Careers

Head of Drug Discovery

Curve Therapeutics is seeking to appoint a Head of Drug Discovery to lead its innovative small molecule therapeutic programmes from functional hit to development candidate. Curve is an ambitious, VC-backed drug discovery company that is applying its powerful cell-based functional screening platform to address challenging disease-modifying targets. The company’s vision is to use this platform to develop a pipeline of first-in-class small molecule drugs for the treatment of cancer.

The Head of Drug Discovery is a significant appointment for Curve and the successful applicant will become a core part of the company’s leadership team, based at its headquarters in Southampton, UK.

Key responsibilities:

• Work closely with Curve’s leadership team to plan and execute the company’s drug discovery strategy.
• To oversee the execution of drug discovery research and preclinical activities for Curve’s in-house therapeutic cancer programmes.
• Work with Curve’s leadership team to evaluate new therapeutic targets for the company’s screening platform.
• Management of Curve’s internal synthetic chemistry team, collaborators and CROs
• To communicate the company’s drug discovery programmes to stakeholders, including the board of directors, investors and, where appropriate, the broader scientific community.
• Provide support to Curve’s intellectual property strategy and patent portfolio.
• Lead, manage, develop, and retain the company’s research team
• Promote a culture of professionalism, curiosity, innovation, and collaboration in line with Curve’s goals and values.
• Proactively anticipate obstacles and create and implement solutions to achieve project goals.

Requirements and qualifications:

• PhD in synthetic organic chemistry or related discipline with 10+ years of experience in a drug discovery setting within pharma or biotech
• A broad perspective of cancer drug discovery and development with a successful track record of leading programs from hit to development candidate, especially with novel targets.
• Strong leadership, interpersonal and communication skills with an enthusiasm for participating in a fast-paced environment characterized by rigorous science and innovative thinking
• At home in a results-driven, highly accountable environment where you can make a clear impact
• Successfully engagement and management of external partners such as CROs and collaborators
• Ability to collaborate across teams and a variety of disciplines.

The post is available to start immediately, and Curve will offer a competitive package to the successful candidate. This is a unique opportunity to be involved at a key stage of Curve’s development and to contribute to and shape the company’s innovative drug discovery programmes.

Curve is an equal opportunities employer and we do not discriminate on the grounds of gender, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status, gender reassignment, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability or age.

To informally discuss this position, please contact Prof. Ali Tavassoli via HR@CurvTx.com

To apply for this position, please send your CV and a covering letter by email to HR@CurveTx.com

The closing date for applications is 30 November 2021.