Executive Director, Materials and Biophysical Characterization

MSD • Rahway, NJ

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Executive Director of Materials and Biophysical Characterization plays a critical role in advancing our company's mission. This leader is responsible for providing strategic and technical leadership for materials characterization methodologies, phase screening platforms, and biophysical characterization to enable deep understanding of drug substances and drug products and successful advancement of small molecules, biologics, and vaccines from discovery through development and commercial launch. Reporting to the Associate Vice President of Analytical Enabling Capabilities, the Executive Director will lead a multidisciplinary team of 50–60 talented people managers, scientists, and technical experts across our Rahway, NJ and West Point, PA sites. In this role, you will partner closely with leaders across Discovery, Preclinical Development, Manufacturing, Quality, and Regulatory to ensure our science delivers with excellence across the development continuum. Your focus will be on building modality agnostic scientific excellence across drug substance and drug product, strengthening biophysical characterization capabilities for biologics and vaccines, and developing fungible expertise that can flex with our company's evolving portfolio. This is a unique opportunity to influence the future of our pipeline, champion scientific excellence in domains of materials and biophysical characterization, and build a high‑performing organization that will power the next generation of therapies and vaccines for patients around the world.

Requirements

• 12 + years of development experience
• 10 + years of direct leadership experience
• Must have multi-modality experience in drug substance and/or drug product development
• Technical expertise in physical, biophysical and/or materials characterization
• Demonstrated ability in leading large multi-disciplinary teams and mentoring and developing talent.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, and collaboration skills with proven ability to drive alignment with stakeholders.
• Strength in delivering results on firm deadlines in support of drug/vaccine development.

Nice To Haves

• Breadth of experience from discovery through commercial launch

Responsibilities

• Scientific Excellence & Innovation Leadership Set a forward‑looking strategy for materials and biophysical characterization that anticipates the needs of an evolving pipeline and emerging modalities. Ensure the delivery of scientifically sound data, insights, and methods that enable decisive scientific and regulatory advancement. Foster a culture of scientific curiosity and innovation, encouraging teams to explore novel analytical technologies and workflows that accelerate deep product understanding and development.
• Quality, Integrity & Regulatory Excellence Uphold the highest standards of quality and data integrity, ensuring our analytical approaches meet global regulatory expectations. Lead the delivery of robust CMC content for IND/CTA/NDA submissions and partner with regulatory colleagues to confidently address health authority inquiries.
• Operational Excellence & Compliance Culture Champion a strong compliance mindset and ensure systems, processes, and teams operate consistently with cGMP/GLPs (as needed), SOPs, good documentation practices, safety standards, and corporate expectations. Drive operational excellence by simplifying workflows, eliminating barriers, and enabling teams to work with speed, clarity, and purpose.
• Strategic Partnership & Enterprise Leadership Build strong, trusting relationships with partners across discovery, development, and manufacturing to align priorities, support program needs, and deliver on mission‑critical timelines. Promote transparency, collaboration, and a shared sense of ownership for pipeline success.
• Building & Developing a High‑Performing Organization Inspire, empower, and develop a team, ensuring people have the resources, skills, and support needed to excel. Set clear expectations, elevate performance standards, and build a culture where continuous learning, accountability, and inclusion thrive. Recruit and nurture talent to ensure the organization is equipped for future scientific challenges and opportunities.
• Communication & Leadership Presence Communicate strategy, priorities, and scientific outcomes with clarity and authenticity to senior leaders, collaborators, and teams. Promote a culture of open dialogue, shared learning, and partnership across all levels.

Benefits

• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days.
• The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees