Associate Director, Translational Medicine

Atrium Therapeutics; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 185,000 - 205,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

RSUs

401(k) with employer match

Wellness program

Job summary

Atrium Therapeutics is seeking an experienced Associate Director to lead Translational Medicine, driving biomarker strategy and bioinformatics across cardiomyopathy programs. You will shape biomarker endpoints, oversee assay development, and guide data interpretation to inform target engagement and disease progression.

You will manage a growing team of biomarker and bioinformatics scientists, collaborate with cross-functional teams, and contribute to regulatory submissions.

Qualifications

• PhD in Cardiovascular Biology, Molecular Biology, Physiology, or a related field.
• 8+ years in biopharma/biotech biomarker development with leadership experience.
• Experience leading clinical biomarker strategy and operations; cardiovascular/rare genetic disease experience preferred.
• Proven ability to lead and develop junior staff in a matrixed organization.
• Expertise in biomarker assay development and analytical validation; CRO transfer/validation experience.
• Experience contributing biomarker content to clinical study documents; working knowledge of GCP/GCLP.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead the clinical biomarker strategy across cardiomyopathy programs; oversee biomarker endpoints in development plans.
• Direct discovery and development of tissue and circulating biomarkers supporting target engagement and translational endpoints.
• Oversee assay development, validation, and CRO transfer for clinical use.
• Manage biomarker operations: sample logistics, data quality, analysis and interpretation across studies.
• Serve as Translational Medicine liaison on project teams; align biomarker strategy with study design and patient selection.
• Contribute biomarker data to protocols, ICFs, CSRs, and regulatory documents.
• Lead publication and conference presentation strategy for translational data.

Skills

Biomarker strategy

Bioinformatics

Team leadership

Cross-functional leadership

Education

PhD in Cardiovascular Biology

Tools

ELISA

MSD

Simoa

qPCR/ddPCR

LC-MS

Olink

Job description

Atrium is a biopharmaceutical company pioneering delivery of RNA therapeutics to the heart to transform the standard of care for people living with cardiomyopathies. Our proprietary technology leverages the targeted RNA delivery platform initially designed at Avidity, which combines the tissue selectivity of mAbs and other targeted delivery ligands with the precision of oligonucleotides. This unique combination is designed to allow selective targeting of the underlying genetic drivers of disease that were previously undruggable. Through targeted, non-viral delivery of siRNA to cardiac tissues, our approach has the potential to overcome key limitations of nonspecific viral and nanoparticle-based delivery systems, including challenges related to tissue specificity, immunogenicity, and redosing.

Position Overview

We are seeking an experienced, strategic Associate Director to lead Atrium's Translational Medicine function, spanning both clinical biomarker strategy and bioinformatics. This is a newly created position that will be accountable for all aspects of biomarker strategy and execution, including, biomarker identification, assay development, validation, and clinical execution to inform target engagement, mechanism of action, and disease-progression endpoints across our genetically defined cardiomyopathy pipeline, including PRKAG2 syndrome and PLN cardiomyopathy. The Associate Director also oversees the bioinformatics function, which supports computational and data-analysis needs across the broader R&D organization. The Associate Director represents Translational Medicine on cross-functional clinical project teams and manages a growing team of biomarker and bioinformatics scientists.

Responsibilities

• Define, develop and lead the clinical biomarker strategy across Atrium's cardiomyopathy programs; oversee execution, interpretation, and incorporation of biomarker endpoints into overall clinical development plans
• Direct the discovery and development of tissue and circulating biomarkers (protein, nucleic acid, and metabolic) supporting target engagement, mechanism of action, and translational endpoints from pilot stage through clinical readiness
• Oversee development, optimization, and fit-for-purpose/analytical validation of clinical biomarker assays; manage transfer and validation of lead assays at CRO partners for clinical trial implementation
• Accountable for clinical biomarker operations, including sample logistics, data quality, analysis, and interpretation across clinical studies; partner with biostatistics and bioinformatics to translate complex, multi-modal datasets into actionable insight for program teams
• Serve as the Translational Medicine representative on clinical project teams, ensuring biomarker strategy aligns with clinical study design, patient selection, and overall program development plans
• Contribute biomarker strategy, rationale, and data to clinical study protocols, informed consent forms (ICFs), clinical study reports (CSRs), and other regulatory submission documents
• Lead the publication plan and conference presentation strategy for translational and biomarker data, in collaboration with Medical Affairs and Clinical Development
• Oversee the bioinformatics function supporting biomarker data analysis and interpretation, as well as broader computational needs across the R&D organization; ensure rigorous, reproducible analytical standards
• Manage, mentor, and develop junior scientists within the Translational Medicine function, building team capability and a collaborative, high-performing culture

Education and Experience Requirements

• PhD in Cardiovascular Biology, Molecular Biology, Physiology, or a related field
• 8+ years of relevant biopharma/biotech experience in biomarker development, including significant experience leading clinical biomarker strategy and operations; cardiovascular and/or rare genetic disease experience highly preferred
• Prior experience managing and developing junior scientific staff; demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional initiatives in a matrixed organization
• Deep expertise in biomarker assay development and fit-for-purpose/analytical validation (e.g., high-sensitivity ELISA, MSD, Simoa, qPCR/ddPCR, LC-MS, Olink); experience overseeing CRO-based assay transfer and validation for clinical use
• Experience contributing biomarker content to clinical study protocols, ICFs, CSRs, or other regulatory documents; working knowledge of GCP/GCLP and clinical sample-handling requirements
• Strong publication record with experience developing publication plans and conference presentation strategy
• Highly adaptable to a small-company/startup environment, comfortable with ambiguity, and a proactive, hands-on problem-solver

What We Provide

• The base salary range for this role is $185,000-$205,000. The final compensation will be commensurate with such factors as relevant experience, skillset, internal equity and market factors
• Atrium offers competitive compensation and benefits which include stock options & RSUs, as well as a 401(k) with an employer match. In addition, the comprehensive wellness program includes coverage for medical, dental, vision, LTD, and unlimited of time off including summer & winter breaks
• A commitment to learning and development which includes a variety of programming internally developed by and for Atrium employees, opportunities for job-specific training offered by industry, and an education reimbursement program

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.