Senior Scientist II, Downstream Development (Scale-Up Laboratory Lead)

About the role

The Biologics CMC Development team at AbbVie is seeking a highly motivated Senior Scientist II to join the Downstream Development team as a Scale-Up Laboratory Purification Leader. This role is within a team of highly experienced scientists and managers who have directly enabled the development/IND submissions of 20+ novel oncology drugs and successfully filed two BLAs.

Responsibilities

• Lead downstream scale-up lab activities and non-GMP material generation to support CMC development, optimization, and transfer of purification processes for biologic candidates across development stages.
• Maintain operational readiness of the scale-up lab, including equipment availability, workflow planning, consumables, and efficient activity scheduling.
• Serve as a subject matter expert and technical lead for downstream scale-up and technology transfer; collaborate with and provide technical guidance to project purification development representatives to support transfer to the scale-up lab and GMP manufacturing.
• Lead downstream technology transfer activities to internal manufacturing sites and external partners, including transfer package preparation, batch support, and resolution of scale-up or execution issues.
• Drive scientific understanding and execution of downstream unit operations, including resin- and membrane-based chromatography, filtration, viral clearance operations, high-concentration UF/DF, and formulation.
• Develop and implement scale-up lab operational workflows, procedures and documentation to enable efficient, reliable, and compliant execution of downstream development activities.
• Design and execute scale-down and scale-up studies to build process understanding, assess robustness, and improve manufacturing readiness.
• Identify and implement next-generation purification platform strategies and workflow improvements to enhance scalability, robustness, efficiency, and cost effectiveness.
• Partner effectively across a matrixed organization with upstream, analytical, drug product, manufacturing, and engineering teams.
• Mentor junior scientists and, where applicable, manage direct reports through strong planning, communication, and scientific judgment.
• Author and review technical reports, development summaries, transfer documentation, and regulatory support documents.
• Work efficiently and collaboratively to meet program milestones while maintaining high standards for safety, documentation, and data integrity.
• Promote a strong safety culture by ensuring scale-up lab activities, equipment use, and material handling practices are executed in accordance with site safety and compliance requirements.

Qualifications

• Basic: Degree in Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, Chemistry, or other relevant scientific discipline with BS and typically 12+ years of experience, MS and typically 10+ years of experience, or PhD and typically 4+ years of experience.
• Significant experience in downstream/purification process development within a biologics CMC environment.
• Demonstrated expertise in process scale-up, scale-down model execution, and technology transfer.
• Must be an AKTA systems expert, including deep hands-on experience with UNICORN software.
• Hands-on experience operating large-scale TFF processes (hundreds of grams; e.g., Allegro, Cytiva, Repligen, or manually operated skids), packing 320 L columns with affinity and polishing resins, using single-use technologies (e.g., SUMs, pre-packed columns, AKTA flow kits, TFF flow kits), operating large-scale filtration processes including depth filtration, virus filtration, and chromatography membrane filtration, and executing large-volume formulations.
• Proven ability to troubleshoot equipment issues and work effectively with vendors on repairs, reliability improvements, and technical feedback.
• Demonstrated leadership skills with ability to lead projects, influence decisions, and mentor others.
• Working knowledge of analytical methods such as HPLC, CE, UV-based quantitation, and impurity characterization used to support downstream development.
• Proven ability to independently design, execute, and interpret experiments to solve complex technical problems.
• Strong understanding of biochemistry and bioprocess engineering principles relevant to downstream development and scale-up.
• Strong attention to detail and documentation practices.

Preferred Experience

• Leading or overseeing a downstream scale-up laboratory or comparable technical development function.
• Hands-on experience supporting transfer of purification processes to pilot-scale, GMP manufacturing, or external CDMOs.
• Experience with monoclonal antibodies, bispecifics, or other complex biologic modalities across multiple scales.
• Experience advancing platform purification strategies or implementing next-generation technologies to improve robustness, cost, and efficiency.
• Knowledge of statistical tools and data analysis approaches that support process understanding and scale-up decisions.

Additional Information

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company's sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law. AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives, and serving our community. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled. US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit here. US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here.