Senior Director, Protein Sciences

Company Summary 

Ampersand Biomedicines is an innovative, privately held biotechnology company leading the way in developing programmed biologics that only act where they are needed in the body (www.Ampersand.bio).  Ampersand was founded in Flagship Pioneering’s venture creation engine, and recently announced progress on the platform, pipeline, partnerships and financing. With a strong emphasis on innovation, Ampersand cultivates a highly dynamic and entrepreneurial environment.  

Position Summary:

Ampersand is looking for an enthusiastic and motivational leader to head our Protein Sciences team. This individual will lead an established team of protein scientists responsible for the design and engineering of therapeutic biologics. This is an exciting opportunity to lead and grow the Protein Sciences team to your vision while strengthening Ampersand’s platform for designing biologics to support our mission. Level and title will be matched to the depth of experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Direct early-stage discovery biologics engineering programs that deploy the Ampersand technology platform.
• Guide project leads in the Protein Sciences team to design engineered proteins, monoclonal/bispecific antibodies and other biologics of interest to the company.
• Contribute scientific expertise to strategic decision making and technical innovation within the Protein Sciences group
• Drive program-specific protein development strategies while contributing to broader platform development and long-term protein sciences roadmap
• Successfully collaborate across the company to effectively achieve experimental and organizational goals and ensure protein production is aligned to needs of projects and other groups
• Identify and integrate state-of-the-art technologies to further enhance the capabilities and throughput of the Protein Sciences group
• Balance external (CRO) and internal resources to solve problems and drive progress
• Oversee biologics developability and collaborate on CMC efforts for advanced molecules
• Provide leadership and coordination to the team and provide direction for their career development
• Present results and conclusions to the team/ company and at conferences.
• Works closely with the Heads of Computational Biology and Discovery Biology in Boston, US in addition to antibody discovery leaders in Pilsen, CZ.
• Reports to the CSO, and will be a member of Scientific Leadership team

Required Qualifications

• PhD in biochemistry, molecular or structural biology, or related disciplines with at least 10 years post-PhD research experience, 5 of which in a biotech or large Pharma setting
• Have expertise and in-depth knowledge of antibody, bispecifics and Fc fusion design, expression and production, with a strong track record in advancing programs in an industry setting
• Have extensive hands-on industry expertise in biochemical, biophysical and structural characterization of antibody therapeutics in various formats
• Experience with managing antibody discovery and protein production at CROs
• Demonstrated experience leading, mentoring and building effective teams as an enthusiastic, resourceful, and effective people manager
• Have outstanding interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to work effortlessly and cross-functionally with multiple teams, academic collaborators and partners
• Highly motivated strong team player who enjoys working in a fast-paced, inclusive, ethical, team-oriented, multidisciplinary environment of a small biotech

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with antibody design and discovery: immunization and display based techniques
• Experience with driving biologics programs to development candidates and clinical trials; experience with conducting developability studies and CMC activities

What We Will Offer You:

• Comprehensive, competitive healthcare and dental coverage through Blue Cross Blue Shield, vision coverage through VSP, family leave, paid time off, 401k retirement plan, disability and life insurance, and fully covered parking/commuter benefits.
• A dynamic early-stage work environment and highly interdisciplinary, talented, and collaborative team.
• Participation in an unprecedented opportunity to significantly impact the quality of life of patients by developing a targeted approach to delivering therapeutic molecules.
• Professional growth opportunities through mentoring, training, immersion in cross-functional projects, and opportunities to learn and try new things.

About Flagship

Flagship Pioneering is a bioplatform innovation company that invents and builds platform companies, each with the potential for multiple products that transform human health or sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship has originated and fostered more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in more than $90 billion in aggregate value. Many of the companies Flagship has founded have addressed humanity’s most urgent challenges: vaccinating billions of people against COVID-19, curing intractable diseases, improving human health, preempting illness, and feeding the world by improving the resiliency and sustainability of agriculture. Flagship has been recognized twice on FORTUNE’s “Change the World” list, an annual ranking of companies that have made a positive social and environmental impact through activities that are part of their core business strategies and has been twice named to Fast Company’s annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Learn more about Flagship at www.flagshippioneering.com.

Flagship Pioneering is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Flagship Pioneering and its affiliated Flagship Lab companies (collectively, “FSP”) do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Flagship Pioneering’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.