PhD in Immunology, Molecular and Cellular Biology, or related field with 12+ years of biotech/pharma drug discovery experience, or MS with 16+ years of equivalent experience.
Proven track record of advancing small molecules from hit identification to development candidate selection as project team leader or lead biologist.
Hands-on experience in hit finding, including screening assay development and high-throughput screening (HTS) or DNA-encoded library (DEL) campaigns.
Demonstrated leadership of cross-functional project teams or workstreams with prior people management experience.
Expertise with primary human immune cells and whole blood, and in building assay cascades for screening and mechanism-of-action studies.
Broad knowledge of in vitro and in vivo models of inflammation and autoimmunity, with experience in pharmacology and PK/PD studies.
Experience managing CRO collaborations.
Responsibilities
Create and update research operating plans, including resource planning and budget management.
Secure cross-functional alignment and organizational support for program plans.
Lead multidisciplinary program teams to meet goals, milestones, and timelines.
Define stage-gate success criteria and recommend resource allocation to leadership.
Manage CRO partnerships across all biology activities in support of programs.
Shape target validation and scientific strategy for the immunology portfolio, advising leadership on opportunities.
Engage key opinion leaders to align priorities and inform business decisions.
Benefits
Competitive salary and benefits package including 401k match.
Opportunity to make a significant impact on the development of novel therapeutics.
Work with a talented and passionate team of scientists.
Be part of a cutting-edge company that is revolutionizing drug discovery.
Full Job Description
Position Summary:
PsiThera is looking for an experienced drug discovery biologist with deep expertise in immune and inflammatory signaling to lead small-molecule and macrocycle discovery program teams from hit identification through development candidate (DC) nomination and IND submission. You'll build and run the research plan for your programs, lead the project team that carries it out, and stay closely involved in the lab. The ideal candidate will strike a balance between program leadership and hands-on laboratory science. Your lab time will focus on high-impact creative work: establishing key assays, running decision-critical and mechanistic experiments, troubleshooting and training others. You may lead a small team of scientists as needed. This role suits a rigorous scientist who enjoys both designing the key experiments and getting a program across major milestones.
Key Responsibilities
Program team leadership:
Create and update research operating plans, including resource planning, budget management, risk assessment and contingency planning for your programs
Secure cross-functional alignment and organizational support for program plans
Lead multidisciplinary program teams and be accountable for meeting program goals, milestones and timelines
Define stage-gate success criteria and timelines for your programs, recommend resource allocation and go/no-go decisions to leadership
Manage CRO partnerships across all biology activities in support of your programs, including study design, execution, data quality and delivery to project teams
Strategic alignment and influence:
Shape the validation of targets and the scientific strategy for the immunology portfolio, advising leadership on opportunities and trade-offs
Engage key opinion leaders and external experts to pressure-test program hypotheses, align priorities with leadership and inform business and partnering decisions
Present program progress to senior leadership, and represent programs to prospective partners and at scientific conferences
Hands-on lab science:
Design and oversee hit finding campaigns (e.g., HTS and DEL), including hit triage and confirmation
Build and transfer fit-for-purpose assay cascades (biochemical, biophysical, cellular and whole blood) that support hit triage, SAR, target engagement and mechanism of action, to team members in-house and at CROs
Design and run in vitro pharmacology studies using primary human immune cells, whole blood and, where available, patient-derived samples, and design and oversee in vivo pharmacology and PK/PD studies in models of inflammation and autoimmunity, to link compound exposure to immune-cell function and disease-relevant outcomes
Contribute to the development and execution of translational biology biomarker strategies
Mentoring and capability building:
Build new in-house capabilities and technologies (e.g., assay platforms, human-cell and whole-blood systems) that serve multiple programs and keep PsiThera at the leading edge
Evaluate emerging technologies, CROs and academic or industry collaborations
Mentor scientists across the organization and constructively challenge scientific thinking
Qualifications
Required Qualifications:
PhD in Immunology, Molecular and Cellular Biology, or a related field with 12+ years of biotech or pharma drug discovery experience, or an MS with 16+ years of equivalent experience
Track record of advancing small molecules from hit identification to DC selection as project team leader or lead biologist
Hands-on experience in hit finding, including screening assay development, HTS or DEL campaigns, and hit triage and confirmation
Prior people management experience and demonstrated leadership of cross-functional project teams or workstreams
Hands-on expertise with primary human immune cells and whole blood, and in building assay cascades (biochemical, biophysical, cellular) for screening, SAR and mechanism-of-action studies
Broad knowledge of in vitro and in vivo models of inflammation and autoimmunity, with experience designing and interpreting in vivo pharmacology and PK/PD studies
Experience managing CRO collaborations
Scientific achievement shown through peer-reviewed publications and/or patents
Strong scientific rigor in generating, analyzing and presenting data to drive program decisions
Excellent written and verbal communication skills with scientific, executive and partner audiences
Preferred Qualifications:
Experience across multiple target classes and therapeutic areas
Experience working with clinical teams on translational research or biomarker strategy
Experience leading programs through IND submission
Experience in a small or growing biotech environment
$190,000 - $230,000 a year
Benefits:
Competitive salary and benefits package including 401k match
Opportunity to make a significant impact on the development of novel therapeutics
Work with a talented and passionate team of scientists
Be a part of a cutting-edge company that is revolutionizing drug discovery
