VP Medicinal Chemistry - Biopharma

The VP Medicinal Chemistry will be accountable for developing a long-term vision and strategy for Chemistry and molecule discovery broadly, and will be expected to contribute to disease area strategies within these therapy areas. Working as part of a global leadership team the role holder will be accountable for developing the future of the Medicinal Chemistry capability, while building trusting relationships with senior scientific colleagues internally and externally to AstraZeneca. In addition to having a strong track record for successful delivery of clinical candidates, the role holder will be a leader in the creation and adoption of Artificial Intelligence methods within chemistry design and synthesis, with experience of the discovery of novel small molecule modalities including PROTACs and Molecular Glues. They will be a recognised leader in the field of Medicinal Chemistry with an extensive external network and scientific presence and will be expected to initiate and lead external collaborations and partnerships to create new capability and to deliver new science into the AstraZeneca portfolio.The role will lead a department of Medicinal, Synthetic, Analytical and Computational chemists delivering deep technical and scientific expertise for the optimisation of novel small molecule leads and candidates for a diverse portfolio of projects within Cardiovascular, Renal, Metabolic, Respiratory and Immune Disease portfolios at AstraZeneca. The role holder will have a track record of the successful application of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning methods in molecule discovery, design and optimisation and will lead a high performing department with a passion for scientific delivery and innovation.Key AccountabilitiesDelivery of a portfolio of small molecule, PROTAC, molecular glue and drug-conjugate projects to candidate selectionThe scientific and people leadership of a department of >120 scientists across AstraZenca sites in the disciplines of Medicinal, Synthetic, Analytical and Computational chemistryThe management of >100 synthetic chemistry roles at CRO partners, together with the development of a future resourcing strategy for the department.The identification and implementation of novel Medicinal, Synthetic and Computational Chemstry technologies, including the use of Artifical Intelligence methods, to advance the capabilityRepresent department on cross organisational teams accountable for the delivery of the AstraZeneca portfolio; this will include membership of therapy area leadership teams and matrix governance committeesDrive innovation, scientific excellence and external visibility of the Chemistry capability through internal scientific/technological development, external collaborations, publications and conference presentationsBuild and maintain a high performing team environment, with full engagement of staff and a commitment to continuous improvement.Manage headcount allocation and expense, capital, and collaboration budgets to maximize impact and delivery to R&D, and ensure high standards for SHE and governance compliance

Education/Skills & Experience:

Essential:

PhD/Post-doc in Chemistry discipline with >20 years experience in a drug discovery environmentTrack record of leading large groups in highly matrixed science and technology based organisations and evidence of ability to shape groups to the needs of the business.Track record of successfully delivering small molecule candidate drugs into the clinicA proven scientific track record of innovation and application of Artificial Intelligence methods in molecule discoveryProven ability to create new research strategies to drive organisational successSignificant experience in the leadership of drug discovery projectsDemonstrated ability to build and sustain collaborative relationships with scientific and leadership teams at local and remote research sites, and to initiate and successfully deliver value from external collaborationsExperience in project management, change management and/or implementation of process optimization approachesProven ability to recruit, retain and develop people to build a world-class organisationBroad industrial and academic network with key stakeholders and innovation leaders internationally

Desirable:

Experience of the development of informatics tools to enable integrated analysis of chemistry dataExperience in drug discovery within Cardiovascular, Renal, Metabolic, Respiratory or Immune diseases

Date Posted

16-Dec-2025

Closing Date

15-Dec-2025

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