The Foundation
We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, weโre committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.
The TeamThe mission of Discovery & Translational Sciences (D&TS) is to catalyze innovation for the discovery and translation of transformative Global Health (GH) solutions. The primary role of D&TS is to support the foundation to achieve its ambitious equity goals as articulated in the objectives of the program strategies in GH and the Womenโs Health Innovations program in Gender Equality (GE). For this, we exploit a unique advantage of the foundation in general and D&TS in particular: the ability to invest in high-risk initiatives with potential for truly disruptive change. We channel resources into creating more practical (affordable, scalable, deliverable) versions of existing tools, develop transformative new tools where none exist, and speed the translation of scientific discovery into implementable solutions, seeking better ways to evaluate and refine potential interventions before they enter costly and time-consuming late-stage clinical trials. Key functions in support of this R&D mission include identifying and filling gaps in scientific knowledge, creating or implementing new technology platforms that can accelerate research in support of our goals, investing in potentially transformative ideas, continuous surveying of an ever-changing scientific and technological innovation space, and the fostering of an effective ecosystem of global health innovation, funding, and partnership to advance the foundationโs mission. Our intervention areas of focus include vaccines, biologics, drugs, and microbiome, as well as reproductive and sexual health.
The Vaccines and Biologics (VxBx) team has a large and growing portfolio of investments in innovative approaches and platforms aimed at the prevention of infectious diseases whose burdens are a major source and manifestation of inequity. As a functional team, we engage deeply and in a highly matrixed fashion with all our program strategy partners (e.g., Malaria, HIV, TB, Pneumonia and Pandemic Preparedness, Enteric and Diarrheal Diseases, Neglected Tropical Diseases, and Womenโs Health Innovations) and other functional teams (e.g., Vaccine Development). Outside the foundation, we work closely with diverse external not-for-profit and for-profit partners including academia, biotech, pharma, government agencies, and other key funders.
Your Role
The Senior Program Officer, Vaccine Discovery in Vaccine & Biologics is a critical position focused on driving innovation and impact in global vaccine discovery and development. Reporting to the Deputy Director, Vaccine Discovery in the DTS Vaccines & Biologics Domain, you will be responsible for assisting with the development of, and executing, a comprehensive Vaccine Discovery strategy, fostering collaboration across internal teams and external partners to advance immunological research and translational science. You contribute to a productive and collaborative culture of innovation, and you are passionate about solving problems and addressing questions relevant to our mission.
What Youโll Do
- Support and execute the Vaccines Discovery strategy in a creative, rigorous, innovative, data-driven, analytical manner, developing strategies to address critical gaps and conceptualizing and driving critical strategy areas.
- Develop and manage investments portfolios (milestone and performance driven grants, contracts, and equity investments) and relationships with grantees, contractors and key partners to achieve the foundation's desired impact.
- Identify and select partner institutions (e.g., academic, not-for-profit, biotech, pharma) as well as develop the scope and strategy for selected investments.
- Actively cultivate and nurture existing external partnerships across a diverse, international network and build novel networks as a foundation representative to enhance implementation of the foundationโs programmatic strategies.
- Actively engage and interact with foundation colleagues to drive strategic initiatives and contribute to foundation knowledge capture, progress evaluation, learning, and dissemination.
Provide Subject Matter Expertise:
- Serve as a subject matter expert across vaccines & biologics and as resource to grantees and partners to facilitate accomplishment of strategic objectives.
- Apply milestone-based performance objectives and innovation and help to make go/no go decisions about specific projects and innovative product candidates.
- Be accountable for the identification and assessment of key portfolio risks, and the development and management of mitigation/contingency plans at the portfolio level.
- Support initiatives and portfolios by identifying relevant novel technologies and innovations, and structure investments, research initiatives, and due diligence activities with biotech, not-for-profit, and academic institutions/partner in global settings and in networking and collaborating with global partners.
- Provide project briefings and updates to foundation leadership, and represent the foundation in meetings with external stakeholders, as well as at scientific conferences and workshops related to area of expertise and position responsibilities.
Your Experience
- A highly experienced professional with deep expertise in human immunology and vaccine discovery and translation; infectious disease experience.
- Scientists and/or physician scientists with an established track record of success in industry, academic, or similar position. Proven experience of 10+ years in immunology and/or vaccine discovery and translation (clinical), and PhD or MD (academics should have held their own grants and had experience as independent principal investigators).
- Driven by passion to answer fundamental questions in concepts of interventions, immunogen design, vaccine platforms (nucleic acid, adjuvants), efficacious and durable immune responses leading to measurable impact for unmet medical need.
- Experience in assessing new technologies and modalities, designing research initiatives that are scientifically rigorous and catalytic to program change in a fundamental and applied, translational way.
- Experience in a role requiring collaboration as well as a demonstrated ability to work with flexibility, efficiency, and diplomacy, both individually and as part of a highly dynamic and matrixed environment.
- Experience working on teams with diverse professional backgrounds and in networking and collaborating with diverse global partners.
The salary range for this role is $261,700 to $405,700 USD. We recognize high-wage market differences in Seattle and Washington D.C., where our offices are located. The range for this role in these locations is $285,300 to $442,100 USD. As a mission-driven organization, we strive to balance competitive pay with our mission. New hires salaries are typically between the range minimum and the salary range midpoint. Actual placement in the range will depend on a candidateโs job-related skills, experience, and expertise, as evaluated during the interview process.
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Hiring Requirements
As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.
Candidate Accommodations
If you require assistance due to a disability in the application or recruitment process, please submit a request here.
Inclusion Statement
We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion โ of voices, ideas, and approaches โ and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.
All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.