Senior Manager, Biologics Characterisation & Analytical Development

Pharmaron; Liverpool; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Advanced technologies

Career development

Global CRO/CDMO exposure

Job summary

Pharmaron Liverpool is seeking a Senior Manager to lead two specialist analytical groups in biologics characterisation and analytical development. You will oversee mass spectrometry and peptide mapping at the heart of the role, while guiding method development, transfer and regulatory readiness for GMP manufacture.

You will combine scientific leadership with client engagement, developing new analytical technologies and expanding the standalone CRO offering alongside project delivery.

Qualifications

• Proven people-leadership across 3+ years with team coaching and development.
• Deep expertise in biologics analytical development and product characterisation.
• Strong mass spectrometry, peptide mapping and chromatography knowledge.
• Experience with method development and lifecycle management, technology transfer.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management abilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach and develop a team of Senior Scientists and Scientists.
• Bring together Separation Sciences and Characterisation teams with clear priorities.
• Provide technical direction in biologics analytical development and characterisation.
• Guide MS and peptide mapping, plus HPLC/UHPLC methodologies.
• Oversee method development, validation, lifecycle management and tech transfer to QC.
• Review and approve protocols, reports and regulatory content.
• Lead analytical programmes, investigations and cross-functional CMC discussions.
• Engage clients through meetings, capability presentations and proposals.
• Support site CRO business development and standalone characterisation projects.
• Drive lean, digitalisation and CAPEX planning; ensure quality and compliance.

Skills

People leadership

Biologics analysis

Mass spectrometry

Peptide mapping

HPLC/UHPLC

Method development

Regulatory submissions

Client engagement

Education

BSc/MSc in Life Sciences

Job description

Job Introduction

Position: Senior Manager, Biologics Characterisation & Analytical Development

Location: Liverpool

About Pharmaron

Pharmaron is a global contract research and manufacturing organization (CRO/CDMO) helping pharma and biotech companies bring new therapies to life. With over 29,000 employees worldwide across 28 locations in the UK, US, China, and Singapore, we support drug discovery through to manufacturing with fully integrated high-quality services.

We're proud of the impact we make and just last year, we supported 887 discovery projects, 1,100+ CMC programs, and 1,397 clinical trials across all phases. Our teams are involved in everything from small molecules, ADC's, biologics, and gene therapies and we work with more than 3,300 global customers. To learn more, visit .

This is an opportunity to lead and shape a growing biologics characterisation capability at Pharmaron’s Liverpool site.

As Senior Manager, you will bring together two specialist analytical groups and lead a team working across complex biologics characterisation, analytical development and separation sciences. With protein mass spectrometry and peptide mapping at the heart of the role, you will combine scientific leadership with people development, client engagement and the introduction of new analytical technologies.

The position could suit an experienced people manager or an established Principal Scientist or Group Leader ready to move into broader functional leadership.

We are seeking an experienced and people-focused Senior Manager to lead our newly combined Separation and Characterisation Sciences team in Liverpool. This is a key leadership opportunity for someone who can bring together two complementary scientific groups, build a cohesive and high-performing team, and shape the future direction of our biologics analytical capabilities.

You will provide scientific, technical and strategic leadership across analytical CMC programmes supporting the product characterisation, method development, transfer, and qualification for GMP manufacture of biologics and advanced therapies. The role combines team leadership with technical oversight, client engagement and the opportunity to expand our standalone analytical CRO offering alongside CDMO project delivery.

This position would suit an established scientific leader or a highly credible Principal Scientist or Group Leader who already has meaningful people-leadership experience and is ready to take on broader responsibility.

What You Will Do

• Lead, coach and develop a team of Senior Scientists, Scientists and a Scientific Associate, creating a strong culture of collaboration, scientific excellence, accountability and continuous improvement.


• Bring together the Separation Sciences and Characterisation teams, establishing clear priorities, effective ways of working and a shared team identity.


• Provide subject-matter expertise and technical direction in biologics analytical development and physicochemical and biophysical characterisation.


• Guide complex characterisation activities, with particular emphasis on mass spectrometry and peptide mapping, alongside chromatography-based methods such as HPLC/UHPLC, (reverse phase, SEC and IEX).


• Oversee method development, optimisation, phase-appropriate validation, method lifecycle management, comparability studies and technology transfer into QC for routine GMP release testing.


• Review and approve protocols, reports, specifications, development strategies and relevant regulatory submission content.


• Lead or support analytical programmes, complex investigations, manufacturing support activities and cross-functional CMC discussions.


• Act as a technical partner to clients through project meetings, capability presentations, proposal development, technical due diligence and issue escalation.


• Work with commercial and scientific colleagues to help develop the site’s analytical CRO business and win standalone characterisation projects.


• Drive operational excellence, digitalisation, Lean and 5S initiatives, and contribute to technology and CAPEX planning.


• Support audits and inspections and ensure delivery in accordance with quality, regulatory, GMP and EHS requirements.

What We Are Looking For

Essential:

• A BSc, MSc or equivalent qualification in a relevant life sciences discipline, with substantial biopharmaceutical experience.


• People-leadership experience gained over at least three years, with evidence of coaching, performance management, team development and building effective scientific teams.


• Demonstrable expertise in biologics analytical development and product characterisation, for a range of biological modalities including but not limited to monoclonal antibodies, recombinant proteins.


• Understanding of mass spectrometry, peptide mapping and chromatography techniques.


• Experience of method development, qualification, method lifecycle management, and/or technology transfer.


• Confident communication and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to explain complex science clearly and influence decisions.


• Strong problem-solving, prioritisation and decision-making skills, with the ability to lead through change.

Desirable:

• Experience within a client-facing biologics CDMO, CRO or biopharmaceutical environment.


• Experience leading client programmes, capability discussions, proposals or technical due diligence activities.


• Strong technical knowledge of mass spectrometry and peptide mapping.


• Knowledge of gene therapy or advanced therapy products.


• SME depth of knowledge in one or more physicochemical or biophysical characterisation techniques, such as mass spectrometry, icIEF, SEC-MALS, DLS, DSF or DSC.


• Experience supporting analytical CMC strategies or regulatory submissions such as IND, CTA, BLA or MAA.

Why join Pharmaron Liverpool?

• Lead and shape a newly combined analytical team rather than inherit a fixed structure.


• Work across a diverse portfolio of modalities, product and analytical techniques.


• Solve complex analytical challenges and develop new characterisation methodologies.


• Access to advanced technologies with continued investment in scientific innovation.


• Gain broad exposure across analytical development, CMC, validation and client delivery.


• Collaborate with clients, instrument vendors and industry partners to shape future capabilities.


• Influence the continued growth of the Liverpool Analytical Sciences organisation.


• Develop your career across technical, people and functional leadership.

Our Liverpool site

Our Liverpool facility provides integrated biologics development and manufacturing services across Analytical and Process Sciences. The site has an established track record in biologics development and offers capabilities supporting gene therapy drug substance development, viral vectors, plasmid DNA and analytical release and characterisation activities.

At Pharmaron, we do more than manufacture batches. We develop medicines.