Jobs at Alltrna

Alltrna is seeking a talented and highly motivated VP. Director Program Management and Business Operations, reporting to the President & CFO. The successful candidate is a proven leader with extensive experience in leading research and early drug development program teams from research through the clinic with a particular initial focus on IND enabling and early/mid-stage clinical development. The candidate will be a member of the Company’s Leadership Team and will serve as Chief of Staff to the team to drive collaboration, cross-functional clarity, alignment and execution on key priorities and initiatives required to meet the goals of the organization.

Program Management:

• Work closely with the Chief Medical Officer to lead the program team for the Company's lead program, AP003, and future programs instilling a culture of scientific rigor, open debate, collaborative teamwork, sense of urgency and accountability
• Possess a comprehensive understanding of the drug discovery process to guide program teams to define the key scientific questions, program strategy and objectives, translating these into optimal deliverables, cross-functional plans, timelines and budgets
• Identify bottlenecks, risks, issues and proactively develop appropriate mitigation proposals with input from team members
• Ensure all key decisions are identified and properly assessed as to their impact and alternative scenarios developed and evaluated, where appropriate
• Work closely with finance and functional teams to develop the operational plans to support program activities with realistic timelines, budget, and resource planning and monitor performance against plans
• Interface with and drive collaboration between the various functional teams and with the Leadership Team on program-related matters
• Be the key accountable person for communicating matters related to the programs to management including strategy, work product, updates and issues; producing the one "source of truth" for program-related topics and timelines
• Point person for alliance management and coordination, as needed
• Lead and/or manage strategic or platform development projects as required and collaborate with Chief Scientific Officer and Research Leadership Team to coordinate relevant content for quarterly business review meetings

Operations:

• Collaborate with Leadership Team in development of strategic plans, company goals, long-range planning assumptions, portfolio-level reports and analyses to support business processes and strategic discussions
• Develop and deliver impactful presentations that effectively distill complex issues to the critical points and lead to increased understanding and optimized strategic planning & decision-making
• Prepare strategic communications utilizing a clear understanding of the business strategy and issues; develop and maintain consistent, relevant content for use in executive-level communications and to further organizational and business goals
• Lead the Scientific Communications process, working with the Scientific Communications Committee
• Manage schedule, agenda, and content for Leadership Team, Board of Directors and Town Hall meetings
• Proactively seek opportunities for organizational improvements (e.g. team structure, processes, communication, etc.)

Other:

• Support CEO / LT with partnership discussions and negotiations, including background research, preparation of presentation materials, supporting diligence activities, participating in analysis of terms, etc.
• Assist in mapping competitive landscape and proactively identify potential and emerging competitive threats and opportunities
• Promote strategic discussions on external trends, competitor strategies, and potential disruptors, and translate these into strategic choices/recommendations
• Collect insights and intelligence from a variety of sources including literature searches, reviewing analyst research, KOL and patient group interactions, etc.

Key Competencies:

• This is a highly visible leadership role that requires exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, creative thinking, and early drug development experience that allows one to recognize opportunities/challenges and modify strategy accordingly
• The individual will need to have self-confidence and poise to manage complicated programs and projects with multiple stakeholders
• The individual will need a sense of urgency and can-do attitude to develop therapies for patients with significant unmet medical needs

Minimum Qualifications:

• BS/MS Degree in a scientific discipline, ideally life science or chemistry.
• At least 15 years relevant experience in pharma or biotech drug discovery and development, as well as a comprehensive understanding of drug discovery (preclinical and clinical).
• 10+ years of Program Management experience, preferably in early-stage drug discovery and development.
• Experience in the development of advanced therapies to treat rare genetic disease is a plus
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional teams; strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Scientific curiosity and passion for discovering new, innovative medicines.
• Openness to embrace new technologies and digital approaches in drug discovery
• Proven track record in driving successful, collaborative drug discovery teams.