Senior Advisor, Manufacturing Science and Technology

BioSpace; Watertown (MA); On-site; USD 141,000 - 229,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company bonus

Comprehensive benefits

Job summary

Orna Therapeutics, Inc., a subsidiary of Eli Lilly, is seeking a Senior Advisor to oversee external manufacturing for lipid materials and platform support for circular RNA and LNP therapies, based in Watertown, MA.

The role requires extensive CDMO coordination, tech transfers, and regulatory documentation expertise to ensure timely delivery and scalable production for preclinical and clinical programs.

Qualifications

• PhD/Master’s/Bachelor’s degree in chemistry, life sciences, engineering, or related field with the following years of relevant industry experience: PhD 6+ years, Master’s 9+ years, or Bachelor’s 12+ years
• Experience with Lipid or excipient manufacturing and scale-up is required
• A minimum of 7+ years of manufacturing operations experience in the biopharmaceutical/pharmaceutical industry covering RNA/LNP modalities
• Good understanding of tech transfer, cGMP manufacturing and regulatory requirements for RNA and LNP modalities
• Experience working with cross-functional product development teams, including Research & Development, QA, Pre-clinical and Safety, Regulatory Affairs, and other groups
• Experience with authoring and reviewing early and/or late-stage regulatory filings is required

Responsibilities

• Technical and operational management of manufacturing operations for custom raw materials (Lipids) through their development lifecycle
• Support drug substance (DS) and drug product (DP) manufacturing for preclinical and clinical studies, enabling seamless transition to commercial supply
• Provide guidance and direction for manufacturing strategy, goals, budgets, and other operational activities to ensure timely delivery
• Integrate internal and external team activities into the manufacturing operations and present plans and progress to the Leadership Team as needed
• Manage CDMOs for manufacturing operations, tech transfers, investigations/OOS, and batch documentation reviews
• Responsible for identification and selection of CDMOs for cGMP manufacture for Orna’s portfolio development programs
• Resolve any issues impacting timelines or other critical deliverables, communicate potential impact(s) to management and other key stakeholders, and assist in mitigation plans
• Author regulatory and technical documents for regulatory submissions in support of custom raw materials (Lipids) manufacturing and serve as subject matter expert in regulatory interactions

Skills

Leadership

Entrepreneurial mindset

Travel flexibility

Change management

Analytical thinking

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Education

PhD in chemistry or related field

Master’s in chemistry, life sciences, engineering, or related

Bachelor’s in chemistry, life sciences, engineering, or related

Job description

At Lilly, we unite caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We are a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our employees around the world work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to our communities through philanthropy and volunteerism. We give our best effort to our work, and we put people first. We’re looking for people who are determined to make life better for people around the world.

Overview

At Lilly, we serve an extraordinary purpose. We make a difference for people around the globe by discovering, developing and delivering medicines that help them live longer, healthier, more active lives. Not only do we deliver breakthrough medications, but you also can count on us to develop creative solutions to support communities through philanthropy and volunteerism.

Orna Therapeutics, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company, is an innovative biotechnology startup based in Watertown, MA, committed to developing groundbreaking therapies for diseases that current approaches cannot address. With our pioneering circular RNA technology, developed at MIT, we are at the forefront of advancing the next generation of RNA therapeutics. Our state-of-the-art expression and delivery platform positions us to tackle complex diseases, including B cell-driven autoimmune disorders, B cell malignancies, sickle cell disease, and beyond.

