Who We Are

We are a dedicated team of professionals who take our work very seriously, but not ourselves too seriously.  We are driven to deliver new medicines to cancer patients who desperately need solutions.  We are a collection of individuals with diverse backgrounds and personalities, yet all united by this purpose to ignite the precision medicine revolution by delivering targeted therapies for those battling cancers. We are motivated by a profound sense of urgency and passion to create medicines with life-saving potential.  If you enjoy co-elevating your colleagues and want to be part of a team of like-minded individuals united by a relentless pursuit to end cancer, then Kinnate may be the home for you.

Your impact at Kinnate

As the Senior Director- Computational Chemistry you join with a proven record of achievement in advancing small molecule drug discovery programs to development candidates.  You are an experienced computational chemist, who will apply expertise to assist in the development and execution of strategies that advance and expand Kinnate’s drug discovery programs. The successful candidate will partner with both internal and external medicinal chemistry teams to generate innovative solutions to target identification, lead identification, lead optimization and related drug design objectives. You will maintain close interactions with and enable drug design scientists and biologists with impactful computational tools. The ability to thrive in a dynamic team and goal-driven environment is a key attribute.

You must also excel in communication and have the strong interpersonal skills necessary to influence in a collaborative, multidisciplinary environment.

As the Senior Director, Computational Chemistry, you will…

  • Work closely on several multidisciplinary teams at Kinnate concurrently, utilizing modern methods for structure-based and ligand-based design to enable hit-to-lead progression.
  • Identify support needed from CROs and external parties, with a demonstrable ability to prioritize, delegate and manage computational functions performed by outside contractors.
  • Enable project team success with computational expertise, including building and using quality homology models, preparation of crystal structures and ligands, docking and scoring, QSAR, MD simulations, and other in-silico predictive models.   
  • Provide computational chemistry insight for new target identification.
  • Apply expertise in the strategic selection of screening sets, database mining and sophisticated analytics applied to data interpretation of results.
  • Select, procure, and maintain the necessary hardware, software and other computational infrastructure to enable state of the art computational impact on oncology research programs inside Kinnate.
  • Proactively investigate or build impactful technologies/tools enabling Kinnate to improve the effectiveness of drug design, project operations, and data analytics.
  • Contribute to strategic thinking for the discovery organization on individual projects, portfolio and new or outside opportunities.
  • Proactively identify/predict areas of focus and impact to apply computation methods through a comprehensive understanding of ADME, physicochemical properties, biology and safety considerations.

NOTE:  this position summary is not intended to be all-inclusive. Employee may perform other related duties as negotiated to meet the ongoing needs of the organization.

 

The Right Stuff

·         Ph.D. in Chemistry or related field.  

·         Proven experience in small molecule drug discovery across a range of target types, approaches, and drug discovery strategies at a biopharmaceutical company.

·         Possess a working understanding of medicinal chemistry, in vitro and in vivo ADME, and couple that with modeling-driven approaches that extend to aspects of lead optimization beyond potency.

·         Forward thinking in terms of applying modern computational approaches to current scientific challenges. Apprised of the latest scientific breakthroughs in computational chemistry and ability to apply those techniques to good effect.

·         The ideal candidate will be a key thought leader on the team with a passion for bringing creative approaches to solve challenging problems.

·         Independent thinking and open communication style to fit a highly collaborative culture.

·         Excellent interpersonal skills with ability to effectively communicate and collaborate with a multidisciplinary research team, the executive team, and outside CROs and collaborators. Ability to lead the team in prioritization of activities and programs.

·         Ability to multi-task and shift priorities rapidly to meet tight deadlines.

·         Excellent oral and written communication skills, including preparation of presentations is required.

·         This position is based in our company location in San Diego, CA.

 

Kinnate Biopharma Inc. recently closed our $276M initial public offering and are listed on Nasdaq. Prior to that, we closed three significant venture capital financings, including our $98M Series C round in July and August 2020 and our $74.5M Series B round in December 2019.  Kinnate has a passionate and seasoned Team, guided by industry leaders in precision medicine and drug discovery, developing a focused portfolio strategy, and leveraging unique team expertise.  Our Research and Development team is based primarily in San Diego, California and a portion of our management team is based in the San Francisco Bay Area.  We are a small but growing precision oncology company with a bright future. 

 

EEO & EMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY

Kinnate Biopharma Inc. is committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive company. We provide equal opportunity in the terms and conditions of employment for all employees and job applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender identity or gender expression, national origin, disability or veteran status. Kinnate Biopharma Inc. also complies with all applicable national, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements of applicable law.

 

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Kinnate Biopharma, Inc. does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Kinnate or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Kinnate’s internal HR Team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Kinnate, and Kinnate will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

 

This position has been filled. Would you like to see our other open positions?