Senior Principal Scientist, Computer-Aided Drug Design (CADD, Computational Chemistry) - La Jolla, CA

Key Skills

Aartificial intelligence, Agile methodologies, AutoCAD, Cheminformatics, Data structuring, Design, Drug Discovery, Effective communication skills, Jupyter Notebook, Leadership Skill, Machine learning techniques, Presentation skills, Python Programming

Job Description

The Therapeutics Discovery organization within Janssen R&D is continuing to build scientific expertise in predictive modeling, screening, pharmacology and chemistry to partner closely with therapeutic area scientists to develop groundbreaking new medicines in the areas of Immunology, Neuroscience, Oncology, Cardiovascular and Retina. The In Silico Discovery (ISD) group in Therapeutics Discovery is seeking excellent scientists to bring their expertise to exciting and novel areas of computational drug design.

Key Responsibilities Include:

• Shape and implement computational strategies to support innovative modality-agnostic drug discovery at Janssen R&D by researching and incorporating new physics-based and AI/ML techniques and platforms
• Develop and grow the CADD/ISD team at Janssen by mentoring, managing and recruiting other group members
• Design therapeutic molecules and predict their properties using state-of-the-art methodologies integrating chemical, biological and structural data, cheminformatics, and artificial intelligence/machine learning techniques
• Represent In Silico Discovery in governance forums and external collaborations
• Serve as a scientific expert with both internal and external partners, and provide recommendations regarding new targets and emerging external opportunities
• Ensure optimal interaction/communication and provide updates on project status to discovery leadership

Qualifications

• A PhD in computational chemistry or a related field, with at least 6-12 years of experience applying computational modeling in a pharmaceutical industry drug design setting with a track record of key contributions to compound progression is required
• Strong record of creative scientific contributions including peer reviewed first-author publications, patent applications, and presentations at major national meetings is required
• Experience with multiple therapeutic modalities (e.g. small molecules, biologics, peptides, targeted protein degraders) is strongly preferred
• Experience working in a cross-functional environment, mentoring scientists, influencing decisions and resolving conflicts is required
• Familiarity with at least one standard computational drug discovery package (examples may include, Maestro/Schrodinger, MOE/Chemical Computing Group, and/or OpenEye tools) is required
• Experience scripting computational workflows in Pipeline Pilot, Knime, Python or Jupyter notebooks is preferred
• Located in La Jolla, CA and requires up to 10% travel domestically and internationally

At Johnson & Johnson, we’re on a mission to change the trajectory of health for humanity. That starts by creating the world’s healthiest workforce. Through cutting-edge programs and policies, we empower the physical, mental, emotional, and financial health of our employees and the ones they love. For more information on how we support the whole health of our employees throughout their wellness, career and life journey, please visit www.careers.jnj.com . The anticipated base pay range for this position is $131,000 to $225,000. Johnson & Johnson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.

https://www.careers.jnj.com/data-science