Position Summary

We are seeking an exceptional Senior Advisor, Manufacturing Science and Technology, to join our team. The candidate will manage external manufacturing activities for Orna’s proprietary lipid manufacturing and pipeline support to circular RNA and lipid nanoparticle candidates. Primary responsibilities include working with internal stakeholders and third-party vendors to plan external manufacturing activities. This role will also ensure timely delivery of materials and acting as the primary liaison with external suppliers, logistics providers, and test/manufacturing partners. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience working with a variety of CDMOs for cell and gene therapy or nanoparticle applications and working with internal R&D, CMC and other teams. Furthermore, the candidate will possess strong oral and written communication capabilities, demonstrate excellent organization, collaboration, and interpersonal skills, and be adept at problem solving in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Primary responsibility for technical and operational management of manufacturing operations for custom raw materials (Lipids) through their development lifecycle.
• Support drug substance (DS) and drug product (DP) manufacturing for preclinical and clinical studies, enabling seamless transition to commercial supply.
• Provide guidance and direction for manufacturing strategy, goals, budgets, and other operational activities to ensure timely delivery.
• Integrate internal and external team activities into the manufacturing operations and present plans and progress to the Leadership Team as needed.
• Manage CDMOs for manufacturing operations, tech transfers, investigations/OOS, and batch documentation reviews.
• Responsible for identification and selection of CDMOs for cGMP manufacture for Orna’s portfolio development programs.
• Resolve any issues impacting timelines or other critical deliverables, communicate potential impact(s) to management and other key stakeholders, and assist in mitigation plans.
• Author regulatory and technical documents for regulatory submissions in support of custom raw materials (Lipids) manufacturing and serve as subject matter expert in regulatory interactions.

Basic Requirements

• PhD, Master’s, or Bachelor’s degree in chemistry, life sciences, engineering, or related field with the following years of relevant industry experience: PhD 6+ years, Master’s 9+ years, or Bachelor’s 12+ years
• Experience with Lipid or excipient manufacturing and scale-up is required
• A minimum of 7+ years of manufacturing operations experience in the biopharmaceutical/pharmaceutical industry covering RNA/LNP modalities
• Good understanding of tech transfer, cGMP manufacturing and regulatory requirements for RNA and LNP modalities
• Experience working with cross-functional product development teams, including Research & Development, QA, Pre-clinical and Safety, Regulatory Affairs, and other groups.
• Experience with authoring and reviewing early and/or late-stage regulatory filings is required

Additional Preferences

• Strong leadership skills, including demonstrated ability to work with a cross-functional team, and to influence at all levels of an organization
• An entrepreneurial approach to develop new, innovative ideas that will drive growth within the Manufacturing organization
• Develop effective and efficient working relationships with both internal and external partners. Available to travel if/when needed.
• The ability to effectively plan and implement stage-appropriate change management and set realistic goals to ensure timely and successful completion
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills are necessary along with great attention to detail
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, including presentation to effectively communicate key updates/challenges to the program team
• Detail oriented, self-motivated, and excited to take on new challenges

Additional Information

Physical Demands/Travel

The physical demands of this job are consistent with a lab environment. Travel: 10%

The physical demands here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

Work Environment

This position’s work environment is in a office environment.

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.

• To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the role and responsibilities satisfactorily. The requirements listed above are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Lilly is dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities to actively engage in the workforce, ensuring equal opportunities when vying for positions. If you require accommodation to submit a resume for a position at Lilly, please complete the accommodation request form (https://careers.lilly.com/us/en/workplace-accommodation) for further assistance. Please note this is for individuals to request an accommodation as part of the application process and any other correspondence will not receive a response.

Lilly is proud to be an EEO Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, gender expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other legally protected status.

Our employee resource groups (ERGs) offer strong support networks for their members and are open to all employees. Our current groups include: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia Network, Black Employees at Lilly, Chinese Culture Network, Japanese International Leadership Network (JILN), Lilly India Network, Organization of Latinx at Lilly (OLA), PRIDE (LGBTQ+ Allies), Veterans Leadership Network (VLN), Women’s Initiative for Leading at Lilly (WILL), enAble (for people with disabilities). Learn more about all of our groups.

Actual compensation will depend on a candidate’s education, experience, skills, and geographic location. The anticipated wage for this position is

$141,000 - $228,800

Full-time equivalent employees also will be eligible for a company bonus (depending, in part, on company and individual performance). In addition, Lilly offers a comprehensive benefit program to eligible employees, including eligibility to participate in a company-sponsored 401(k); pension; vacation benefits; eligibility for medical, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; flexible benefits (e.g., healthcare and/or dependent day care flexible spending accounts); life insurance and death benefits; certain time off and leave of absence benefits; and well-being benefits (e.g., employee assistance program, fitness benefits, and employee clubs and activities). Lilly reserves the right to amend, modify, or terminate its compensation and benefit programs in its sole discretion and Lilly’s compensation practices and guidelines will apply regarding the details of any promotion or transfer of Lilly employees.

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