients with immune-mediated diseases.

This role will report into the Vice President of Inflammation and will reside in our South San Francisco office.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead strategic and scientific direction for a portfolio of inflammation and autoimmune disease programs, including early discovery, preclinical development, and clinical-stage support.
• Provide senior scientific leadership for immune and structural cell biology and related therapeutic strategies, including program prioritization, indication strategy, target biology, and translational rationale.
• Oversee the advancement of pipeline programs through key decision points, ensuring robust biology and mechanistic insight, clear development hypotheses, and fit-for-purpose data packages.
• Represent Inflammation Research in cross-functional and governance forums and portfolio strategy discussions.
• Identify and evaluate new therapeutic opportunities including external innovation and internal pipeline expansion.
• Lead highly matrixed teams across sites and functions, fostering collaboration, accountability, scientific rigor, and delivery through organizational change.
• Provide expert guidance to senior management on high-impact scientific, portfolio, and organizational issues.
• Develop and execute a research strategy which builds on Amgen's strengths and unique capabilities in inflammation-related drug development, emphasizes breakthrough innovation, and establishes near-term and long-term objectives
• Recruit, develop and retain world class scientists and build research teams that are skilled in AI-enabled target and drug discovery
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to scientific talent, including direct and indirect reports, while strengthening team capabilities
• Create a cohesive, inclusive, creative and high-performing scientific culture.
• Contribute to broader site and functional leadership initiatives, including culture, sustainability, operational excellence, and cross-functional engagement.
• Maintain strong internal and external scientific presence through publications, presentations, collaborations, and thought leadership in immunology and inflammation.
• Partner with Research and Development colleagues as needed to support clinical strategy, regulatory submissions, protocol development, and responses to preclinical or scientific questions.

Scope and Impact

This role will have broad impact across the Inflammation Research portfolio and adjacent strategic areas. The Executive Director will be expected to influence portfolio direction beyond individual programs, drive resolution of complex scientific and operational challenges, and contribute to long-term strategic planning for the therapeutic area.

The role will include leadership of multiple direct and indirect reports and accountability for matrixed program teams across research, translational, clinical, regulatory, partnering and portfolio functions.

What we expect of you

We are all different, yet we all use our unique contributions to serve patients. The executive candidate we seek is an experienced leader with the following qualifications.

Basic Qualifications:

• Doctorate degree & 6 years of immunology discovery research experience OR
• Master's degree & 10 years of immunology discovery research experience OR
• Bachelor's degree & 12 years of immunology discovery research experience AND
• 6 years of managerial experience directly managing people and/or leadership experience leading teams, projects, programs, strategies and/or directing the allocation of resources

Preferred Qualifications:

• PhD and/or MD with specialization in a relevant biological sciences discipline
• Immunology research credentials with expertise in leading programs and people and publications; this could come from various relevant areas including Immunology, Rheumatology, Gastroenterology, Pulmonology, Dermatology, Neuroscience, Systems Biology, Computational Biology or AI/ML Biology.
• A scientist with a passion for biological discovery and pursuit of novel Immunotherapeutics with an exemplary track record of success emanating from current leadership experience in academia or the biopharmaceutical industry
• Experience as a target and drug hunter combined with scientific excellence
• A deep curiosity to understand tissue and disease pathobiology as it relates to clinical unmet need and drug discovery
• Ability to make scientific connections across functions and therapeutic areas
• Ability to recruit, retain and develop top talent
• Experience with mentorship and career development of colleagues and reports

They will also embody the Amgen leadership attributes which are:

• Inspire: Create a connected, inclusive, and inspiring work environment that empowers talent to thrive
• Accelerate: Enable speed that matches the urgency of patient needs by encouraging progress over perfection
• Integrate: Connect the dots to amplify the collective power of Amgen to drive results for patients, staff, and shareholders
• Adapt: Lead through change by adapting to an ever-changing environment and defining a clear course of action to deliver results

What you can expect of us

As we work to develop treatments that take care of others, we also work to care for your professional and personal growth and well-being. From our competitive benefits to our collaborative culture, we'll support your journey every step of the way.

The expected annual salary range for this role in the U.S. (excluding Puerto Rico) is $272,388 - $368,525. Actual salary will vary based on several factors including, but not limited to, relevant skills, experience, and qualifications.

In addition to the base salary, Amgen offers a Total Rewards Plan, based on eligibility, comprising of health and welfare plans for staff and eligible dependents, financial plans with opportunities to save towards retirement or other goals, work/life balance, and career development opportunities that may include:

• Comprehensive employee benefits package, including a Retirement and Savings Plan with generous company contributions, group medical, dental and vision coverage, life and disability insurance, and flexible spending accounts.
• A discretionary annual bonus program, or for field sales representatives, a sales-based incentive plan
• Stock-based long-term incentives
• Award-winning time-off plans and bi-annual company-wide shutdowns
• Flexible work models where possible. Refer to the Work Location Type in the job posting to see if this applies.

Sponsorship for this role is not guaranteed.