Director Research and Development

Abbott Laboratories; Green Oaks (IL); On-site; USD 147,000 - 295,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in diagnostics is seeking a Director of Bioconjugation and Organic Chemistry. This role focuses on driving technical leadership in bioconjugation and organic chemistry, managing multi-disciplinary teams, and fostering cross-functional collaboration to ensure successful project completion.

Qualifications

• 8-10 years industrial experience in product/process development required.
• PhD preferred in relevant technical fields.

Responsibilities

• Designs and leads experiments for formulation manufacturing processes.
• Leads multi-site teams through product design and development.
• Establishes criteria and technical standards for excellence.

Skills

Communication

Problem Solving

Team Leadership

Education

Bachelor’s Degree

PhD

Tools

FPLC

HPLC

DLS

DSC

UV-Vis spectroscopy

Mass spectrometry

Job description

Abbott Core Diagnostics Research and Development is part of Abbott’s Diagnostics family of businesses, bringing together exceptional teams of experts and industry leading technologies to support diagnostic testing which provides important information for treatment and management of diseases and other conditions.

The position of Director Bioconjugation and Organic Chemistry is within our Process Innovation and Development group in the Core Diagnostics R&D organization located in Abbott Park, IL (Lake County). The primary function of the position is to drive technical leadership in the multidisciplinary area of bioconjugation and organic chemistry with strong communication and collaboration skills and to develop the talent within the team. The director will establish and maintain research and development strategies in the area and foster partnerships across Core Lab organizations and between Abbott divisions. The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to lead a multi-disciplinary team to complete a variety of new product development and strategic projects and to guide technical troubleshooting on a cross functional team. The candidate will bring teams together to brainstorm technical challenges and to find the best solution possible to ensure successful project completion. Strong scientific communication is essential to the role as is the ability to manage complex projects over a significant period. This role will liaise between groups within the R&D organization (Assay Development, Discovery Research, Biologics Research, and sister Process Innovation and Development groups), as well as R&D Quality Assurance, Procurement, Supplier Quality, Regulatory Affairs, site-level Operations, and outside suppliers/vendors. The ideal candidate will possess a strong scientific background with a PhD or equivalent work experience, excellent communication skills, the desire to direct others to complete tasks/projects, a team-centric attitude, and creative/innovative problem-solving skills.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Designs and leads others to complete experiments related to the development and implementation of robust formulation manufacturing processes and develops talent within the group to further scientific advancement.
• Communicates with assay technical teams, research teams, and the project management office to comprehend technical challenges and project timelines.
• Leads multi-site teams through iterative product design and development.
• Allocates internal resources through multiple Stage Gate and Development milestones including facilitating technical issue resolution by influencing study design optimization and evaluating study data.
• Evaluates the impact of project changes and adjusts implementation activities to meet revised plans.
• Facilitates process transfer and training at sites of manufacture.
• Trains upper-level scientists as needed.
• Establishes criteria and technical standards for excellence; anticipates, recognizes, and resolves technical problems; identifies new directions for research.
• Responsible for implementing and maintaining the effectiveness of the quality system.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS | EDUCATION:

• 8-10 years industrial experience in product/process development, technical support, or operations management. Bachelor’s Degree required, MS and/or PhD preferred in Bioconjugation, Organic Chemistry, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Analytical Chemistry, or a related technical field
  

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS AND COMPETENCIES:

• Experience in immunoassay and clinical chemistry reagent, calibrator, and control formulation with a focus in research and development, process design and development, and/or technical product operations.
• Proven track record of technical project management/oversite including investigation troubleshooting and root cause analysis.
• Experience leading direct reports as well as influencing cross funcationally.
• Ability to lead strategic projects over a multi-year time span and the desire to lead a team of scientists to meet project timelines.
• Experience in bioconjugation (antibody drug conjugation) and/or organic chemistry with an emphasis on attachment chemistry, protein purification, and analytical analysis.
• Experience with standard analytical techniques including FPLC, HPLC, DLS, DSC, UV-Vis spectroscopy, and/or mass spectrometry is a plus.
• Prior experience in investigations and root cause analysis preferred.
• Third party manufacturing site and vendor communication experience preferred.
• Candidates should work well in a team environment and have flexibility to work on changing priorities.

The base pay for this position is $147,300.00 – $294,700.00. In specific locations, the pay range may vary from the range posted.