Associate Director - Preclinical Development, Immunology

Terray Therapeutics•Monrovia, CA

2d•$180,000 - $263,000•Onsite

About The Position

Terray Therapeutics is seeking a highly motivated, creative, and experienced immunologist to join our biology team. This is a strategic role working closely with the CSO and other leads in the preclinical team and across the company to support our small-molecule pipeline. In this role, the Associate Director will lead the team responsible for all cell-based assay development and execution, including hit validation, structure-activity relationships, and lead optimization. The candidate will provide immunology expertise to evaluate new targets and expand our internal pipeline programs. They will be a pivotal collaborator within a multidisciplinary team. The successful candidate will have a strong background in assay development for inflammation targets in the context of small molecule drug discovery. This role will be full-time, onsite, and will report to the CSO. Part of Terray’s success is nurtured by a hands-on work environment where everyone is accountable, vested in a vision of excellence, and actively taking part in the success of the business. Terray supports a positive work environment where employees can feel engaged, recognized, and empowered to be creative. They will exhibit the ability to work well under pressure to provide results in a short timeframe. The company is looking for a highly responsive, goal-oriented individual who will bring significant energy and drive to solve complex technical problems and help us achieve our mission to advance human health.

Requirements

PhD in the small-moleculefield of immunology with 10+ years of small-molecule drug discovery industry experience
Deep expertise in immunology, with a strong understanding of immune signaling pathways, disease mechanisms, and immune modulation strategies
Extensive experience with small-molecule drug development from target validation through lead optimization
Expertise in evaluating novel targets for drug development, including developing a robust screening approach and desired target product profile
Strong leadership and mentorship skills with demonstrated experience managing a small team of highly motivated scientists
Demonstrated ability to collaborate in a multidisciplinary team and drive program progress; comfortable working on multiple projects in parallel and operating within a matrixed structure
Hands-on experience in developing and optimizing a range on immunological assays (Flow cytometry, cytokine profiling, ELISA, Luminescence/fluorescence-based, Western blot, immunoprecipitation, etc.) and measuring small molecule inhibition (IC50) is required
Demonstrated technical proficiency, attention to detail, ability to troubleshoot and solve problems, and to deliver high-quality data
Excellent organizational, interpersonal, and communication skills,s and can thrive in a highly collaborative research environment

Nice To Haves

Hands-on experience with lab automation, high-throughput screening (384-well format), or liquid handling systems is preferred

Responsibilities

Lead a small, highly motivated team of assay scientists who develop and run cell assays in support of internal and partner pipeline programs
Work closely with scientists across the company in biology, chemistry, platform, screening, data, and computational teams to efficiently advance projects from hit validation through hit-to-lead and lead optimization to lead candidate selection
Develop cell-based assay funnels to support structure-activity optimization for our inflammation target portfolio as programs progress to hit-to-lead and lead optimization
Expert understanding of inflammatory pathways as they relate to the target and disease mechanism
Analyze and interpret experimental data and communicate results in project team meetings