Director, Antibody Screening and Characterization

Role Summary

Director, Antibody Screening and Characterization. Lead a team of scientists focused on Hit Finding in vitro characterization of antibody candidates across multiple Therapeutic Areas and biologics modalities, driving innovation in antibody screening and advancing hits and leads through the biologics pipeline. Responsible for delivering high-quality characterization data to enable lead candidate selection and for fostering collaboration across the Discovery Biologics network.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of scientists in SSF Discovery Biologics focused on macromolecular interactions, cell based functional characterization, and lab automation to identify therapeutic antibody candidates to move into development
• As a member of the Antibody Generation leadership team, work across groups within Discovery Biologics and with departments across the Company network to set and deliver on strategic goals in scientific excellence, talent development, and pipeline advancement
• Lead and participate in cross-functional discovery project teams in partnership with therapeutic area scientists to create impactful therapeutic candidates
• Foster a high-performance growth mindset culture of collaboration, engagement, self-accountability, and inclusion
• Advance existing capabilities and knowledge with innovative and impactful methods, platforms, and workflow improvements, and stay abreast of external advancements in relevant scientific fields
• Ideate and initiate new program concepts leading to pipeline programs in partnership with therapeutic area scientists
• Actively attract and develop talent, including strategically leveraging diversity to strengthen the team
• Manage priorities, resources, and investments aligned with the Discovery Biologics strategy
• Promote the external reputation of the company‚Äôs Discovery Biologics department

Qualifications

• Education: Ph.D. in biophysics, biochemistry, structural biology or related discipline with eight or more years of relevant experience

Required Experience And Skills

• Track record in leadership and managerial roles in biologics discovery
• Deep scientific knowledge of the workflows required for the discovery and progression of protein therapeutics to development
• State of the art knowledge and experience in antibody hit finding screening and characterization (biophysical, functional)
• Strong technical knowledge of immunization-based de novo antibody discovery platforms and strategies
• Strong technical knowledge of lab instrumentation to accelerate screening through miniaturization, homogeneous assays, and high content screening
• Prior direct management experience leading a team of scientists with a demonstrated passion for and track record of talent development of both people leaders and individual contributors
• Project leadership experience across Discovery stages from early discovery and screening phases through preclinical development of therapeutic candidates
• Track record of driving scientific and platform innovations
• Established external reputation through high-impact publications, presentations, and/or scientific community engagement in biologics screening and characterization
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities

Preferred Experience And Skills

• Experience in protein therapeutics beyond traditional mAbs including alternative non-Ig scaffolds, bi- or multi-specifics, fusion proteins, and ADCs
• Prior experience in due diligence and business development activities
• Experience in managing external collaborations
• Interest in establishing academic collaborations with a passion for publishing