Associate Director, Immunobiology Open Innovation

About the Role:

We are seeking a highly motivated and accomplished Associate Director with deep expertise in immunology and drug discovery to join the Immunobiology Open Innovation Team within the Immunology Research Unit. This role is based in our South San Francisco West Coast Hub and operates at the interface of scientific discovery, external innovation, portfolio strategy, and Research–Development integration.

The successful candidate will bring strong immunology fundamentals and drug discovery experience, along with sound scientific judgment and the ability to evaluate emerging biology and external opportunities. This role requires scientific depth, collaborative leadership, and comfort contributing across multiple programs, disease areas, and cross‑functional forums. You will work closely with internal research teams, development partners, Business Development, Corporate Strategy, Ventures, and external collaborators to help translate compelling biology into therapies for patients with immune‑mediated and inflammatory diseases.

This position is based in South San Francisco, CA and requires frequent onsite presence. Candidates must be within commuting distance or able to self‑relocate.

Scope & Impact

• Organizational Scope: Contributes at the interface of Research, Translational Science, Clinical Development, Business Development, Corporate Strategy, and External Innovation, with emphasis on scientific evaluation and cross‑functional collaboration.
• Impact: Helps shape target, program, and external innovation decisions by generating, integrating, and communicating robust mechanistic, translational, and disease‑relevant data packages.
• Decision‑Making & Autonomy: Exercises independent scientific judgment within defined program and portfolio priorities, providing recommendations that inform governance materials, prioritization discussions, and resource decisions.

Key Accountabilities

• Contribute to scientific leadership and external innovation by identifying, evaluating, and helping prioritize novel targets, pathways, biomarkers, technologies, and external opportunities relevant to immune‑mediated and inflammatory diseases.
• Partner with Business Development, Corporate Strategy, Ventures, and Search & Evaluation teams to assess the scientific merit of external assets, collaborations, platform technologies, and licensing opportunities.
• Support scientific due diligence through mechanistic evaluation, competitive landscape analysis, data and protocol review, translational assessment, and assessment of scientific fit.
• Help shape program and portfolio strategy by translating program‑specific learnings into broader research insights that inform Immunology Research Unit priorities.
• Guide experimental and translational strategy for in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo studies that elucidate mechanisms underlying inflammatory and autoimmune diseases and support decision‑making.
• Generate and integrate high‑quality, decision‑enabling data to inform target validation, lead optimization, biomarker strategy, translational planning, and program recommendations.
• Collaborate across Research and Development to support indication expansion, lifecycle planning, translational strategy, and continuity of scientific rationale from discovery through development.
• Synthesize and communicate complex scientific information with rigor, clarity, and strategic perspective for internal leadership, governance materials, external partners, and cross‑functional stakeholders.
• Represent the team externally with academic collaborators, external companies, and key opinion leaders, bringing scientific credibility and collaborative judgment.
• Mentor scientists and contribute to team culture by providing scientific coaching, feedback, and development support while modeling collaborative and inclusive leadership behaviors.

Required Qualifications:

• PhD in Immunology, Cellular and Molecular Biology, or a related field, with 8+ years of relevant industry or translational research experience in inflammatory and autoimmune disease drug discovery.
• Deep expertise in innate and adaptive immune biology, immune signaling, and translational immunology.
• Demonstrated ability to contribute to drug discovery strategy through rigorous evaluation of targets, mechanisms, external opportunities, and disease biology.
• Experience guiding experimental strategy across biochemical, cellular, tissue‑based, flow cytometry, functional genomics, ex vivo, and/or in vivo immunology approaches.
• Prior people leadership, direct line management, or significant matrix leadership experience, with demonstrated commitment to mentoring scientists and building collaborative teams.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and support decision‑making in a fast‑paced, matrixed environment.
• Excellent analytical skills and ability to independently evaluate complex scientific, translational, and competitive data.

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