Sr. Distinguished Scientist - PSTS Neuroscience Disease Area Lead

Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine • San Diego, CA

6d • $173,000 - $299,000

About The Position

Johnson & Johnson is recruiting a Sr. Distinguished Scientist to serve as the PSTS Disease Area Lead for Neuroscience. This scientific leader brings disease-area strategic pipeline knowledge to PSTS teams across the development lifecycle, from discovery through registration. The DAL and PSTS Modality Lead are primary interfaces between PSTS and therapeutic-area leaders, as well as relevant partners such as Regulatory Affairs, Global Medical Safety, and Clinical Pharmacology.

The role is accountable for neuroscience-specific scientific strategy and risk stewardship across the portfolio, ensuring that discovery ROPs and competitive development ADPs reflect disease-area needs through a PSTS lens. The DAL owns and evolves strategic project-planning frameworks covering class risks, translational signals, and platform learnings, and helps ensure consistent PSTS program planning. The position requires continued learning about current and emerging developments in neuroscience, deep drug-development and regulatory-science expertise, and specialized disease-area knowledge.

Working with PSTS modality leads, the DAL recommends diligence in relevant disease-area spaces and supports strategic planning with PSTS laboratory functional leaders and external CRO partners. The DAL coaches and mentors PSTS team leaders, provides expert advice, and reviews PSTS plans, regulatory submissions, and functional reviews to help ensure scientific and regulatory questions are addressed proactively. The role maintains expertise in competitive intelligence and the regulatory landscape, tracks milestones, issues, and attrition, and identifies strategic gaps for action.

The DAL may serve as a PSTS team lead and is a member of the extended PSTS portfolio leadership team. The role leads or participates in strategic projects, drives PSTS preparedness and planning for the designated therapeutic area, provides executive-level updates, fosters cross-functional cohesion, and supports cross-industry activities and forums with regulators and external experts. Expected travel is 20% domestically and internationally. Location options are Spring House, Pennsylvania; Beerse, Belgium; or San Diego, California.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in a scientific discipline with 10 or more years of experience, or equivalent industry expertise.
• Knowledge of pharmaceutical science and drug-development strategies in the modality space.
• Experience developing and implementing scientific and effective PSTS and project-team plans in accordance with modality strategies, including target areas, TPPs, and ADPs.
• Knowledge of regulatory requirements and expectations for first-in-human approval or therapeutic registration in the modality space.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills suitable for executive and highly visible external venues.
• Experience coaching effectively.
• Strong organizational skills and team leadership.
• Ability to deliver impact through matrix leadership and network effectively with cross-functional peers.
• Ability to maintain strong external visibility and a strong external reputation for PSTS.
• Deep scientific understanding of neuroscience discovery and development.

Nice To Haves

• Ph.D. plus a dual advanced degree such as MD or DVM, or equivalent advanced training.
• Relevant board certification such as DABT or DACVP, or equivalent.
• Experience with discovery and development of molecules through the regulatory path for the modality arena.
• Experience dealing with the FDA or other regulatory interactions and working with clinicians.
• Experience in diligence.
• Experience supporting neuroscience governance decisions, regulatory interactions, and/or external diligence for relevant therapeutic programs.

Responsibilities

• Bring neuroscience disease-area strategic pipeline knowledge to PSTS and PSTS teams across discovery through registration.
• Serve as a primary interface between PSTS and therapeutic-area leaders and relevant partners in other organizations.
• Lead disease-specific scientific strategy and risk stewardship across the portfolio.
• Ensure discovery ROPs and development ADPs incorporate disease-area considerations and requirements through a PSTS lens.
• Own and evolve strategic project-planning frameworks covering class risks, translational signals, and platform learnings.
• Recommend diligence activities in therapeutic-area disease spaces with PSTS modality leads.
• Plan strategically with PSTS laboratory functional leaders and external CRO partners as relevant.
• Coach and mentor PSTS team leaders and provide expert advice and review of PSTS plans, regulatory submissions, and functional reviews.
• Maintain expertise in competitive intelligence and the regulatory landscape; track milestones, issues, and attrition; and highlight strategic gaps.
• Serve as PSTS team lead when needed and contribute to the extended PSTS portfolio leadership team.
• Lead or participate in special strategic projects and drive PSTS preparedness, discovery project plans, and development ADPs for the designated disease area.
• Provide executive-level updates and foster cross-functional cohesion within PSTS and with relevant external functions.
• Support cross-industry activities and forums with regulators and external experts.

Benefits

• Annual performance-based cash bonus, subject to the applicable plan and Company discretion.
• Medical, dental, and vision benefits.
• Life insurance, short- and long-term disability, business accident insurance, and group legal insurance.
• Eligibility to participate in the consolidated retirement plan (pension) and 401(k) savings plan.
• Vacation of up to 120 hours per calendar year.
• Sick time of up to 40 hours per calendar year, or up to 56 hours for employees residing in Washington State.
• Holiday pay, including floating holidays, of up to 13 days per calendar year.
• Work, Personal and Family Time of up to 40 hours per calendar year.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree