Assistant Director/Senior Assistant Director, Entrepreneur Partnership Program

As the AD/SAD of the Entrepreneur Partnership Program (spinout creation) program at ASTAR, you will play a pivotal role in identifying the gap between early-stage discovery and clinical reality. You are a seasoned scientist-leader with experience in early-stage drug development (e.g. small molecule, biologic (mAb), nucleic acids etc.) in the fields of autoimmune, oncology or metabolic diseases.

The ability to apply scientific first principles across multiple indications is highly valued.

This role requires a blend of high-level strategic thinking, rigorous scientific oversight, and a sharp eye for high value opportunities with the potential to attract investor interests.

Key Responsibilities:

• Due Diligence: Serve as the scientific lead for sourcing and evaluating opportunities for application to the program. You will assess the competitive landscape to provide recommendations for project selection.
• Project management: Provide subject matter expertise in your primary therapeutic area (e.g. Oncology, Immunology, or Metabolism) to guide experimental design and troubleshoot technical hurdles together with the entrepreneur/founder identified for the project.
• Collaborate and coordinate with scientific founder, entrepreneur and operations team to ensure development plans are on track to meet the desired milestones.

Requirements:

• MSc., PhD. or M.D in Pharmacology, Biology, Chemistry, or a related life sciences field.
• Industry Tenure: 6-10+ years of experience. Candidates with experience in Biotech/Pharmaceutical or early-stage life science investments are preferred.
• Analytical Rigor: A detective mindset when reviewing data, with the ability to spot gaps in preclinical packages during due diligence.
• Commercial Instinct: Understanding the Value Inflection Points that make a project attractive to Series A investors or Big Pharma acquirers.
• Leadership: Experience mentoring senior scientists and leading without direct authority in a matrixed environment.
• Communication: Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to translate complex biological mechanisms into clear business cases for stakeholders.