Senior Director Inflammatory Disease Drug Discovery

Senior Director Inflammatory Disease Drug Discovery

Requirements

• PhD degree in Immunology or a closely related discipline with 15+ years of drug development experience in highly competitive biopharmaceutical companies
• Expert scientific knowledge in autoimmune disease research with experience in B cell biology such as B cell development, differentiation, activation and/or T-cell licensing and their role in autoimmune disease pathogenesis
• Highly experienced in exploratory drug development with proven biopharmaceutical industry experience leading innovative therapeutic programs and expertise in small molecule and/or biologics drug development
• 9 years of direct line management and cross-functional project leadership experience required (10 plus preferred)
• 9 years of industry experience required (10 plus preferred)
• Highly knowledgeable and experienced in all aspects of Inflammation Disease drug discovery through to candidate selection/IND, including contributing to regulatory documentation
• Shows cross-cultural understanding to utilize diverse talents and has demonstrated ability to manage matrix teams to maximize organizational productivity
• Has strong leadership skills and acumen
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
• Capable of leading a matrixed team comprised of scientists from within Takeda as well as external collaborators
• Significant experience in participation in BD diligence activities in the preclinical discovery function

Responsibilities

• Develop industry-leading therapeutics for patients with autoimmune inflammatory diseases by building and leading a large research group focused on drug development from target identification through to candidate selection
• Recruit, retain, and develop a large team of world class, highly innovative in vitro and in vivo research biologists
• Be a scientific research thought leader within the Drug Discovery Unit (DDU)
• Set the discovery portfolio goals for high priority autoimmune diseases and ensure alignment with key stakeholders
• Define the preclinical elements of multiple drug discovery programs in partnership with other research leaders
• Interface with the business development group to identify strategically important innovative external opportunities
• Help maintain the Takeda culture that promotes creativity, open communication, collaboration, collegiality, and a high sense of urgency
• Lead a team of researchers in early target discovery through candidate selection
• Partner with the therapeutic area Translational team in the development and delivery of robust early development plans
• Partner with the Center for External Innovation at Takeda for the identification and assessment of external platform and pipeline opportunities
• Represent Takeda and foster a presence in the global inflammation and immunology scientific community through scientific meetings
• Ensure and encourage diversity and support individual colleagues and their reports in career development
• Provide nuanced and well-informed advice to senior stakeholders about the GI and Inflammation therapeutic landscape
• Apply in-depth understanding of mechanism driving disease progression and current therapeutic approaches to develop novel therapeutic strategies
• Investigate the underlying mechanisms of autoimmune diseases and the molecular and cellular processes that lead to autoimmunity
• Lead innovative therapeutic programs, including the development of small molecules and biologics
• Identify and validate mechanistically relevant translational biomarkers for autoimmune diseases
• Translate target-specific scientific findings into clinical applications
• Contribute to regulatory documentation for inflammation disease drug discovery through to candidate selection/IND
• Lead a matrixed team comprised of scientists from within Takeda as well as external collaborators
• Participate in BD diligence activities in the preclinical discovery function

Preferred Qualifications

• 10 plus years of direct line management and cross-functional project leadership experience preferred
• 10 plus years of industry experience preferred