AVP, Early Development Neuroscience

ARTO; United States; On-site; USD 250,000 - 360,000; Full time

Job summary

ARTO is seeking a senior physician-scientist to join its Neuroscience Early Clinical Development team. The role centers on design, strategy and execution of First-in-Human and Biopharma studies, advancing innovative neuroscience therapies through early clinical development.

You will lead scientific and medical oversight across multiple cohorts, translate preclinical data into development strategies, and work with cross-disciplinary teams to deliver robust protocols and study reports.

Qualifications

• MD, DO or equivalent medical qualification with clinical training and strong credentials.
• Approximately 10+ years of pharma/biotech or equivalent clinical research experience.
• Proven success in designing and leading First-in-Human/Phase 1 studies.
• Experience in neuroscience drug development and CNS indications.
• Hands-on clinical protocol development, medical monitoring, data interpretation and reporting.
• Strong understanding of early clinical development, dose escalation and safety review.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills for senior leadership.
• Experience collaborating across multidisciplinary scientific and operational teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead scientific and clinical strategy for multiple FIH and Biopharma studies from design through execution and reporting.
• Design and author early-phase clinical protocols including dose-escalation strategies and endpoints.
• Provide medical oversight, interpret safety, PK/PD data to inform decisions.
• Prepare clinical study reports, regulatory docs and scientific presentations.
• Collaborate with pharmacology, translational science, regulatory, operations and external partners.
• Present development strategies and findings to senior stakeholders and executives.
• Maintain hands-on involvement across concurrent studies while providing leadership.

Skills

Medical leadership

First-in-Human study design

Clinical protocol development

Safety monitoring

Data interpretation

Regulatory documentation

Scientific communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

MD/DO or equivalent medical qualification

Job description

We've partnered with a global biopharmaceutical organization to appoint a senior physician-scientist within its Neuroscience Early Clinical Development team.

This opportunity focuses on the design, strategy and execution of First-in-Human (FIH) and Biopharma studies, supporting the advancement of innovative neuroscience therapies through early clinical development.

The successful candidate will provide scientific and medical leadership across multiple early-phase programs, working closely with multidisciplinary teams to translate preclinical data into robust clinical development strategies.

The portfolio encompasses a broad range of neuroscience indications, including neurodegenerative diseases, pain and sleep disorders, across multiple therapeutic modalities.

This is a senior individual contributor position offering significant scientific responsibility, hands-on involvement and exposure to senior leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the scientific and clinical strategy for multiple FIH and Biopharma studies, from initial study design through execution and reporting.
• Design and author early-phase clinical protocols, including dose-escalation strategies, safety assessments and relevant clinical endpoints.
• Provide medical oversight of ongoing studies, interpreting emerging safety, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data to inform development decisions.
• Prepare and contribute to clinical study reports, regulatory documentation and scientific presentations.
• Collaborate with clinical pharmacology, translational science, regulatory, clinical operations and external research partners to deliver early development programs.
• Present clinical development strategies, scientific findings and recommendations to senior stakeholders and executive leadership.
• Maintain hands-on scientific involvement while providing leadership across several concurrent studies.

Required Qualifications

• MD, DO or equivalent medical qualification, with relevant clinical training and strong academic credentials.
• Approximately 10+ years of relevant pharmaceutical, biotechnology or comparable clinical research experience.
• Demonstrated success designing, leading and executing First-in-Human / Phase 1 clinical studies.
• Significant experience in neuroscience drug development, ideally involving neurodegenerative diseases or other CNS indications.
• Hands-on experience with clinical protocol development, medical monitoring, clinical data interpretation and study reporting.
• Strong understanding of early clinical development, including dose escalation, safety evaluation and clinical study design.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate complex scientific concepts clearly to senior leadership.
• Experience collaborating effectively across multidisciplinary scientific and operational teams.

Preferred Experience

• Clinical development experience in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease or related neurodegenerative conditions.
• Experience across other neuroscience indications, including pain and sleep disorders.
• Familiarity with clinical pharmacology principles, including SAD/MAD, PK/PD, dose selection and drug–drug interactions.
• Experience across multiple therapeutic modalities, including biologics, small molecules and oligonucleotide-based therapies.
• Strong academic research credentials, publications or relevant scientific contributions.
• Experience supporting scientific due diligence or portfolio evaluations.

The Ideal Candidate

We're particularly interested in physician-scientists who combine hands-on early clinical development expertise with outstanding scientific communication skills.

The successful candidate will be confident presenting complex clinical data and development strategies to senior leadership, able to communicate a clear scientific rationale and comfortable influencing decisions across multidisciplinary teams.

A collaborative, adaptable and pragmatic approach is essential, alongside a willingness to remain directly involved in protocol development, study execution and clinical reporting.

Why Consider This Opportunity?

• Take scientific ownership of multiple early-phase neuroscience development programs.
• Work across a diverse pipeline of therapeutic areas and modalities.
• Combine hands-on clinical research with senior-level scientific influence.
• Collaborate with experienced multidisciplinary teams and external research partners.
• Contribute to the advancement of novel therapies addressing significant unmet medical needs.