Associate Director - Rare Disease Research

About the Department
Our Research & Development organization brings together the best minds in life science innovation. The teams located in facilities in Lexington, Watertown, Cambridge and Seattle reflect the full R&D continuum, from early research through late-stage clinical development. Here, we are building for the future, creating a distinct R&D community based on collaboration, partnerships, and cutting-edge research across multiple modalities and therapeutic areas. We recognize that improving human health starts here and that patients rely on us. Our R&D hub merges biotech speed and agility with large pharmaceutical company quality, resources, and stability, uniting the best of both worlds to develop new medicines for patients.
The Position
This position is a fundamental part of the Global Drug Discovery (GDD) strategy ensuring seamless collaborations across the different R&ED departments. The Associate Director Rare Disease Research (RDR) will be responsible for overseeing the development and execution of research strategies, managing a team of scientists, and contributing to the advancement of our rare disease portfolio. This role requires a strong background in hematology or rare disease, excellent leadership skills, and a passion for making a meaningful impact in the lives of patients with rare diseases.
Relationships
Reports to the Executive Director Translational Medicine.
Internal relationships include working closely with technical staff and other members of the scientific team; regular collaborations with the Rare Disease Research team in DK and GDD; Frequent interaction with project managers and GRT colleagues.
Additionally, this position will work with external partners and represent Novo Nordisk at scientific meetings and contribute scientific expertise as needed to other biology and technology teams to ensure support of the Global Drug Discovery (GDD) pipeline and late-stage projects.
Essential Functions

• Lead and manage a team of scientists and research associates focused on drug discovery projects in hemoglobinopathies and other rare blood disorders
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and scientific excellence within the rare disease research team
• Accountable for creating a diverse and inclusive team integrated into the Rare Disease Research global team and the GDD organization
• Provide subject matter expert guidance to support portfolio development in hemoglobinopathies, including identification, evaluation, and championing of new targets or assets. Acts as pre-PM in some cases
• Provide scientific expertise and guidance to support the design and execution of experiments, data analysis, and interpretation of results
• Work cross-functionally to drive the advancement of the hemoglobinopathy programs from early discovery through candidate selection and beyond
• Able to translate a portfolio question into a project with key deliverables with associated risks and mitigations
• Develop and implement new technologies to evaluate red blood cell functionality applicable to drug discovery projects in rare blood disorders
• Stay abreast of the latest scientific advancements and emerging trends in research to inform and shape the Rare disease research strategy
• Contribute to the preparation of scientific publications, and presentations related to rare disease research
• Coordinate the scientific activities in hemoglobinopathy-related clinical programs contributing to regulatory documents and scientific material for internal and external presentations, lead external preclinical collaborations and work closely with non-clinical safety, M&S and Precision Medicine (scientific coordinator)
• Identify, evaluate, assess, and manage external providers supporting specific projects, transferring know-how and materials including tracking strategies to ensure consistency of delivery, vetting results, and managing resource. Excellent communication skills with providers to ensure clarity of purpose and deliverables
• Display strong communication skills in disagreements based on valid arguments and facts; considered a strong negotiator both internally and externally

Physical Requirements
0-10% overnight travel required. Infrequent travel to DK/Europe.
Development Of People
Supervisory. Ensure that reporting personnel have individual development plans (IDP), with annual goals and measurements that are consistent with the priorities of the business, and that interim reviews are held so that their work is focused on those priorities, and they understand their level of accountability for results and the measurement process.Ensure that the IDP forms include completed learning and aspiration plans and are in place for all reporting personnel to enable the achievement of goals and capability to assume increased levels of responsibility. Manage the application and communication of all Novo Nordisk policies, procedures, and Novo Nordisk Way.
Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required. PhD preferred. Degree within Life Sciences with a research focus in biology, pharmacology, physiology or related scientific degree is required
• 10+ years of relevant experience or equivalent;
• Relevant required experience:
  • Outstanding knowledge of hematology, hematopoiesis or hemato-oncology with a track record of publications in the field
  • Previous experience in biopharmaceutical industry and significant contribution to drug discovery programs
  • Experienced and strongly knowledgeable in a wide-range of technical methods such as flow cytometry, antibody-based assays, primary cell culture
  • Knowledge and experience in developing, troubleshooting, and working with human samples and primary cells in in vitro methods and model development.
  • Previous experience in supervising others
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills, including fluency in spoken and written English
• Preferred experience:
  • Demonstrates a high degree of innovative and conceptual thinking within a discipline or field of expertise
  • Strong capability to learn and implement the business strategy
  • Excellent in establishing trustful relationships, and cross-cultural understanding
  • Flexibility and the ability to work in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment are required
  • Excellent collaboration skills. A strong team player that brings people along through a supportive, engaged and creative way of working

We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.
At Novo Nordisk we recognize that it is no longer good enough to aspire to be the best company in the world. We need to aspire to be the best company for the world and we know that this is only possible with talented employees with diverse perspectives, backgrounds and cultures. We are therefore committed to creating an inclusive culture that celebrates the diversity of our employees, the patients we serve and communities we operate in. Together, we're life changing.
Novo Nordisk is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by local, state or federal laws, rules or regulations.
If you are interested in applying to Novo Nordisk and need special assistance or an accommodation to apply, please call us at 1-855-411-5290. This contact is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.