Sr Director Search & Evaluation

The Search and Evaluation group is part of the Corporate Strategy Office and actively supports the global Business Development (BD) goals by sourcing and assessing external partnering opportunities that are aligned with Abbvie's R&D and BD Strategies. In this capacity Search & Evaluation interacts with biotech and biopharma companies, academic institutions, venture firms, and other stakeholders from the life sciences industry environment, for exploration of potential opportunities to collaborate, in-license, out-license, invest into- or acquire assets. The group is responsible for leading the global search efforts for assets of high strategic value across the entire spectrum, from early-stage Discovery alliances to the assessment of programs that are in late-stage development or already on the market. and the group is responsible for conducting all scientific/technical due diligence to ensure an in-depth understanding of the science behind each of the those opportunities. Immunology represents one of Abbvie's core therapeutic areas and a major revenue driver for the company, The Senior Director, Search & Evaluation Immunology will lead the S&E Immunology team that is responsible for executing against the BD Strategy for Immunology, and they will oversee all aspects of scientific/technical due diligence in this area. As part of this the Senior Director, Search & Evaluation Immunology, will be responsible for presenting assessments of individual partnering opportunities as well as related broader strategies to therapeutic area leadership as well as senior governance committees, for seeking approval to advance to term sheet stage, full due diligence, and contracting stage. This is a very attractive opportunity for an experienced biotech or pharmaceutical industry professional that enjoys a high energy, entrepreneurial environment, and a highly visible role that offers a chance to make significant contributions towards AbbVie's BD goals and to reinforcing Abbvie's role as a world-leading pharmaceutical drug developer in the Immunology space.

Key Responsibilities:

As the leader of the Immunology Search and Evaluation team, the successful candidate will be responsible for driving the overall strategies and tactics for identifying, assessing, and partnering assets for continued growth of AbbVie's Immunology business. While directly reporting to the Vice President, Search and Evaluation, the individual will have a strong working relationship with the Vice Presidents of Immunology Discovery and Clinical Development, as well as Heads of AbbVie's Ventures and Business Development groups. To effectively contribute to these activities, they will need to possess a deep scientific knowledge in the field of immunology. Since the individual will lead and mentor team members residing at multiple sites, they will also require experience in effectively prioritizing multiple opportunities and coordinating the workflow of a team. This person will also work to ensure internal and external communication of the external Immunology sourcing strategy, and will be expected to represent AbbVie as a spokesperson in external partnering and scientific conferences. They will build and leverage a network of connections in the academic, biotechnology, and pharma world to raise awareness of AbbVie's partnering objectives and capabilities. The person will work with key stakeholders and cross-functional teams to drive and ensure effective communication, efficient decision-making, and completion of transactions in a timely manner. They will be responsible for integrating input from various functional areas across the organization to create high quality, clear, and decision-enabling scientific assessments, due diligence reports and presentations with recommendations to AbbVie's Executive Management team.

Basic:

• PhD, M.D., or M.D./PhD in a related scientific field (e.g. biology, chemistry, pharmacology) required. Preferably academic degrees were obtained based on work carried out in areas related to Immunology. Advanced business degree or relevant related professional experience (e.g., strategic management consulting) is a plus
• 8+ years of relevant industry experience required
• Practical experience in the pharmaceutical or biotech industry of at least five years in at least one major area of drug development, such as Discovery, Preclinical Development, Clinical Development, or Regulatory Affairs. Must possess solid foundation of generally accepted BD practices, including term sheet and deal structures customary in the industry, valuation methods, forecasting, negotiation, and project management for BD.
• Demonstrated project management and leadership skills to lead/manage cross-functional teams in evaluating partnering opportunities and producing high quality assessments of scientific and therapeutic hypotheses, as well as preclinical and clinical data
• Ability to drive projects to deliver timely results and follow through on internal and external commitments
• Proven effective communication skills to clearly communicate business strategies and capabilities internally and externally, present individual and team assessments and recommendations, and foster cross-functional consensus-building
• Strong existing network and networking skills to reach out to a broad range of industry decision makers to keep abreast of emerging opportunities
• Demonstrated negotiation and influencing skills with diverse groups of stakeholders in a deal settings to creatively solve problems with internal and external stakeholders
• Strong business acumen and ability to drive well-informed, fact-based decision making

Key AbbVie Competencies:

• Builds strong relationships with peers cross functionally and with partners outside of the team to enable higher performance
• Learns fast, grasps the "essence" and can change the course quickly where indicated
• Raises the bar and is never satisfied with the status quo
• Creates a learning environment, open to suggestions and experimentation for improvement
• Embraces the ideas of others, nurtures innovation and manages to reality

The preferred base location will be in the Greater Boston Area however we will consider candidates who would be based in corporate HQ outside of Chicago