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.
Kinnate Biopharma is driven by the urgency of cancer patients who need more effective therapies. We utilize our deep expertise in structure-based drug discovery, translational research and patient-driven precision medicine, which we refer to as our Kinnate Discovery Engine, to develop targeted therapies. Our lead programs include candidates in preclinical development for cancers that are driven by specific oncogenic alterations in either the BRAF kinase gene, or in the FGFR2 and FGFR3 kinase genes. To help move our programs forward, Kinnate has brought together a management team of precision oncology experts and scientific advisors who publish widely-cited research on topics relevant to the study and treatment of cancer and lead clinical units at experienced precision medicine cancer centers in the United States.
Kinnate Biopharma Inc. closed a $276M initial public offering in December 2020 and are listed on NASDAQ (KNTE). 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 San Francisco, California. We are a small but growing precision oncology company with a bright future.
Your impact at Kinnate
We are seeking a Vice President, Head of Translational Medicine who will lead a critical, highly visible role at Kinnate by providing strategic, scientific, and technical leadership to the Translational Medicine Group within Kinnate’s Development Organization.
Reporting to the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), you will manage a team of translational scientists who serve on cross-functional development teams and project teams engaged in the development of Kinnate’s portfolio of targeted cancer medicines and will drive our oncology translational research strategy.
You will have a passion for novel science, an affinity for strategic thinking, an aptitude for looking beyond the day-to-day execution, and a record of leading translational research programs that directly support successful drug development programs.
What You’ll Do At Kinnate
The VP, Head of Translational Medicine will lead a group of translational scientists who develop, implement and manage detailed work plans across the following broad areas of responsibility:
· Pre-clinical Research: Advance our drug candidate molecules thru IND-enabling studies including comprehensive in vitro & in vivo characterization of activity, target engagement and pathway modulation, and explore mechanisms of sensitivity & resistance,
· Clinical Biomarkers: Incorporate quantitative, objective end points and associated analyses into clinical oncology therapeutic studies to demonstrate target engagement, pharmacodynamic (PD) regulation of signaling pathways, and modulation of pharmacologic mechanism
· Patient and Indication Selection: Craft patient selection strategies e.g. based upon comprehensive genomic analysis, conserved signaling pathways or biological mechanisms, and focused preclinical research
· Analytics: Perform large-scale clinic-genomic analyses of public & proprietary clinic-genomic datasets and manage internal bioinformatic requirements to support our Drug Discovery and Translational Research efforts, and
· Companion Diagnostics (CDx): Build and lead companion CDx development and lead these CDx partnerships that directly advance our drug candidates toward approval.
Your team will contribute to and author relevant regulatory submission documents (for example pre-IND, IND, IB, Clinical Protocols, NDA, etc.) and provide strategic guidance on regulatory interactions relating to non-clinical and translational aspects of drug development.
You and your team will develop and implement plans for external communication of our translational research in top tier scientific forums.
It will be critical for you to build key partnerships with Kinnate colleagues and stakeholders across intenral functional groups - including Drug Discovery, PKDM and Non-clinical Development (Toxicology); in addition to also building relationships and/or establishing collaborations with scientific leaders, KOLs, academic partners, CROs, and health authorities.
The Right Stuff
· PhD or M.D. (or MD equivalent) in Cancer Biology with a minimum of 12+ years of relevant drug discovery & translational research experience in a biopharmaceutical organization
· Expert level knowledge caner biology, signal transduction pathways and targeted therapy drug development
· Significant experience in developing relevant in vitro & in vivo translational disease models and applying them to support the advancement of targeted cancer therapeutics
· Demonstrated know-how in the identification and validation of translational biomarkers to support informed decisions in pre- and clinical settings.
· Strategic thinker with outstanding scientific excellence and accomplishments in cancer drug development demonstrated by successful IND filings/clinical PoCs, strong publication record, patents, and/or conference presentations.
· Experience in authoring non-clinical study reports & sections of regulatory documents.
- Demonstrated track record of managing technical activities at external partners and/or CROs and analysis/interpretation of results to drive projects to IND filing and clinical PoC.
- Proven experience in building a high performing team. You can recruit and develop top talent, motivate and empower a team, work cross-functionally, and delegate effectively.
- Excellent communicator.
- Understand relationships are key and have strong interpersonal skills.
- Proficient team-builder and talent-developer; teams love working with you and you are someone who takes pride in mentoring and supporting the careers of others.
- You can thrive in a smaller company environment and love the pace of a true p.
- To thrive at Kinnate, you must team player and leader who is also willing to roll-up your sleeves to get the job done
· Exhibit values-based leadership is consistent with Kinnate Biopharma’s Core Value
· Must be willing and available for periodic travel including domestic US and internationally as required.
· This position can be based in San Diego or San Francisco.
· Kinnate is a science-driven company. We expect every employee to be vaccinated against the COVID19 virus, and we require that vaccination to work in the office.
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