Director / Sr. Director, Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering

Director / Sr. Director, Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering

Dragonfly Therapeutics is seeking a highly motivated and talented Director to lead a team towards strategic goals in therapeutic antibody discovery and protein engineering. They will utilize extensive scientific and managerial experience to enhance operational efficiency and scientific excellence. The role demands experience and deep understanding of immunization approaches, display technology, hybridomas, NGS, and in vitro platforms. The Director will be responsible for building robust yeast display workflows and incorporating automation. They will report to the Executive Director and be accountable for the group's performance, leading with collaboration, transparency, urgency, and commitment to program progression to DC stage and beyond. Moreover, the Director will set high standards for antibody-based discovery, optimization, and engineering, streamlining workflows, and leading programs from discovery to IND with a strong focus on team engagement and innovation.

Responsibilities (including but not limited to):

• Manage all relevant aspects of Antibody Discovery and Protein Engineering of monoclonal, bi-/multi-specific antibodies and Fc-Fusion proteins (4+ direct reports)
• Technical lead for discovery of antibodies and selection of lead candidates using yeast display technologies and hybridoma approaches
• Support humanization, affinity maturation and protein optimization libraries to improve biophysical and biochemical properties of biologics
• Establish immune libraries to discover new antibodies and biologics
• Analyze protein structures and protein structure modeling to rationally design biologics
• Design and generated complex biologics for in vitro and in vivo validation
• Work collaboratively within Protein Sciences and broader Research department to discover fit-for-purpose and developable biologic therapies
• Maintain high level of operation compliance for ELN, LIMS, technical reports and records to support technology transfer to internal or external groups as well as to support regulatory filings
• Lead technology development in antibody engineering and contribute to broadening Dragonfly’s intellectual portfolio

Qualifications

• PhD with 12+ years of industry experience in antibody discovery, molecular biology, structural biology, protein engineering, or protein production.
• Proven ability to design and execute protein engineering strategies to deliver developable biologics formats by applying molecular biology, structure-guided, computational, combinatorial/display approaches.
• Proven ability to mentor a team of antibody engineers and molecular biology scientists responsible for designing, generating, and characterizing antibody-based therapeutics.
• Experience with a variety of antibody discovery approaches including mouse immunization, humanized mice, camelid antibodies, synthetic and immune display libraries.
• Familiarity with bispecific/multispecific antibody formats and Fc-fusion proteins
• Up to date on scientific advancement (e.g. therapeutic landscape, new technology, and new partnerships).
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, ability to collaborate and communicate across disciplines 
• Excellent organizational skills, with the ability to multi-task in a fast-paced environment