Associate Director/Director

Totus Medicines is an innovative therapeutic drug discovery biotech that has developed a platform focused on targeted covalent drugs. This novel proprietary platform will enable Totus to deliver candidates against challenging targets in months, not years - 100,000 times faster than competitive technologies and has the potential to expand the spectrum of drug targets to be screened for any disease process. Totus discovered its first-in-class covalent program in 4 months and entered Phase I in 2023. Totus also plans to expand their platform to create therapeutics targeted at neurodegeneration, infectious diseases, and others. We are searching for talented, passionate, agile candidates to join our team. This broadly impactful role will report to the Head of Platform and manage a team providing leadership in the selection, assessment, and preparation of targets for phenotypic DEL screening using the Totus Discovery Platform. The Platform Biology team will also lead efforts to confirm, validate, and characterize resulting small molecule hit compounds engaging protein targets of interest in addressing multiple disease areas. Responsibilities: Provide leadership and oversight to the Platform Biology team; partner with adjacent function leaders to ensure the successful execution of chemical library screens. This will cover internal Totus campaigns, as well as those conducted with partner organizations. Oversee the engineering and generation of protein reagents vital for executing successful screens. Develop capabilities and expertise to support the confirmation and characterization of covalent and non-covalent small molecule hits in biochemical, biophysical, and cellular assays. Provide ongoing coaching and mentorship in target biology and preclinical compound characterization and ensure sufficient expertise to support the organization. In partnership with other key stakeholders on the Totus Platform team, continue to develop and evolve the platform technology to incorporate new chemical, biological, and technical capabilities. Keep pace with technology industry trends and implications for the business. What You Will Bring: PhD in chemical biology, biophysics, enzymology, or a related field. 5+ (AD) or 10+ (director) years of experience developing, implementing, and executing characterization assays supporting small molecule drug discovery. 2+ (AD) or 5+ (director) years of relevant management experience. Proven track-record of leadership and achievement in drug discovery; familiarity with DNA-encoded library screening would be highly beneficial. Ability and desire to work in a fast-paced, hard-working, multi-disciplinary, start-up environment. Excellent organizational skills and ability to prioritize and deliver results. Excellent communication and influencing skills and a desire to work collaboratively and lead in a matrix environment. Familiarity with oncology, metabolic disease, inflammation, or neurodegenerative disease drug discovery is highly desirable. Compensation Range: Associate Director: $150,600 - $194,200 Director: $189,000 - $243,800