Associate Director Drug Substance Biologics

The Associate Director Drug Substance Biologics will provide technical strategic and hands-on operational leadership for all CMC activities related to drug substance development and manufacturing with a primary focus on Biologics at all stages of development (IND-enabling to commercialization).

The Associate Director Drug Substance will be responsible for overseeing the process development manufacturing and release of drug substances at CDMOs ensuring manufacturing operations align with program timelines quality standards and regulatory requirements. This position requires deep expertise in biologics drug substance manufacturing (either cell culture or downstream purification) strong technical problem-solving abilities and proven experience managing complex manufacturing operations with external partners. You will play a critical role in accelerating our mission of bringing new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently.

Responsibilities

Development and Manufacturing Strategy Operations and Oversight

• • Lead drug substance manufacturing strategy and execution for programs from preclinical through commercial stages ensuring alignment with program objectives timelines and budget constraints.
  • Serve as the primary technical interface with CDMOs for drug substance manufacturing activities. Establish and maintain strong partnerships lead technical discussions and ensure manufacturing excellence across external manufacturing network.
  • Oversee cell culture and downstream purification activities related to process development and manufacturing for both microbial and mammalian expression systems. Ensure manufacturing processes are robust scalable and compliant with cGMP requirements.
  • Provide technical guidance and oversight for manufacturing campaigns including batch record review and approval deviation investigations change control assessments and resolution of manufacturing issues
  • Support scale-up activities from clinical to commercial manufacturing including process optimization and validation. Identify and implement continuous improvement opportunities.
  • Develop comprehensive manufacturing plans and schedules in collaboration with Project Management Clinical Supply and Commercial teams. Track manufacturing timelines and proactively manage risks to ensure on-time delivery of drug substance for clinical trials and commercial supply.
  • Lead technical assessments and qualification of new CDMOs for drug substance manufacturing. Conduct site audits and ongoing performance monitoring. Manage relationships with multiple manufacturing partners across different geographic regions

Additional Core CMC Responsibilities (Quality Regulatory & Cross-Functional)

• • Ensure all manufacturing activities comply with cGMP regulations ICH guidelines and internal quality standards. Support regulatory inspections and audits at manufacturing sites. Review and approve batch records protocols and manufacturing-related documentation.
  • Author and review CMC sections of regulatory submissions (INDs BLAs CTAs) related to drug product manufacturing process validation and manufacturing site changes. Support responses to health authority questions.
  • Partner closely with Drug Product Manufacturing Analytical Development Quality Assurance Regulatory Affairs Clinical Supply and Program Management leads to ensure seamless integration of manufacturing activities into overall program execution.
  • Collaborate with procurement to ensure timely contracting for drug substance manufacturing.

About You 

• MS or Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering Pharmaceutical Sciences Biochemistry Biotechnology or related discipline.
• 6+ years of experience in the biopharmaceutical industry with hands-on experience in biologics drug substance manufacturing (either cell culture or downstream purification)
• Demonstrated track record of successfully managing drug substance manufacturing campaigns for biologics (proteins monoclonal antibodies antibody-drug conjugates or other large molecules) from preclinical through late-stage clinical or commercial manufacturing.
• Technical expertise in either cell culture or downstream purification for process development manufacturing process characterization and process validation for biologics.
• Extensive experience working with CDMOs including site selection technology transfers manufacturing oversight and performance management. Proven ability to troubleshoot complex manufacturing issues and drive continuous improvement initiatives.

Formation Bio is prioritizing hiring in key hubs primarily the New York City and Boston metro areas. These positions will follow a hybrid work model with 1-3 days required at the office.  Applicants from the Research Triangle (NC) and San Francisco Bay Area may also be considered. Please only apply if you reside in these locations or are willing to relocate.

Compensation Range: $185000 - $235000

Salary ranges are informed by a number of factors including geographic location. The range provided includes base salary only. In addition to base salary we offer equity comprehensive benefits generous perks hybrid flexibility and more. If this range doesn't match your expectations please still apply because we may have something else for you.

You will receive consideration for employment without regard to race color religion gender gender identity or expression sexual orientation national origin genetics disability age or veteran status.

What We Do

Formation Bio is a tech-driven pharma company differentiated by radically more efficient drug development. Formation Bio has built a technology platform that optimizes all aspects of drug development enabling more efficient trial design faster trial completion and higher quality trial data capture. Formation Bio acquires clinical-stage drugs from pharma and biotech and develops them faster and more efficiently unlocking greater value per program and accelerating access to new treatments for patients. Join our culture of innovation where your work directly contributes to transforming patient care in areas such as rheumatology dermatology CNS and cardiometabolic diseases. Our dynamic environment blends advanced technology with strategic drug development speeding up the delivery of new treatments. Here every role plays a part in our mission to bring new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently.

Why Work With Us

Our mission is our roadmap and north star. We are an impact-driven culture that hires for intelligence and low egos. We believe that the best employees are both smart and ambitious but also demonstrate humility and curiosity.

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