We are recruiting for an Associate Scientific Director to lead the molecular property analytics team within Drug Discovery Data Sciences. This position can be located in Beerse, Belgium or in one of our US-based R&D sites: La Jolla, CA (San Diego area), Spring House, PA (Philadelphia area)
At the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, what matters most is helping people live in health. We focus on treating, curing and preventing some of the most devastating and complex diseases of our time. And we pursue the most promising science, wherever it might be found.
We discover and develop innovative medical solutions to address unmet medical needs in oncology, immunology, neuroscience, infectious diseases and vaccines, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension. Please visit http://www.janssenrnd.com for more information. Within Janssen R&D, the Therapeutics Discovery organisation is continuing to build the key scientific expertise to bring ground-breaking new medicines to patients; we invest in medicinal chemistry, screening and pharmacology, and in the computational and data science fields that inspire and inform them.
Many aspects of the drug discovery process are being partially virtualized: modelling methodologies assess existing or virtual molecules for relevant properties and sample new ones, focusing experimental bandwidth to make and test compounds towards the chemistry that holds the most promise.
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The leader we are looking for will inspire and coach an international team of at least five PhD level data scientists, guiding and complementing the team members to invent, internalize and apply creative yet scientifically sound data science solutions to virtually assess compounds in the broadest possible sense. The position’s scope includes methodological innovation as well as crafting data generation, acquisition, and alliance strategies.
The successful candidate will shape cohesive research plans in close interaction with leadership, the leads of sister data science teams, computational and medicinal chemists, project biologists, toxicology and pharmacokinetics and IT colleagues. In the next stage, this leader will coordinate the realization of the plans and, with practical recommendations help translate science and technology to better and safer drug candidates.
Key responsibilities include:
- Manage the activities of the molecule property analytics team across different therapeutic areas and projects, and the capabilities build-up
- Drives a culture of innovation, attracts talent and grows industry-leading expertise
- Fosters a team environment built on trust and collegiality
- Communicates effectively and is driven to develop the abilities of others to do so too
- Evaluates and makes recommendations regards the acquisition or building of new technologies (including performing due diligence on potential partnering and M&A opportunities)
- Scientific leadership and impact, within the company and beyond
- Encourages the team to publish and peer-reviewed journals and present at scientific meetings
Qualifications
Key requirements:
- PhD in data science with deep and frequent exposure to discovery-relevant field, or a PhD in a discovery-relevant field with Master level training in data science or a related field and deep and frequent exposure to advanced frameworks and solutions– or an equivalent trajectory
- Multiple years of experience with working in (different) multidisciplinary teams, preferable in an industrial or semi-industrial setting, some of which in leadership and/or mentorship settings
- Self-motivated, proactive and enthusiastic team and bridge builder
- Encourages confidence and dedication
- Passion for and track record of planning and delivering on complex projects with a robust scientific footing
- Deep and frequent exposure to advanced machine learning frameworks and solutions
