Executive/Senior Director, Immunology

Cygnal, a new biology platform company, was founded by Flagship Pioneering to pioneer the field of exoneural biology – the impact of the peripheral nervous system on cancer, the immune system, metabolism, and regeneration. The company is applying cutting-edge neuroscience to elucidate novel therapies to treat cancer progression and metastasis, autoimmune conditions, inflammation, and other diseases.

Flagship Pioneering conceives, creates, resources, and develops first-in-category life sciences companies to transform human health and sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, the firm has applied a unique hypothesis-driven innovation process to originate and foster more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in over $30 billion in aggregate value. To date, Flagship is backed by >$3 billion of aggregate capital commitments, of which over $1.4 billion has been deployed toward the founding and growth of its pioneering companies alongside >$10 billion of follow-on investments from other institutions. The current Flagship ecosystem includes Denali Therapeutics (NASDAQ: DNLI), Evelo Biosciences (NASDAQ: EVLO), Moderna Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MRNA), Rubius Therapeutics (NASDAQ: RUBY), Seres Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MCRB), and Syros Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SYRS).

The Position

Cygnal Therapeutics is seeking a highly motivated and seasoned immunologist with experience in gastrointestinal immunology and/or immune-oncology to lead our expanding efforts in discovering novel therapies targeting the neuronal-immune interface. The successful candidate will report to the SVP of biology and be a self-starter who thrives in a highly collaborative and fast paced environment. The successful candidate will be a highly credible thought partner with senior stakeholders because this will be a high visibility role, both internally and externally.

 

Key Responsibilities

• Define our approach to apply Cygnal’s exoneural medicine platform to study the pathogenic role of PNS-immune interactions in cancer, GI and inflammatory diseases
• Oversee a growing team of immunologists to interrogate the PNS-immune interactions for the discovery of novel therapeutics, including novel screening approaches to drive target ID and validation, as well as in vitro and in vivo assay systems to establish disease link for innovative therapeutic concepts.
• Lead and mentor a team of direct reports and work closely and collaboratively in a multi-disciplinary team of biologists, medicinal chemists, bioinformaticians, pharmacologists.
• Identify strategic external academic, industry partners and CROs to advance Cygnal’s mission.
• Prioritize activities and resources at external partners to ensure timeline adherence and project alignment with company goals.
• Proactively identify sources of inefficiency and propose novel technologies and collaborations.

Minimum Qualifications

• D. and/or MD in a relevant scientific field
• 10+ years post-graduate preclinical and/or clinical immunology research experience in the context of cancer and mucosal immunology.
• Proven ability to manage timelines and resources to drive projects toward key decision points
• Experience with multiple discovery programs in parallel
• Open-minded, curious, candid, trust-oriented and collaborative leadership style
• Track record of excellence supported by high impact, peer-reviewed publications and patents in the field of mucosal immunology and immuno-oncology.
• Keen attention to detail, a strong sense of urgency and ability to work in a multi-disciplinary and team-focused environment
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, capable of conveying technical information and strategy in a clear and thorough manner

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior scientific expertise in areas of human immunology, GI motility, gut inflammation and ENS biology is highly desired.
• Drug discovery or clinical translation experience in the field of mucosal immunology and immuno-oncology is highly desirable

Recruiting and Staffing Agencies:

Flagship Pioneering and its affiliated Flagship Lab companies (collectively, “FSP”) do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Flagship Pioneering’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

Contact Information

To learn more about this exciting career opportunity please submit your resume and cover letter to Info@cygnaltx.com.