Principal Scientist - Cell Therapy Translational Research

The Cell Therapy Thematic Research Center

The Cell Therapy Thematic Research Center is one of BMS’s differentiated research platforms delivering innovative therapies to patients. Our mission is to drive leadership in the use of cellular therapies to harness the power of the immune system in treating hematologic malignancies, solid cancers, and autoimmune disease. More specifically, our discovery and translational scientists are focused on developing next-generation, engineered cell-based therapies.

Position Summary

The candidate will join the Cellular Therapy Translational Research group in Seattle, WA and will support cell therapy development programs in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The successful candidate will be an experienced, self-motivated, and resourceful researcher responsible for driving and implementing translational development strategies and clinical biomarker plans for BMS cellular therapy clinical studies.

Position Responsibilities

• Develop and implement end-to-end translational research strategies for cell therapy clinical trials
• Partner with biostatisticians and computational biologists to provide timely analysis and communication of data and present its context and impact
• Develop concepts and mechanism of action hypotheses identifying distinguishing characteristics of BMS cell therapy products alone or in combination with other therapies
• Maintain a deep understanding of biomarker assays including flow cytometry, transcriptomics, proteomics and the application and use of these technologies in the clinical trial setting
• Independently manage internal projects in cell therapy drug development
• Serve on internal cross functional project teams and committees as scientific functional lead
• Oversight and management of CROs and academic collaborators
• Communicate regularly and prepare and make presentations within the department, externally, and to internal governance committees as required
• Contribute to the writing of investigator brochures, IND applications, clinical protocols, regulatory annual reports, and other regulatory documents when appropriate
• Support regulatory submissions and interactions, write/review translational sections for global regulatory response and queries

Experience

• Basic Qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree8+ years of academic and / or industry experience Or Master’s Degree6+ years of academic and / or industry experience Or Ph.D. or equivalent advanced degree in the Life Sciences4+ years of academic and / or industry experience
• Preferred Qualifications: M.S. or Ph.D. in immunology, molecular and cellular biology, or relevant disciplineM.S. with 10+ years or Ph.D with 5+ years of experience, preferably in the biotechnology or pharmaceutical industry setting, or demonstrated deep experience in immunology or cell therapy academic researchExpertise in immunology or cellular biology is required, knowledge of fundamentals of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases is desirableFamiliarity with and experience in the drug development process from IND filing to market authorization in an industry setting is desirableExpertise in developing and analyzing biomarkers for clinical trialsExperience analyzing high content (eg, transcriptomic, proteomic) datasetsExcellent communication and interpersonal skills, evidenced by strong ability to interact with and influence research scientists, project teams, outside collaborators and commercial vendorsDetail-oriented with the ability to identify and implement creative solutionsAbility to prioritize and manage time efficiently