Director, Drug Safety Evaluation Job in Cambridge 02139, Massachusetts US
Drug Safety Evaluation is a global function responsible for the design and conduct of preclinical safety programs for the comprehensive safety assessment of Vertex therapies at all stages of discovery and development. Vertex Pharmaceuticals uses cutting edge science and technologies to perform robust assessments of novel therapies for the treatment of the most serious diseases with unmet medical need. Our culture enables individual empowerment where 'We Wins' 'Fearless Pursuit of Excellence' and 'Innovation' are more than just corporate values: They are part of our everyday lives.
DSE members have significant roles in the drug development process beginning in the early Drug Discovery phases and continuing through the entire drug development value chain resulting in registration and marketing. The Director, Discovery Toxicology, will design and lead the strategies for Discovery Toxicology at Vertex including oversight of staff at the Cambridge site as well as at remote sites in the US, Canada, and the UK.
Key Responsibilities
- Establish a culture of ownership and deep scientific involvement with discovery and development teams
- Develop a strategic vision for the role of multisite Discovery Toxicology within Vertex and implement this vision with selective use of new and established technologies to deliver efficient de-risking and investigational endpoints for current therapeutic leads.
- Advise, strategically plan, and manage discovery toxicology programs from candidate selection through IND submission.
- Enable discovery toxicology across all sites and enhance collaborations with discovery scientists, including benchmarking and implementation of state of the art in silico, in vitro and in vivo technologies critical for selection and optimization of Vertex compounds for further development.
- Build strong cross-site collaborations between site discovery scientists with discovery toxicology and Drug Safety Evaluation scientists.
- Efficiently manage in silico, in vitro and in vivo procedures to most effectively guide Discovery project teams in addressing safety liabilities so as to maximize developmental success of Vertex compounds.
- Perform early safety assessments of Vertex discovery compounds in order to identify potential developmental challenges and strategies to address these.
- Communicate unambiguous critical and significant project information to various bodies including project teams and Vertex leadership as required.
- Mentor colleagues and design well defined development plans for members of the Discovery Toxicology group.
- Build strong scientific collaborations with external groups within both the academic and industrial sectors with the intent of enhancing Vertex's discovery toxicology capabilities.
- Collaborate on design of investigative toxicology studies in support of development compounds.
Minimum Qualifications
- Ph.D. in Toxicology or, Pathology or related field of experience
- DABT or ACVP Board certification required.
- Ten plus years experience in the Pharmaceutical Industry with proven abilities in leading a team of scientists within the Discovery Toxicology/Investigative Toxicology arena for predictive safety assessments.
- Proven supervisory experience as well as the ability to attract, develop, and manage top-tier talent.
- Proven ability to creatively seek resolutions to issues of predictive toxicology.
- Strong problem solver who is highly organized with the ability to thrive and to lead in an environment with rapidly changing priorities.
- Strong interpersonal skills with an ability to develop solid, long term relationships and the ability to influence others.
- Experience in the use of Stem Cells for predictive safety assessments preferred but not required.
- Working knowledge of drug development principles.
Vertex creates new possibilities in medicine. Our team discovers, develops and commercializes innovative therapies so people with serious diseases can lead better lives. Vertex scientists and our collaborators are working on new medicines to cure or significantly advance the treatment of hepatitis C, cystic fibrosis, epilepsy and other life-threatening diseases. Founded more than 20 years ago in Cambridge, MA, we now have ongoing worldwide research programs and sites in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. Vertex has consistently been recognized as one of the industry's top workplaces by leading publications such as Science Magazine, The Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal, San Diego Business Journal and The Scientist, and most recently was named the top employer in Science magazine's 2011 annual survey.
VERTEX is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, sex, national origin, color, religion, age, disability, veteran status or any other status protected by applicable law.
