Job Introduction
Associate Director / Director, Medicinal Chemistry (ADCs)
Location: Hoddesdon UK (Hybrid)
Shape the future of targeted therapeutics
Pharmaron is seeking an experienced medicinal chemistry leader to drive the design and delivery of cutting-edge drug discovery programmes, with a particular focus on antibody‑drug conjugates (ADCs) and emerging modalities.
The opportunity
You will lead end-to-end medicinal chemistry strategy, partnering with global, multidisciplinary teams to deliver high-quality candidates across diverse therapeutic areas. You will also play a key role in expanding integrated drug discovery expertise in ADCs.
Key responsibilities
- Lead and deliver medicinal chemistry strategies from hit identification to candidate selection
- Lead on capability building, delivering project strategy and molecule design for ADCs including next generation linker‑payload combinations
- Maintain a high degree of understanding of internal and external developments relevant to the design and optimisation of next generation targeted approaches (ADCs and SM drug conjugates)
- Drive scientific excellence in compound design, ensuring clear hypotheses and robust data‑led decision making
- Provide insightful medicinal chemistry critique across the IDD portfolio
- Work closely with CADD, in vitro biology, in vivo pharmacology and DMPK teams to design and advance compounds across discovery programmes, contributing scientific insight, data interpretation and chemistry leadership
- Provide leadership to global project teams, including close collaboration with China‑based experimental teams
- Partner with clients and internal stakeholders to ensure efficient programme delivery
- Communicate programme strategy, progress and outcomes to senior leadership and external partners
- Support business development, proposal development and scientific positioning to strengthen the ADC design capabilities
- Represent Pharmaron at international conferences, client meetings and industry events
- Contribute to IP strategy and patent drafting for client projects.
About you
You are a scientific leader with deep expertise in medicinal chemistry and experience operating in complex, fast‑paced drug discovery environments.
Experience
- PhD in Chemistry/Medicinal Chemistry (or equivalent experience)
- 10+ years in drug discovery within a leading pharma, biotech or CRO
- Proven track record of delivering candidates into clinical development
- Experience of delivering ADC molecules through hit expansion and further optimisation in a discovery and preclinical environment
- Ideally you will also have experience managing external collaborations and client‑facing projects
Technical expertise
- Outstanding knowledge of medicinal chemistry, including the use of structural information, physicochemical properties and multiple parameter optimisation in compound design.
- Knowledge of DMPK, toxicology and chemical concepts relevant to decision making and drug design.
- Familiarity with modern synthetic chemistry and computational tools
What sets you apart
- Strategic thinker with strong problem‑solving and decision‑making skills
- Collaborative leader, able to influence across functions, cultures and geographies
- Excellent communicator with a client‑focused mindset
- Passion for innovation and continuous learning
- Results‑driven with high attention to detail and execution
