FL83: Head of Computational Protein Design

What if… you could join an organization that is discovering and developing an entirely new class of medicines, one that leverages both chemistry and biology, to overcome many of the challenges faced by current therapeutics today?

Company Summary:

Flagship Labs 83, Inc. (FL83) is a privately held, early-stage biotechnology company on a mission to make biology better through chemistry. We are pioneering the development of a transformational new class of medicines, called Artificial BiologicsTM, that is unlocked by novel synthetic and computational technologies. We seek an exceptional Computational Scientist to join our entrepreneurial and innovation-driven organization.

FL83 was founded in Flagship Pioneering’s venture creation engine, where companies such as Moderna Therapeutics (NASDAQ: MRNA), Rubius Therapeutics (NASDAQ: RUBY) and Generate Biomedicines were conceived and created. Since Flagship’s founding in 2000, the firm has originated and fostered the development of more than 100 scientific ventures resulting in over $34 billion in aggregate value, more than 500 issued patents and more than 50 clinical trials for novel therapeutic agents.

Position Summary:

Flagship Labs 83 is looking for a protein design leader to establish and grow our Artificial BiologicsTM platform as Head of Computational Protein Design team. As part of the early leadership team this individual will work closely with the founding team at Flagship Pioneering and be responsible for all aspects of building the Computational Protein Design platform including creating and developing protein design pipelines, data capture and analysis, infrastructure buildout, team recruitment and management, and cross-functional collaboration.

We envision a Computational Protein Design platform that spans multiple Artificial BiologicsTM modalities and seek a leader with broad experience in protein design approaches including structure modeling and prediction, molecular docking, and multi-parameter optimization. This individual will also have experience working to advance protein and/or peptide therapeutics cross-functionally with platform and biology teams. This leader ­­­­­will ensure the Computational Protein Design team works closely with the Platform Development and Biology teams to implement rapid design-build-test iteration cycles that leverage data captured throughout the process to develop structural design and physiochemical property optimization using cutting-edge machine-learning and algorithmic approaches.

Responsibilities:

• Manage the portfolio of projects within the Computational Protein Design group and oversee planning, prioritization, capacity projection, and on-time delivery of protein designs
• Develop and lead a best-in-class protein design team by attracting top-talent in the protein design space who combine a clear grasp of protein-science fundamentals with the ability to work with the latest in machine-learning advances
• Guide the team on decision making related to algorithmic choices, generation protocols, and models for peptides, proteins, and biopolymer libraries (Artificial BiologicsTM)
• Implement a variety of data capture methods to iteratively improve design protocols, algorithms, and models
• Be accountable for measuring and reporting on the impact of these data
• Work closely with the Platform Development and Biology groups to support pipeline programs and platform-development activities, coordinating on project planning and prioritization to ensure clear communication between protein-design and protein-production and testing workflows
• Advise the leadership team on staff and resource needs, organizational planning, technology development, and other aspects as FL83 continues to grow

Qualifications:

• PhD in a protein science or computational biology related discipline.
• 10+ years of experience in computational modeling, protein design, and protein engineering.
• 5+ years of management experience.
• Experience with general-purpose programming languages (preferably Python)
• Experience with cloud computing (AWS preferred)
• Comfort with modern software engineering practices such as version control, code reviews, unit testing, and continuous integration
• Experience with molecular modeling tools (Rosetta, Schrodinger, MOE, etc.)
• Track record of successful leadership, management, and development of multi-disciplinary teams
• Strong desire to be part of a founding team and help build the next great biotechnology company from the ground up

Flagship Pioneering and our ecosystem companies are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies*: Flagship Pioneering and its affiliated Flagship Lab companies (collectively, “FSP”) do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Flagship Pioneering’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.*