Scientific Director – Antibody Discovery

Company Description

Eurofins Scientific is an international life sciences company, providing a unique range of analytical testing services to clients across multiple industries, to make life and our environment safer, healthier and more sustainable. From the food you eat, to the water you drink, to the medicines you rely on, Eurofins laboratories work with the biggest companies in the world to ensure the products they supply are safe, their ingredients are authentic and labelling is accurate.

The Eurofins network of companies is the global leader in food, environment, pharmaceutical and cosmetic product testing and in agroscience Contract Research Organization services. It is one of the market leaders in certain testing and laboratory services for genomics, discovery pharmacology, forensics, advanced material sciences and in the support of clinical studies, as well as having an emerging global presence in Contract Development and Manufacturing Organizations. It also has a rapidly developing presence in highly specialized and molecular clinical diagnostic testing and in-vitro diagnostic products.

In over 30 years, Eurofins has grown from one laboratory in Nantes, France to 58,000 staff across a decentralized and entrepreneurial network of 900 laboratories in over 54 countries. Eurofins companies offer a portfolio of over 200,000 analytical methods to evaluate the safety, identity, composition, authenticity, origin, traceability and purity of biological substances and products.

In 2024, Eurofins generated total revenues of EUR € 6,515 billion, and has been among the best performing stocks in Europe over the past 20 years.

Job Description

The Scientific Director will support the Biotherapeutic Services Business as a scientific leader for technical and laboratory operations and direct client management. This role requires technical and strategic leadership, managerial competencies, and proficiency with client consultation within a contract research organization. This role may include up to 25% travel.

Scientific Director – Antibody Discovery responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

The Scientific Director, Antibody Discovery for Biotherapeutic Services is a scientific leadership position, responsible for providing guidance for establishing and growing antibody discovery platforms and alignment between our customer base, the industry at large, commercial teams and service operations. This role will be collaborative and influential in a broad network of business functions in support of driving business growth, brand recognition, and alignment with Eurofins core competencies of delivering high quality services to our valued customers. The successful candidate will:

• Spend time in the lab to define, develop and/or expand antibody discovery platforms in BTX
• Develop client and stakeholder relationships through technical leadership and collaboration
• Deliver scientific leadership to executive management in developing portfolio strategy, new growth areas and new technology planning
• Lead scientific community through external marketing, industry reputation and brand awareness
• Provide leadership in establishing and monitoring unit research and development objectives and commercial lifecycle management
• Provide technical leadership to lab operations, business development and marketing team
• Support client services team in generating proposals, RFPs, study plans and scope of work preparation. Assists pricing team in completing custom pricing and cost analysis
• May act as Study Director for specific projects to ensure timely delivery of project updates, data and reports to clients
• Understand requirements for work performed within a GxP site in order to work with other organizations within the Eurofins family
• Complete required training and support 100% of Employee Health and Safety requirements
• Conduct responsible use of confidential IT and business systems, as required
• Adhere to department SOP and documentation requirements
• Ensure accurate data management and reporting, with the highest integrity, and perform quality control, when required, on project data and reports
• Support unit goals and demonstrate Eurofins’ competencies, as defined in the job plan
• Provide training to colleagues and external end users, when required
• Perform other duties, as assigned

Qualifications

Basic Minimum Educational Requirements:

• B.S., M.A., or M.S. with 12 years relevant experience
• Ph.D. with 7 years relevant experience

​​​​​​Basic Minimum Qualifications:

• Senior-level scientific experience and knowledge in supporting all aspects of antibody discovery
• Demonstrated expertise and experience with antibody discovery by hybridoma generation, B- and Plasma cell isolation and V-region sequence recovery, and display systems
• Antibody engineering, humanization, germlining, CDR-scanning and affinity maturation
• Molecular cloning, including restriction enzyme-based cloning, Gibson assembly cloning and ligation-independent cloning.
• DNA and RNA extraction, purification and handling
• Experience in analyzing NGS data, pairing heavy and light chains, identifying sequence liabilities and optimization thereof
• Demonstrated experience with developing client/external relationships, supporting technical correspondence, drafting and presenting scientific proposals to clients or collaborators
• Experience in collaborating with cross-functional teams (research, regulatory, pharmacology, safety) to guide growth and advancement of the platform from concept to pre-clinical development
• Experience building, leading and managing internal scientific teams and directing /influencing external resources
• Proven experience with portfolio management, portfolio expansion and research/development in an industry setting
• Demonstrated experience in working effectively with different stakeholders with an interest in antibody discovery, including Business Development, Client Services and internal contributors
• Demonstrated reputation as a key opinion provider and industry influencer via publications, networking and presentation experience
• Experience with leading cross-functional teams effectively
• Demonstrated experience in strategic planning and managing portfolio growth initiatives
• Authorization to work in the United States indefinitely without restriction or sponsorship. 

The Ideal Candidate Possesses the Following:

• Demonstrated ability to build and lead a Scientific team
• Appropriate technical capabilities to support therapeutic and tool antibody discovery
• Demonstrated ability to identify and introduce new technology (equipment and techniques) to grow capabilities
• Demonstrates a positive attitude, capacity for team environment, and exhibits a genuine interest in drug discovery in support of advancing human health
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal and written skills, including ability to prepare detailed scientific reports and group presentations
• Ability to plan and coordinate multiple projects simultaneously, with appropriate allocation of available resources

Additional Information

Position is full-time, working Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm, with overtime as needed. Candidates currently living within a commutable distance of St. Charles, MO are encouraged to apply. Candidates must be comfortble with 25% travel requirements. 

• Excellent full-time benefits including comprehensive medical coverage, dental, and vision options
• Life and disability insurance
• 401(k) with company match
• Paid vacation and holidays

Eurofins USA Discovery Services is a Disabled and Veteran Equal Employment Opportunity employer.