Principal Consultant, Regulatory CMC
About Opus Regulatory
For more than 30 years, Opus Regulatory has provided strategic guidance to industry partners through expert consultants in key practice areas: Regulatory Strategy, CMC, Labeling, Ad Promo, Medical Review, and Medical Information. Our team of senior-level leaders and innovators provides project-specific contributions or ongoing support through the regulatory process. Opus provides customized solutions to meet the challenges and restrictions faced by our clients - from startup biotechs to mid-to-large size pharmaceutical companies.
Role Overview
The Principal Consultant, Regulatory CMC serves as a senior regulatory advisor to one or more clients, developing and implementing risk-informed CMC regulatory strategies across the product lifecycle. The Principal Consultant provides strategic leadership for CMC development and submissions, guides cross-functional technical teams, leads CMC interactions with health authorities, and builds trusted relationships with client stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities for Client Teams
- Serve as a senior Regulatory CMC advisor to client teams, providing tailored guidance on CMC development, manufacturing, analytical and control strategies, regulatory submissions, and health authority interactions.
- Develop and implement risk-informed CMC regulatory strategies aligned with each client's product development, commercialization objectives, program risks, and organizational needs.
- Translate technical data, development decisions, and manufacturing changes into clear regulatory strategies and submission plans.
- Proactively identify CMC regulatory risks, gaps, and critical dependencies and recommend practical mitigation strategies.
- Lead CMC regulatory planning and content strategy for health authority meeting packages, INDs, IMPDs, NDAs, BLAs, MAAs, amendments, annual reports, supplements, and variations.
- Author, review, and provide strategic oversight of Module 3 content and other complex CMC regulatory and technical documents.
- Lead preparation for and participation in CMC meetings and other interactions with FDA, EMA, and other health authorities, as applicable.
- Direct the development of responses to health authority questions and requests for information in collaboration with cross-functional technical teams.
- Advise clients on comparability, change management, regulatory commitments, CMC compliance, and post-approval lifecycle strategies.
- Represent Regulatory CMC on cross-functional teams and partner effectively with Process Development, Manufacturing, Analytical Development, Quality, Supply Chain, and other functions.
- Monitor evolving CMC regulatory requirements, guidance, and precedents and translate them into actionable recommendations for clients.
- Build trusted client relationships and identify opportunities for Opus to provide additional support, as appropriate.
Key Responsibilities for the Internal Opus Team
- Provide strategic and quality oversight of client deliverables.
- Mentor and support other Opus consultants.
- Contribute to internal knowledge sharing, tools, templates, and best practices.
- Collaborate with colleagues across Regulatory Strategy, CMC, Labeling, and Advertising and Promotion to address client needs.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in a scientific, technical, engineering, or related discipline.
- Minimum of 15 years of progressive pharmaceutical or biotechnology industry experience, including at least 10 years focused on Regulatory CMC. Regulatory CMC consulting experience may be a surrogate for some industry experience.
- Demonstrated ability to independently develop and lead CMC regulatory strategies for complex drug and/or biologic development programs.
- Direct experience interacting with FDA and leading CMC health authority meetings and major regulatory submissions.
- Experience across at least two product modalities, such as small molecules, monoclonal antibodies, conjugates, vaccines, cell therapies, or gene therapies.
- Strong knowledge of US and ICH CMC regulatory requirements, CTD structure, and the ability to apply that knowledge both strategically and operationally.
- Experience authoring, reviewing, and providing strategic oversight of Module 3 content and other complex CMC regulatory and technical documents.
- Ability to interpret complex data and communicate its regulatory implications clearly to technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
- Strong client-facing communication, leadership, and relationship-management skills.
- Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams and influence decisions without direct authority.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities and adapt effectively to changing client and program needs in a consulting environment.
Preferred Qualifications
- Advanced degree in a scientific, technical, engineering, or related discipline.
- Direct experience interacting with EMA and other global health authorities.
- Experience with combination products.
- Experience spanning early development, marketing applications, and post-approval lifecycle management.
- Experience mentoring other Regulatory CMC professionals.
Benefits
Opus is committed to providing benefit-eligible employees with a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your health, financial well-being, and work-life balance. We offer medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage for employees and their eligible family members. Additional benefits include Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability (STD), and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP), a 401(k) plan, and more. To support time away from work, we provide a paid time off package, which includes 20 vacation days, 5 sick days, & 10 paid company holidays annually.