Director of Cheminformatics & Data Science

MSD; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 236,000 - 372,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

401(k) plan

Paid holidays and vacation

Job summary

MSD is seeking a Director of Cheminformatics – Modeling & Informatics to lead a multi-site team driving data‑driven decision making in drug discovery. You will shape capabilities, implement scalable data architectures, and advance ML/AI‑driven cheminformatics across programs.

You will mentor talent, foster inclusion, and collaborate with IT and cross‑functional leaders to align data science strategy with discovery objectives. This is a high‑impact leadership role in the Boston area.

Qualifications

• PhD and 7+ years of professional experience applying computational and data science approaches in drug discovery, MS 9+ years, or BS 13+ years.
• 2+ years of managerial experience with team building and inclusive leadership.
• Experience designing modern computational workflows, cloud-based systems, and MLOps/DataOps.
• Strong understanding of cheminformatics, data analytics, and data engineering in early drug discovery.
• Experience enabling predictive modeling and advanced analytical approaches in a collaborative environment.
• Ability to collaborate across functions and influence strategy across scientific and technical domains.
• Experience engaging with IT organizations to co-develop scalable platforms.
• Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills.

Responsibilities

• Sets vision and strategy for cheminformatics capabilities and platforms that accelerate scientific learning and decision‑making in drug discovery.
• Leads a multi‑site team of cheminformatics and data science specialists, spanning data engineering, analytics, and scientific software development.
• Actively develops talent, fosters diversity of thought, and builds an inclusive culture that engages and empowers all team members.
• Engages stakeholders across the drug discovery spectrum to understand needs and enable impactful solutions.
• Translates scientific challenges into scalable data architectures, workflows, and algorithmic approaches for broad project use.
• Drives development of next‑generation cheminformatics workflows with ML, knowledge graphs, and AI.
• Ensures capabilities are deployed and adopted in collaboration with project teams and modeling partners.
• Builds partnerships with IT to co‑develop robust platforms supporting scientific workflows.
• Balances strategic investment with existing solutions to maximize value.
• Collaborates with leaders across Bioinformatics, Biostatistics, Quantitative Biology, and Modeling.
• Contributes to cross‑divisional alignment on data science and informatics strategy.
• Works with Modeling, Structure, and Biophysics leadership to identify opportunities for broader impact.
• Maintains visibility across the discovery portfolio to identify needs for scalable cheminformatics support.

Skills

Cheminformatics

Data science

Leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Cloud computing

MLOps/DataOps

Predictive modeling

Computational workflows

Education

BS/MS/PhD in STEM field

Tools

Cloud platforms

Knowledge graphs

Job description

MSD is seeking a Director of Cheminformatics – Modeling & Informatics to lead a multi-site team driving data‑driven decision making in drug discovery. You will shape capabilities, implement scalable data architectures, and advance ML/AI‑driven cheminformatics across programs.

You will mentor talent, foster inclusion, and collaborate with IT and cross‑functional leaders to align data science strategy with discovery objectives. This is a high‑impact leadership role in the Boston area.