Early Development Asset Lead

Title: Early Development Asset Lead

Company: Ipsen Biopharm Ltd

About Ipsen

Ipsen is a mid-sized global biopharmaceutical company with a focus on transformative medicines in three therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Disease and Neuroscience. Supported by nearly 100 years of development experience, with global hubs in the U.S., France and the U.K, we tackle areas of high unmet medical need through research and innovation. Our passionate teams in more than 40 countries are focused on what matters and endeavor every day to bring medicines to patients in 88 countries. We build a workplace that champions human-centric leadership and fosters a culture of collaboration, excellence and impact. At Ipsen, every individual is empowered to be their true selves, grow and thrive alongside the company’s success. Join us on our journey towards sustainable growth, creating real impact on patients and society! For more information, visit us at and follow our latest news on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Job Description

Early Development Asset Lead Division / Function: Early Development and Innovation

Summary / Purpose of the Position

The Early Development Asset Lead (EDAL) is a scientific and program leadership role within Ipsen's Early Development and Innovation organization, accountable for integrated development strategy and execution for one or more early-stage therapeutic assets from drug candidate nomination through first-in-human clinical trials. The EDAL leads the Early Development Asset Team (EDT), a cross-functional matrix team spanning clinical, regulatory, CMC, translational, clinical pharmacology, nonclinical safety, and biomarkers, ensuring that each program advances with scientific rigor, strategic clarity, and accountability to portfolio decisions. The EDAL maintains alignment with Therapeutic Area strategy to ensure EDT plans support agreed portfolio priorities, and serves as the scientific champion for assigned programs, articulating project goals, scientific rationale, and clinical line of sight internally and externally. Depending on pipeline needs, the EDAL may represent Early Development in due diligence as the ED lead within a multidisciplinary global team.

Main Responsibilities / Job Expectations

Program Leadership and Strategy

• Leads one or more Early Development Asset Teams.
• Owns integrated program strategy across preclinical, translational, clinical, diagnostic, and regulatory activities.
• Develops and maintains integrated asset strategy, including target product profile, indication strategy, key development options, competitive context, and evidence required for decision-making.
• Ensures Early Development plans deliver against agreed Therapeutic Area strategy and portfolio priorities, with clear evidence-based rationale for stage-gate investment decisions.

Cross-Functional Planning and Execution

• Integrates input from critical functions and research teams to develop plans that balance scientific risk, timelines, cost, and clinical proof-of-concept potential.
• Ensures adequate resources to deliver approved plans, proactively identifies risks, and leads mitigation strategies.

Governance and Decision-Making

• Presents plans, data, risks, options, and recommendations to governance bodies with scientific credibility, while appropriately leveraging functional expertise.

Team Leadership and Communication

• Builds high-functioning teams through clear communication of program vision, roles, responsibilities, and decision-making expectations.
• Maintains a collaborative, inclusive team environment through influence, coaching, and active stakeholder alignment.

Scientific Leadership and External Evaluation

• Serves as the scientific champion for assigned programs, articulating project goals, translational hypotheses, and clinical strategy internally and externally.
• Contributes to due diligence for in-licensing opportunities and, depending on experience and pipeline need, may coordinate findings and present recommendations to governance.

Education and Experience

• PhD, MD, PharmD, or relevant advanced degree with a minimum of 10-15 years of multidisciplinary drug development experience in the pharmaceutical or biotech industry.
• The level offered will be commensurate with scope, independence, and depth of prior early development leadership experience.

Scientific and Development Expertise

• In-depth understanding of oncology required; experience in immuno-oncology and/or ADCs desirable.
• Broad cross-functional drug development knowledge, with experience in more than one functional area, such as nonclinical, translational, regulatory, or clinical development, strongly preferred.
• Expertise in small molecules, biologics, and novel modalities preferred.
• Experience developing and delivering translational strategies, including biomarker and precision medicine approaches in early-phase clinical trials.
• Experience with regulatory filings, including IND/CTA authorship and health authority interactions, required.
• Strong understanding of drug development from discovery through life cycle management.

Leadership and Matrix Impact

• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional early development teams, with accountability for integrated program strategy and governance-level presentations.
• Proven scientific and leadership performance in a matrix environment, as evidenced by pipeline contributions, publications, and/or patent applications.
• Demonstrated ability to lead decision-making in a multi-regional, diverse matrix environment.

Communication and Stakeholder Management

• Proficient in written and oral English; French or another European language is an advantage.
• Outstanding communication skills, with the ability to present complex program strategies to senior leadership and governance committees with clarity and scientific credibility.
• Ability to build strong relationships with stakeholders across clinical development, clinical operations, translational pharmacology, regulatory, CMC, commercial, medical, and research functions.
• Ability to integrate scientific, regulatory, clinical, and commercial perspectives into balanced, portfolio-aligned program strategies.

Ways of Working

• Strong organizational and project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and competing timelines.
• High emotional intelligence, flexibility, and collaborative mindset, with the ability to seek and evaluate diverse viewpoints.

Company Culture

We are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels heard, valued, and supported; where we embrace “The Real Us”. The value we place on different perspectives and experiences drives our commitment to inclusion and equal opportunities. When we include diverse ways of thinking, we make more thoughtful decisions and discover more innovative solutions. Together we strive to better understand the communities we serve. This means we also want to help you perform at your best when applying for a role with us. If you require any adjustments or support during the application process, please let the recruitment team know. This information will be handled with care and will not affect the outcome of your application. At Ipsen, each employee makes a real impact. Our teams are passionate about what they do because they care about making a difference in patients’ lives. We invest in our employees to support life-changing projects that create positive impact for patients and society.

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