Associate Director, Protein Sciences - Lead Antibody & AOC

Aera Therapeutics Inc.; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual bonus

Equity incentives

Health insurance

401k with match

Paid time off

Commuting reimbursement

Job summary

Aera Therapeutics is seeking an Associate Director of Protein Sciences in Cambridge, MA, to lead production and evaluation of targeting moieties for LNPs and AOCs. You will manage a six-person team, partner across R&D functions, and ensure robust, scalable antibody-related processes.

The role requires on-site presence at least 4 days/week. You will drive site-specific conjugation strategies, oversee CRO/CDMO relationships, and advance GMP manufacturing readiness while balancing program timelines

Qualifications

• PhD or equivalent with 8+ years in industry (or MS/BS with 12+ years).
• 3+ years of direct people management, building high-performing teams.
• Hands-on recombinant antibody expression and purification in mammalian systems.
• Bioconjugation of antibodies/fragments using site-specific chemistries.
• Protein analytics including SEC, CE-SDS, intact mass spec, HIC/DAR determination.
• Experience managing CROs/CDMOs and tech transfer toward GMP manufacturing.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration and communication skills.
• Experience with AOCs/ADCs or ligand-targeted nanoparticles preferred.
• Familiarity with IND-enabling activities and CMC knowledge.

Responsibilities

• Lead and grow a team of six scientists, setting direction and recruiting as the group scales.
• Serve as protein sciences lead on cross-functional program teams, collaborating with LNP, Therapeutic Discovery, in vivo pharmacology, and CMC.
• Oversee production and purification of antibodies and fragments across research and scale-up.
• Lead conjugation strategy and optimization for AOCs, including chemistry and DAR evaluation.
• Own external protein sciences portfolio, CRO/CDMO selection, scope and budget management, and tech transfer for GMP production.
• Develop material forecasts and supply plans; identify risks and reallocate resources.
• Drive AOC platform development with binder screening and protein engineering efforts (humanization, affinity maturation).
• Present results to senior leadership and participate in strategy discussions and partnerships.

Skills

People management

Antibody expression & purification

Bioconjugation chemistry

Protein analytics

GMP/IND readiness

Cross-functional collaboration

AOC/ADC expertise

Protein engineering

Computational protein design

Regulatory documentation

Education

PhD in biochemistry, protein science, chemical biology, or related field

Tools

Mammalian expression platforms

SEC / IEX / HIC analytics

SPR/BLI binding assays

Job description

Aera Therapeutics is seeking an Associate Director of Protein Sciences in Cambridge, MA, to lead production and evaluation of targeting moieties for LNPs and AOCs. You will manage a six-person team, partner across R&D functions, and ensure robust, scalable antibody-related processes.

The role requires on-site presence at least 4 days/week. You will drive site-specific conjugation strategies, oversee CRO/CDMO relationships, and advance GMP manufacturing readiness while balancing program timelines