Medical Director, Clinical Development

Oruka Therapeutics; Waltham (MA); Hybrid; USD 256,000 - 288,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Startup culture

Competitive salary

Inclusive team environment

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Oruka Therapeutics is seeking a Medical Director, Clinical Development to lead the execution and oversight of clinical trials. The role focuses on ensuring high-quality data to support safety and efficacy of our pipeline products, collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to align activities with development plans.

The position requires medical leadership in trial design, regulatory alignment, and cross-functional teamwork, with responsibilities spanning protocols, site oversight,

Qualifications

• MD degree with board certification in a relevant specialty.
• Extensive experience in clinical research and development, ideally within the pharmaceutical industry.
• Strong understanding of clinical trial design, GCP guidelines, and regulatory requirements.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and analytical skills.

Responsibilities

• Supports the development of clinical trial protocols, including patient selection criteria, study endpoints, and data collection methods.
• Oversees the conduct of clinical trials at study sites, ensuring adherence to protocols and good clinical practice (GCP) guidelines.
• Reviews and interprets clinical data to assess safety and efficacy of the investigational drug.
• Authors and contributes to clinical and non-clinical documents required during the clinical development process.

Skills

MD degree

GCP knowledge

Regulatory understanding

Leadership

Communication skills

Education

Medical degree (MD)

Job description

About Us:

Oruka Therapeutics (Nasdaq: ORKA) is developing novel biologics designed to set a new standard for the treatment of chronic skin diseases. Oruka’s mission is to offer patients suffering from chronic skin diseases like plaque psoriasis the greatest possible freedom from their condition by achieving high rates of complete disease clearance with dosing as infrequently as once or twice per year. Oruka is advancing a proprietary portfolio of potentially best-in-class antibodies that were engineered by Paragon Therapeutics and target the core mechanisms underlying plaque psoriasis and other dermatologic and inflammatory diseases. For more information, visit www.orukatx.com

As we build our core team, we’re seeking top talent in different functional areas who are not just looking for a job, but an opportunity to be part of something bigger. Someone who is passionate about making a difference and eager to contribute to establishing an engaged, inclusive, and positive company culture.

Job Title:

Medical Director, Clinical Development

Location:

Remote OR Hybrid 3 days/week if located near office in Waltham, MA will be required.

Role Overview:

Medical Director of Clinical Development plays a key role in the execution and operational oversight of clinical trials, ensuring high-quality data generation to support the safety and efficacy of our pipeline products. This role involves supporting clinical study design, implementation, and data interpretation while working cross-functionally to align clinical activities with overall development plans. The Medical Director collaborates closely with internal and external stakeholders to ensure trial execution meets regulatory, scientific, and business objectives.

Key Responsibilities:

• Clinical Trial Design and Oversight:
  • Supports the development of clinical trial protocols, including patient selection criteria, study endpoints, and data collection methods
  • Oversees the conduct of clinical trials at study sites, ensuring adherence to protocols and good clinical practice (GCP) guidelines
  • Reviews and interprets clinical data to assess the safety and efficacy of the investigational drug
  • Authors and contributes to clinical and non-clinical documents required during the clinical development process (including but not limited to: Clinical Study Protocols, Investigator Brochures, Clinical Study Reports)
• Medical Expertise:
  • Provides medical expertise of the therapeutic area, disease state, and potential drug effects
  • Reviews clinical data to identify and analyze safety concerns and adverse events, and makes appropriate recommendations to the team
  • Stays current with relevant medical literature and clinical trial methodologies
  • Contributes medical expertise to external interactions with collaborators throughout the clinical development cycle
• Cross-Functional Collaboration:
  • Works closely with other functions including clinical operations, regulatory affairs, medical affairs, biometrics, pre-clinical and project management teams to help ensure optimization of the clinical development process
  • Presents clinical data to internal and external stakeholders
• Strategic Leadership:
• Contributes to the overall clinical development strategy
• Helps to identify critical clinical development milestones and helps the team to drive toward meeting or exceeding timelines
  • Leads the clinical contribution for clinical study reports, clinical documents and regulatory submissions
  • May oversee the work of Clinical Scientists working on the same or other programs

Qualifications:

• Medical degree (MD) with board certification in a relevant specialty
• Extensive experience in clinical research and development, ideally within the pharmaceutical industry
• Strong understanding of clinical trial design, GCP guidelines, and regulatory requirements
• Excellent communication, leadership, and analytical skills

Compensation:

• An appropriate financial package will be developed for the successful candidate to include a competitive base salary and equity, with a performance-related bonus opportunity.
• The anticipated salary range for the Medical Director is $256,00-288,000. The final salary offered to a successful candidate will be dependent on several factors that may include but are not limited to the type and length of experience within the job, type and length of experience within the industry, education, etc. Oruka is a multi-state employer and this salary range may not reflect positions that work in other states.

We’re looking forward to hearing how you can contribute to our team and mission. Join us in shaping the future of our company and making a real impact every day.

Salary Range for the Role

$256,000—$288,000 USD

What We Offer:

• A chance to be part of a vibrant startup culture where your work can directly impact bringing new medicines to patients.
• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• A supportive and inclusive team environment where everyone is encouraged to bring their authentic selves to work.
• Opportunities for professional growth and development.