Director, Oncology Translational Medicine

GSK; Upper Providence (Delaware County); On-site; USD 220,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

GSK is seeking a Director, Oncology Translational Medicine to lead biomarker strategy development and implementation for late-stage oncology assets, aligning plans with clinical development objectives.

You will oversee translational biomarker programs, validate assays (NGS, IHC/IF, ctDNA), guide patient stratification, and drive cross-functional collaboration with Clinical Biomarker teams and external partners.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. or equivalent with extensive drug development experience in oncology biomarkers.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and biomarker plans for late-stage trials.
• Proven ability to design translational biomarker strategies and regulated assays.
• Strong collaboration with Data Sciences to analyse complex data.
• Hands-on experience with biomarker platforms (NGS, IHC/IF, ctDNA).
• Track record translating pre-clinical insights to clinical development.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with Clinical Biomarker Executive Director to drive biomarker strategies.
• Validate and implement biomarker strategies for clinical programs.
• Lead tumor-specific Biomarker Matrix teams and integrate into study designs.
• Define biomarker priorities and generate evidence from real-world data.
• Oversee sample testing plans and deliver biomarker data packages.
• Represent Translational Medicine in cross-functional matrices and partnerships.

Skills

Biomarker strategy

Cross-functional leadership

Translational medicine

Clinical biomarker assays

NGS

IHC/IF

Study design

Education

Ph.D. in life sciences

M.Sc. in life sciences

Tools

Flow cytometry

PCR/qPCR

NGS platforms

IHC/IF

FISH

Job description

Director, Oncology Translational Medicine

Job Purpose

In this role, you will be responsible for the development and effective implementation of biomarker and translational medicine strategies to support the clinical development of late-stage oncology assets. As a key member of a Clinical Matrix Team (CMT), the Clinical Biomarker Director, will collaborate with the Clinical Biomarker Executive Director, to establish clear decision-making criteria, define patient segmentation strategies, and integrate these into clinical development plans. You will leverage cutting-edge technologies and methodologies to discover and clinically validate biomarkers, ensuring the biomarker strategy is fully aligned with the clinical plan. This integration will optimise decision-making in drug development and enable the identification of the right patient populations for our medicines.

This role will provide YOU with an opportunity to advance YOUR career, with responsibilities including:

• Collaborating closely with the Clinical Biomarker Executive Director to drive the design, alignment, and execution of clinical biomarker and translational medicine strategies focused on identifying predictive biomarkers that enable clinical success.
• Validating and implementing biomarker strategies, including target engagement, pharmacodynamic, and proof-of-mechanism biomarkers, for clinical-phase programs to support patient stratification, dose selection, and enable clinical go/no-go decisions.
• Participating in tumor-specific Biomarker Matrix teams, with responsibility for executing clinical biomarker strategies for late-stage oncology programs, while working closely with internal and external stakeholders, as well as disease area strategy teams.
• Representing Translational Medicine at Clinical Development Matrix Teams (CMT) to establish biomarker-driven decision-making criteria and their seamless integration into clinical study designs, aligning with clinical study objectives
• Supporting disease area strategies and translational objectives by defining biomarker priorities, areas of interest, and generating decision-enabling evidence packages informed by real-world datasets, internal and external data and partnerships (For e.g., research collaborations, KEE consultations).
• Identifying cutting-edge science and technological advances to incorporate into biomarker strategies for guiding indication selection, patient enrichment, and combination strategies.
• Overseeing and/or developing sample testing plans and delivering high-quality biomarker data packages to inform clinical development and regulatory strategies.
• Managing effective relationships with clinical and scientific operations, diagnostics, medical science, medical affairs, regulatory, portfolio management, and commercial functions.
• Supporting the expansion of mechanism and disease understanding to generate insights for indication expansion and scientific exchange as needed.
• Defining and studying mechanisms of resistance to enable reverse translation, inform next-line strategies, support patient enrichment, and influence life cycle management of assets.
• Contributing to the company's scientific credibility through publications and presentations.

Basic Qualifications

• We are looking for professionals with the following required skills and experience:
• Ph.D. or equivalent with minimal 7 years or M.Sc with minimum 10 years of drug development experience in the pharmaceutical industry, with a solid background in oncology clinical biomarkers, expertise in late-phase oncology studies- and translational research within clinical development.
• Strong expertise in cancer biology and clinical development, including the therapeutic landscape, approved and investigational agents, and diagnostic approaches in solid tumour and haematological malignancies.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams, designing and executing strategic biomarker plans including development of regulated biomarker assays.
• Experience conducting clinical trials and working as part of clinical study teams.
• Track record of designing and executing translational biomarker plans for clinical trials. Explores and onboards innovative technologies to advance translational research and new biomarker development
• Experience collaborating effectively with Data Sciences to analyse high-dimensional preclinical and clinical data to guide clinical decisions and inform asset strategy.
• Hands-on experience implementing a broad range of biomarker platforms such as flow cytometry, molecular diagnostics including NGS, FISH and PCR, IHC/IF, liquid biopsy / ctDNA approaches, and multi-omic biomarker analyses.
• Direct successful translation of pre-clinical research to human clinical trials, leveraging learnings from genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic analyses of both preclinical models and patient samples.
• Having a strong sense of urgency and excellent skills in prioritization, planning as well as timely execution in a very fast-paced environme