Deputy Director / Director, R&D Strategy for Nucleic Acid Therapeutics Initiativ

Deputy Director / Director, R&D Strategy for Nucleic Acid Therapeutics Initiative (NATi) Coordinating Office (CO)

Job Description

Nucleic Acid Therapeutics (NAT), in particular RNA therapeutics, is revolutionising drug and vaccine discovery and development. Singapore has strengths in this area that need to be rapidly built upon and expanded.

NATi aims to drive the R&D of RNA therapeutics into the clinic, through developing new enabling technologies, partnering with industry on technologies and assets, supporting researchers' development of RNA therapeutics, and developing alliances with clinical and regulatory key opinion leaders. Singapore aims to become a world-class hub for NAT, which achieves excellence in research and clinical translation, strengthens resilience to future pandemics and supports a vibrant biotech ecosystem.

The Director / Deputy Director, R&D Strategy will work closely with the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) and Executive Director (ED) of NATi to direct and shape a national-level programme in RNA therapeutics that will harness the capabilities in A*STAR, universities and Academic Medical Centres (AMCs) across the island. He/She will have a deep scientific understanding of RNA R&D and considerable first-hand experience in translating RNA assets to the clinic. He/She will be responsible for developing and implementing R&D strategies and roadmap in RNA therapeutics and building differentiated and globally competitive capabilities to address critical industry challenges.

The Deputy Director, R&D Strategy will be expected to work closely with the CSO and ED, as well as other relevant A*STAR research institutes, universities, and AMCs in the Singapore ecosystem, as well as international organisations and companies to foster collaboration and drive economic impact.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement R&D strategies and roadmap in RNA therapeutics, including building capabilities and identifying niche areas to advance Singapore in the NAT space
• Provide support to national-level R&D programme in RNA therapeutics, which could include working with the local research community to:
  • Scope and establish RNA technology platforms that are globally competitive;
  • Engage with organisations and companies to foster partnerships and co-developments that can lead to the out-licensing or spin-off of assets/platforms;
  • Engage with agencies and stakeholders to identify gaps, and align priorities and goals to Singapore's national and economic interests;
  • Ensure that the programme delivers on its goals and assigned targets.
• The Director / Deputy Director, R&D Strategy will report to the NATi CSO.

Job Requirements

• PhD in Chemical, Biochemistry, Biomedical Sciences, or related fields
• Deep understanding of NAT-related programmes and capabilities
• Track record in the translation of RNA assets to the clinic
• Global perspective of the RNA therapeutics space
• Experience of working in a complex environment involving multiple and different agencies/organisations to coordinate project/platform development efforts