Director/Senior Director of Biology, Aro Biotherapeutics

Company Overview

Aro Biotherapeutics is pioneering the development of tissue-targeted genetic medicines with a platform based on a proprietary protein technology called Centyrins. The Company is developing a wholly owned pipeline of Centyrin-based therapeutic candidates and is working with industry partners to leverage Centyrins for tissue-specific targeting of therapeutics for a diverse set of diseases. In early 2021, the Company completed one of the largest Series A financings in Philadelphia for a life sciences company.

The Position

Aro Biotherapeutics is building a growing Biology team to identify and characterize novel Centyrin-based therapeutics. This is an exciting opportunity to join the company and play a key role progressing the first Centyrin-siRNA drug candidate to the clinic and expand the applications for Centyrin-oligonucleotide conjugates. The candidate will be responsible for managing the biology activities for our muscle and cardiovascular programs, including efforts to bring a molecule to the clinic as part of a larger cross functional team. Responsibilities will also include defining the long-term strategy for muscle and cardiovascular diseases.

Reporting into the Senior Vice President of Discovery and Translational Research, the new Director/Senior Director of Biology will be a pivotal member of a dynamic team committed to creating a new class of transformative medicines for patients. This is a leadership position with responsibility for a team of scientists and requires team-oriented and positive "can-do" attitude.

Responsibilities

• Manage discovery activities for lead molecule and future metabolic/muscle/cardiovascular programs
• Provide support as a key member of a cross functional team to bring a Centyrin:siRNA conjugate to the clinic including activities required for IND submission
• Provide strategic guidance to the leadership team around metabolic, muscle and cardiovascular diseases
• Oversee the design and execution of in vivo pharmacology studies to assess drug candidates
• Regularly present work to internal project teams and R&D Leadership
• Manage an existing and growing team of scientists and investigators
• Hands on benchwork not required but acceptable
• Comply with laboratory safety procedures and maintain compliant laboratory records of experiments
• The candidate will need to work onsite at least 80% of the workweek
• Experience with designing and operationalizing early clinical trials, ideally with programs focused on neuromuscular diseases and/or immune mediated diseases

Qualifications

The ideal candidate for this position will bring possess strong leadership, management, and communication skills. Aro is building a culture rooted in flexibility and adaptability. The Company is doing incredibly novel work and a roll-up-the-sleeves and open-minded mindset are required.

• PhD in biological sciences, with >7 years of experience in pharma or biotech
• Understanding of the fundamentals of drug discovery and development
• Experienced in molecular and cell biology; understanding of metabolic diseases is a plus
• Proficiency in the independent design and analysis of experiments. Significant understanding of data analysis, reproducibility, and reliability of experimental data
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in a matrixed and highly collaborative team
• Demonstrated management experience of both scientists and Ph.D.s
• Strong communication skills, both written and oral with an ability to organize and communicate complex data sets in a clear and concise manner
• Experience authoring peer-reviewed scientific publications and presenting at scientific conferences
• Proven track record of being personable, energetic, responsive, action-oriented, and accountable