Head, Computational Biology & Bioinformatics

The Head of Computational Biology & Bioinformatics is a strategic role that will lead the design and implementation of Ipsen’s bioinformatics and computational biology strategy and roadmap to advance drug discovery and translational research. As a key scientific leader within the R&D and Medical Data, Analytics and AI (DDAAI) organization, this role will be responsible for building and leading a multi-disciplinary team tasked with standing-up the data and analytics infrastructure that will advance and accelerate Ipsen’s pre-clinical and other research activities.

This role will be tasked with the design, implementation and automation of analytic pipelines for large-scale biologic data analyses and data mining, biomarker discovery and patient stratification, etc. using large-scale omics, clinical and other large multi-modal datasets. This role requires close collaboration with preclinical and clinical teams to enable data-driven decisions across the research and development pipeline.

This is a hands-on, data-centric role ideal for someone who thrives in a fast-paced, interdisciplinary environment and wants to help build transformative capabilities in support of a fast-growing pre-clinical and clinical portfolio.

Main Responsibilities & Technical Competencies

• Define and execute Ipsen’s bioinformatics and Computational Biology strategy aligned with company’s research ambitions and therapeutic and scientific priorities.

• Partner with IT and R&D on implementation of an internal Bioinformatics and data and analytics environment and lead the implementation of analytics bioinformatics capabilities for large-scale analytics on a broad set of biologic data.

• Collaborate with pre-clinical and clinical teams to conceptualize new analyzes and analytic approaches that will enable various modeling and simulations approaches (e.g. disease progression modelling, immune response simulation, PK/PD modelling, etc.).

• Partner with translational scientists, clinicians, etc. to translate omics, preclinical, and clinical data into actionable insights and hypotheses.

• Guide the integration of multi-omics data (genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics) to support target discovery and validation.

• Conceptualize and develop AI/ML models for target discovery/prioritization, drug re-purposing, and predictive analytics.

• Forge robust collaborations across pre-clinical, clinical, regulatory, and Medical teams to align informatics strategies with business goals.

• Act as the primary thought leader and subject matter expert for bioinformatics, computational biology, and data science more broadly.

• Represent the company in external scientific forums and consortia to remain at the forefront of informatics and translational science.

• Stay abreast of scientific literature and integrate new insights into research activities and evaluation of new technologies and methods.

Administration:

• Lead and grow a multi-disciplinary team of experienced Bioinformaticians and Computational Biology scientists to ensure their professional growth.

• Develop team’s yearly budget and ensure appropriate financial management of team’s activities.

• Manage relationships with internal (e.g. translational research, PK/PD) and external (e.g. CRO, academia) stakeholders.

Continuous Learning and Innovation:

• Stay abreast of advancements in data science, machine learning, and healthcare technologies.

• Mentor and foster collaboration and knowledge sharing across teams.

• Educate and raise awareness around Data Science and its potential in supporting Ipsen’s internal teams to generate buy-in across the organization.

• Actively participate in relevant forums and seek to establish Ipsen as an innovator and thought leader.

HOW - Knowledge & Experience

Knowledge & Experience (essential):

• 10+ years of relevant experience in pharma with hands-on experience building pipelines, analyzing large-scale biologic data, etc. and leadership experience leading bioinformatics/computational biology teams.

• Proven experience leading teams and scaling bioinformatics and/or computational biology function in a matrixed and fast-paced environment.

• Expert skills in data science, computational genomics, and proficiency with common bioinformatics tools (GATK, Nextflow, Seaborn, Biopython, etc.) and data sources (TCGA, UK Biobank, etc.).

• Extensive experience with sequencing platforms (e.g., Illumina, PacBio, Oxford Nanopore) and the design, implementation, and optimization of bioinformatics workflows for large-scale genomic data analysis.

• Expertise in evaluating and selecting sequencing technologies for specific R&D or clinical trial applications

• Solid understanding of human genetics, molecular biology, as well as biological pathways and networks

• Strong shell scripting (bash) and R and/or Python programming skills with focus on biologic data.

• Strong methodological and analytical skills with regard to machine learning, deep learning, NLP and other AI approaches. Proven experience applying these approaches in healthcare space.

• Strong communication skills and the ability to convey complex technical concepts to diverse audiences.

Education / Certifications (essential):

• PhD in Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, Biostatistics, Computer Science, or related fields.

Language(s) (essential):

• Fluent in English.

• Medical terminology

The role can be hired at the Director or Senior Director level based on the candidate's experience, education and job-related knowledge.

The annual base salary range for this position at the Director level is $177,000 - $259,000.

The annual base salary range for this position at the Senior Director level is $217,500 - $319,000.

This job is eligible to participate in our short-term incentives program. At Ipsen we are proud to offer a comprehensive employee benefits package, including 401(k) with company contributions, group medical, dental and vision coverage, life and disability insurance, short- and long-term disability insurance, as well as flexible spending accounts. Ipsen also provides parental leave, paid time off, a discretionary winter shutdown, well-being allowance, commuter benefits, and much more.

The pay range displayed above is the range of base pay compensation within which Ipsen expects to pay for this role at the time of this posting. Individual compensation within this range depends on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, prior education and experience, job-related knowledge and demonstrated skills.