Vice President, Head of Experimental Medicine, Neuroscience

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Pharmaceuticals -- Research & Development

At Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical R&D, we are committed to translating breakthrough science into medicines that make a difference in the lives of patients, their families, their communities, and the health care ecosystem.

We are constantly working to maximize our internal scientific excellence and seek to partner with the best external science available globally. Through this approach, we have become the industry leader in productivity, FDA approvals and breakthrough designations, with 13 new products since 2011 and most NME approvals 2011-2016. We are also one of the fastest growing and most admired pharmaceutical companies.

We have a strong and ever-evolving discovery organization with labs around the world including in Spring House, PA, Beerse, Belgium, Leiden, The Netherlands, Beijing and Shanghai, China, La Jolla and Cambridge, MA. More than 15 new compounds are typically advanced per year into development. We also have one of the very strongest development organizations in the world, committed to working with regulators to progress meaningful medicines, evolving endpoints as needed, using modern and innovative approaches to clinical operations and trial design. We remain committed to our products after they enter the marketplace, continue to support their evolution within the approved indications and explore their value and suitability in new indications.

ROLEOVERVIEW:

Johnson & Johnson is recruiting for a Vice President, Head of Experimental Medicine, Neuroscience to be based at one of our sites in Titusville, NJ; Cambridge, MA; Spring House, PA; La Jolla, CA.

The Vice President, Head of Experimental Medicine, Neuroscience (NS) TA, reports to the Global Head of Clinical Development, NS and is accountable for strategic leadership and oversight of translational medicine (including experimental science), and all clinical development activities from LO to end of Phase 2a.

The Head of Experimental Medicine will lead a team of talented and experienced MD/PhD clinicians and scientists focused on disease understanding and experimental medicine encompassing all disease areas within the current remit of the TA (Neuropsychiatry, Neurodegeneration, Ophthalmology). In addition, this position will be responsible for the early development portfolio across Neuroscience and provide line management for CDTL's leading early development programs. A key operating principle for this team within the Neuroscience Therapeutic Area is to enable a culture of integrated Discovery and Development. Excellence in experimental medicine-based early human studies that confirm mechanism of action, pharmacology and initial assessments of efficacy is viewed as essential to this organization.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Collaborates with the Neuroscience TA leadership to develop comprehensive clinical and scientific de-risking strategies for the drug candidate(s) to move quickly into the late stage of clinical development.
• Works with the DAS Heads and NS functional leads to define the clinical translational strategy and delivery plan well in advance of IND submission to ensure program readiness and success.
• Partners closely with the Precision Measures organization (particularly the Strategy Implementation Leader and Translational Program leader) to develop and drive experimental science in support of TA strategy.

• Drives the development and implementation of compound early phase/translational medicine strategy, including defining and communicating key strategic questions and recommendations regarding study design, patient selection and precision approaches, endpoints (including novel endpoints), safety evaluation, dose, pharmacology, and PD biomarkers through the early Compound Development Teams (CDTs).

• Ensures early phase CDTs work closely with discovery, biomarkers, data science and translation teams to align preclinical and clinical biomarker strategies, including the identification and validation of novel endpoints (e.g., biomarkers, intermediate clinical endpoints, digital COAs) to support patient stratification and rapid decision making.
• Provides clinical and scientific input into the overarching Translational and Precision Medicine Strategy for assets and disease areas in the NS (TA), leads clinical translational forum activities and represents neuroscience on the First in Human Committee

• As a member of the Development Leadership Team, actively contributes to the governance and strategy of the TA, including programs, people, and budget.

• Provide leadership to Early Development group; ensuring resources, personnel, and expertise are appropriately prioritized and deployed.

• Provides technical and strategic expertise to ensure ED plans and studies are conceived and executed with a focus on quality, speed, and cost-effectiveness.

• Ensures appropriate data interpretation, reporting and incorporation into the clinical sections of key documents, including regulatory documents (e.g., IND) and Investigator Brochures

• Manages and develop staff to optimize performance: sets performance goals and monitor results and provides timely performance feedback.

• Contribute to clinical SOP development, adoption, adherence, and improvement.

• Review and approve abstracts, posters, and presentations for scientific meetings and manuscripts for publication.

• Develop relationships with key stakeholders externally and with internal leaders and other departments to help shape and define future directions and projects.
Contribute to due diligence and evaluation of new assets for development directly or through appropriate delegation.

• Creates a purpose driven culture in which decisions and actions are strategically informed by patient, customer and employee needs by aligning Johnson & Johnson's Credo and Leadership Imperatives with the strategies and goals of the team and enterprise.
• Manages multiple cross functional early phase Compound Development Team Leaders (usually at the Senior Director level), and senior individual contributors (MD Clinical Leads and Study Responsible Physicians).
• This position will typically have 4-6 direct reports

Qualifications

• MD or preferably MD/PhD, specialization in an area relevant to Neuroscience is a plus

• At least 15 years of professional experience with a minimum of 10 years in pharmaceutical R&D

• Experience of phase 0-2a study design, execution and interpretation including translational/experimental medicine studies.

• Experience of discovery research, clinical pharmacology and biomarker (wet/digital/imaging) development is a plus

• Needs to be a strategic thinker

• Experience in a leadership role within a global multi-functional R&D matrix organization; strong track record of producing results in a matrix-based environment.

Required Technical Knowledge and Skills:

• Fluent in written and spoken English
• Working knowledge of the use of Microsoft suite of software products including Excel and Word
• Experience and knowledge of Good Clinical Practices and regulatory requirements for the conduct of clinical trials and for the appropriate contributions to regulatory filings

The anticipated base pay range for this position is $253,000 to $465,750 USD.

The compensation and benefits information set forth in this posting applies to candidates hired in the United States. Candidates hired outside the United States will be eligible for compensation and benefits in accordance with their local market.

Employees may be eligible to participate in Company employee benefit programs such as health insurance, savings plan, pension plan, disability plan, long term incentives, vacation pay, sick time, holiday pay, and work, personal and family time off in accordance with the terms of the applicable plans. Additional information can be found through the link below. For additional general information on Company benefits, please go to: - https://www.careers.jnj.com/employee-benefits.

Johnson & Johnson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against based on disability. For more information on how we support the whole health of our employees throughout their wellness, career and life journey, please visit www.careers.jnj.com.