Director of IO Research

Translation Research: Director of IO Research

D08

Lawrenceville (Princeton), NJ

Bristol-Myers Squibb R&D is a science-driven, organization determined to discover, develop and deliver medicines that have the potential to transform the lives of patients and establish new standards of care in areas of high unmet need. Patients' unmet medical needs and scientific discovery are our driving force. The Princeton, NJ Translational Research team is positioned in the heart of a vibrant ecosystem of world-class science, innovation and business opportunities. Our scientists will focus on novel targets and pathways for tumors that are refractory to current Immuno-Oncology therapies. The broader TR team also focuses heavily on Immunology targets, and the successful candidate's expertise may also be leveraged in this area.

Role / Responsibilities

We are seeking a scientific leader with broad expertise in immuno-oncology and emerging enabling technologies to join our Translational Research group and lead a group of several PhDs and associates in evaluating the translatability of targeted antibodies, peptides, small molecules and other platforms to clinical trial readiness, patient stratification hypotheses, IO-IO and IO-chemo combination strategies etc. The qualified candidate is a highly motivated, interactive, and creative individual that possesses the ability to work across a highly matrixed environment to advance the translational research efforts. The candidate will play a key role in integrating the relevant translational medicine interdisciplinary teams comprising research biology, bioinformatics, histopathology and genomics, to address the probability of technical success of IO agents or combinations and demonstration of efficacy signal in patients. The candidate will also have a pivotal role in strategic decision-making to ensure maximal alignment across the organization from discovery oncology programs through to clinical trial design. To be at the forefront of elucidating and overcoming resistance to IO therapies, should encourage scientists who are passionate problem solvers and thrive on a challenge that is clinically-vital to consider this opportunity. Incumbent will be required to collaborate across teams within Translational Medicine and Discovery across our R&D sites in Cambridge and Redwood City that may involve occasional travel to these sites.

Qualifications

• MD, PhD or MD/PhD in Immunology, or Cancer Biology, or equivalent advanced biology degree. Specific experience in immuno-oncology research is preferred.
• Experienced scientist with 10+ years' of post-graduate research experience, with a minimum of 5 years in a translational setting
• Minimum 5+ years' recent experience in leading scientific teams in an academic or industry setting
• Ideally candidate will have in-depth knowledge / understanding of various mechanisms of therapeutic response and resistance to IO utilizing a diverse set of technologies and platforms to evaluate and identify novel mechanisms of resistance
• Driven correlative clinical association studies to better characterize the molecular underpinnings of therapeutic resistance in IO patient cohorts and correlation with clinical outcome
• A track record of independent critical thinking and scientific achievement demonstrated by first authorship in recent high impact publications
• Exposure to cancer immunotherapy including immune-checkpoint blockade with knowledge of current therapeutic landscape is required
• Diverse technological expertise in genomics, patient-derived models, immunology and histopathology techniques and platforms are vital for success
• Experience in balanced experimental design, data visualization and statistical analysis are required
• Prior role in multidisciplinary projects and teams with ability to integrate cross-functional information required
• Experience with managing CRO relationships and collaborating with KOL's would be advantageous
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to communicate, both written and oral effectively and efficiently within the BMS organization and with external partners/collaborators
• Candidate has an established network of collaborators in academia, biotech and/or pharma.
• Strategic thinker who is able to articulate vision in a rapidly changing environment and in concert with enterprise strategy. Demonstrate strong business acumen and problem solving skills; able to flex well between enterprise and functional orientation and accordingly manage complexity.
• Ability to work effectively in a matrix environment that includes interactions with multiple stakeholder groups; particularly demonstrated ability to work across the critical interfaces whether within RD or across the enterprise. Able to cut across silos/straddle boundaries.
• Thrives in fast-paced, dynamic work environment, bringing a pro-active mentality to the role. Willingness to take educated risks in moving the business needs forward by challenging the status quo and exploring innovating and relevant ways to drive results. Demonstrates agility, courage and persistence to flex with the evolving business needs.
• Proven leadership experience and success with building and developing teams. Ability to attract and retain top talent. Committed to talent development. Inspirational and embodies BMS Behaviors. Leads by example. Is an inclusive leader.

We follow the science and we'll continue to invest in translational medicine research, deepen our understanding of disease biology and uncover insights about predictive biomarkers with the ultimate goal of making precision medicine a reality for more patients.