Associate Director, Scientific Development

Work Schedule

Environmental Conditions

Job Description

Purpose:

The Associate Director, Scientific Development supports and leads assigned customer- and commercial-focused strategic development engagements that accelerate business growth, customer impact, and coordinated scientific solutioning. This role connects customer needs, commercial priorities, and Strategic Scientific Solutions (S3) scientific expertise to support therapeutic area prioritization, integrated product development planning, and effective engagement across internal and external stakeholders.

Essential Functions and Other Job Information:

Major Job Responsibilities

• Partner with Business Development, commercial teams, and S3 leadership to support identification, prioritization, and execution of early engagement opportunities aligned with customer needs and organizational objectives.

• Lead assigned customer- and commercial-partnered strategy workstreams across priority therapeutic areas, aligning customer priorities with S3 scientific capabilities.

• Serve as a liaison between customers, commercial teams, and S3 scientific experts to facilitate coordinated engagement strategies and consistent customer experiences.

• Develop and support integrated product development plans from preclinical development through post-approval for assigned client programs.

• Provide scientific, therapeutic area, project management, and resource coordination support for strategic customer interactions.

• Provide strategic input to internal and external clients regarding clinical, regulatory, biostatistical, and integrated product development strategy for assigned projects.

• Coordinate tactical execution activities in strategic relationships; identify opportunities, risks, and gaps in execution and escalate recommendations as appropriate.

• Support development of sponsor-specific relationship and communication charters for full asset development engagements.

• Support project budgeting, forecasting, resource planning, and scope-change discussions for assigned projects or workstreams.

• Support development and implementation of systems, tools, metrics, and process improvements that improve efficiency, cycle times, submission activities, and key performance indicators.

• Identify emerging customer needs and capability gaps and communicate insights to S3 and commercial leadership.

Job Knowledge

Seasoned scientific development professional with strong working knowledge of pharmaceutical/biotech product development, including clinical, regulatory, biostatistical, non-clinical, CMC, and commercial considerations. Applies technical and business knowledge to assigned client development programs and strategic customer engagements.

Job Complexity

Leads and coordinates complex assigned engagements or workstreams requiring integration of scientific strategy, commercial priorities, customer relationship management, program execution, and matrixed stakeholder alignment. Identifies risks and contributes to mitigation and contingency planning.

Supervision Received / Freedom to act

Works independently on assigned priorities with guidance from Director, Executive Director, or senior leadership on highly complex or high-impact matters. Exercises judgment in coordinating workstreams, recommending strategy, and representing S3 with internal and external stakeholders.

Interactions / Business Relationships

Regularly interacts with customer stakeholders, Business Development, commercial teams, therapeutic area experts, regulatory and clinical leaders, finance, project teams, and S3 leadership. Builds alignment across functions to support coordinated delivery and customer value.

Qualifications:

Education and Experience:

Advanced degree (PhD, MD, MS, MPH, PharmD) preferred. Typically requires 10+ years of pharmaceutical, biotech, CRO, or related industry experience, including experience with regulatory or therapeutic area strategy, and 5+ years of drug development experience spanning non-clinical, clinical, regulatory, or integrated product development strategy.

In some cases, an equivalency, consisting of a combination of appropriate education, training and/or directly related experience, will be considered sufficient for an individual to meet the requirements of the role.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Commercial acumen and understanding of customer engagement models in pharmaceutical, biotech, or CRO environments.

• Strong understanding of biologic/pharmaceutical product development from pre-IND through post-marketing.

• Ability to contribute to integrated development plans, clinical development plans, life cycle plans, and target product profiles.

• Experience supporting alliances, sponsor partnerships, complex projects, or portfolios.

• Strong communication, presentation, and influencing skills.

• Strong analytical, decision-making, and problem-solving capabilities.

• Ability to build cross-functional collaboration in matrix environments.

• Working knowledge of regulatory requirements, processes, and health authority interactions.

• Excellent organizational skills, professional conduct, attention to detail, and ability to manage multiple priorities.

• Willingness to operate hands-on and travel domestically and internationally as needed.

Policy and Strategy:

Contributes to strategy, frameworks, processes, and metrics for early engagement, strategic scientific solutioning, resource utilization, customer impact, and business growth. Provides recommendations to leadership based on customer needs, project learnings, and market opportunities.

Management Role:

Not a Mgt role.

Working Conditions and Environment:

Normal and routine office duties. Role may require collaboration across time zones and domestic and international travel for client, partner, regulatory, and internal business meetings.

Physical Requirements:

General office-based role requiring the ability to sit or stand for extended periods, use a computer and standard office equipment, communicate verbally and in writing, and travel domestically and internationally as needed.