Director, Ophthalmology Discovery

Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson · Pharma · Cambridge, MA +1

Director of Ophthalmology Discovery at Johnson & Johnson, focusing on developing novel therapeutics for retinal diseases. This role involves leading and mentoring a team, driving program prioritization, and collaborating with cross-functional teams to advance drug discovery from preclinical stages to clinical development. Requires extensive experience in retinal biology, drug development, and leadership within the healthcare industry.

What you'd actually do

  1. Leverage own extensive experience in preclinical retinal drug development to develop, lead and guide team members to advance programs in the discovery pipeline.
  2. Drive effective decision-making and prioritization while considering impact to timeline, FTEs/budget, and risks.
  3. Lead, mentor, and motivate team members. Provide effective leadership including individual performance goal setting, hiring, managing the development of individual team members, recognize and reward employee contributions, planning and facilitating team activities.
  4. Drive collaboration with functional partners, communicate proactively, and maintain effective relationships with key stakeholders. Frequently update progress and align on strategic priorities with internal partners, cross-functional teams and third-party collaborators.
  5. Collaborate with and lead/participate in cross-functional teams and governance activities to facilitate IND-enabling, clinical Phase I/II-enabling activities.

Skills

Required

  • PhD or MD/PhD in Ophthalmology, Biological Sciences, Biomedical Engineering or Neuroscience
  • 10+ years of relevant experience in industry, post-graduate academics and/or clinical experience
  • Retinal biology, physiology and pathophysiology knowledge
  • Preclinical drug development understanding for ocular diseases
  • Drug development and ocular delivery expertise (small molecules, oligonucleotide therapeutics, biologics)
  • Leadership and problem-solving skills in preclinical drug development
  • Pipeline project management
  • Detail-orientation and organization
  • Ability to manage multiple tasks and tight timelines
  • Experience with quality data deliverables
  • Excellent communication, interpersonal and collaborative skills
  • Team player with strong work ethic
  • Adaptability and responsiveness
  • Ability to motivate and influence others
  • Team accountability

Nice to have

  • Experience with IND-enabling activities
  • Experience with clinical Phase I/II-enabling activities
  • Mentoring junior project leaders

What the JD emphasized

  • Knowledge of retinal biology, physiology and pathophysiology, together with a demonstrated understanding of preclinical drug development, as applied to ocular diseases is required
  • Expertise in drug development and ocular delivery involving multiple platforms (small molecules, oligonucleotide therapeutics and/or biologics) is required
  • Proven leadership and problem-solving skills in preclinical drug development with an emphasis on pipeline projects are required
  • Detail-oriented, highly organized, able to manage multiple tasks, handle tight timelines and experience with deliverables of quality data is required
  • Excellent communication, interpersonal and collaborative skills are required
  • Demonstrated ability to work in a dynamic environment as a team player with a strong work ethic is required
  • Highly adaptable and responsive, and with an ability to motivate and influence others and drive team accountability