Head of Medicinal Chemistry, Drug Design, London

About the Medicinal Drug Design Team

We have an established, dynamic team of ~25 Medicinal Chemists in London, who are fundamentally redefining how drugs are designed. By partnering deeply with our AI/ML colleagues, we are doing more than just leveraging the Isomorphic Labs Drug Design Engine - we are actively shaping it. We use our domain expertise to challenge and refine our algorithms, creating a powerful symbiotic relationship that drives our internal and collaborative portfolios. Our team works closely together in a supportive environment, where everyone is valued for their medicinal chemistry expertise and experience they bring to the group. We have a strong growth mindset and prioritise continued development and learning.

 

Your impact 

We are seeking an experienced and strategic Head of Medicinal Chemistry to join our Drug Design team. This is a pivotal role for a motivated scientific leader who is eager to shape the future of drug discovery at the intersection of medicinal chemistry and artificial intelligence.

You will provide scientific leadership and strategic direction for the Medicinal Chemistry team, responsible for delivery and guidance of projects to clinical candidate nomination. Additionally, you will oversee and mentor a team of talented Medicinal Chemists, fostering their scientific growth and career development. Working alongside world-leading AI/ML Scientists, you will play a critical role in driving project success, enhancing our AI platform through expert feedback, and developing a high-performing Chemistry team. Critical to this role will be the ability to build highly effective and efficient connectivity with Computational Drug Design, Biology and Pre-Clinical Development teams to accelerate pace to the clinic. If you are a skilled Medicinal Chemist with leadership experience and a passion for applying cutting-edge technology to complex scientific challenges, this role offers an unparalleled opportunity for impact and growth.

 

What you will do 

• Utilise your deep track record of modern drug design to oversee and deliver the London Drug Design portfolio, providing technical portfolio guidance. Rather than acting as a hands-on project lead, you will act as a senior advisor, empowering and strategically guiding your Chemistry Leads to navigate complex scientific challenges and drive programs to clinical candidate nomination.
• Provide direct line management and strategic oversight for a growing team of ~25 Medicinal Chemists. You will manage a layered structure, setting clear goals, mentoring your management team, and fostering a collaborative, high-performance culture across the entire department.
• Champion an AI-First Approach, actively ensuring that every chemist in the organisation is empowered and supported in the application of AI tools. You will foster a culture where chemists work natively alongside tech teams, providing strategic input and technical direction to our AI platform teams. 
• Collaborate both internally and with third-party organisations, to build highly effective and efficient connectivity between Chemistry, Computational Drug Design, Biology, and Pre-Clinical Development teams to accelerate pace to the clinic.
• Represent the company externally, interacting with existing and prospective collaborators. You will effectively manage large-scale CRO resources and monitor KPIs to maintain high-quality, rapid delivery.
• Constantly look for ways to do drug discovery differently. Optimise workflows, challenge traditional medicinal chemistry dogmas, and champion our culture of inclusion and continuous professional development.

 

Skills and qualifications 

Essential:

• PhD in Synthetic Organic Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry or a related technical field, or equivalent industrial experience.
• Solid foundation in medicinal chemistry with a minimum of 10+ years previous industrial experience within a pharma/biotech/CRO setting. 
• Proven track record of leading medicinal chemistry efforts on drug discovery projects, demonstrating significant contributions to project progression (ideally from Hit Identification through to Lead Optimisation/Candidate Nomination, with familiarity of optimisation of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (DMPK).
• A genuine passion for drug discovery and a visible desire to move away from "business as usual," coupled with enthusiasm for the potential of AI/ML to transform the field.
• Demonstrated experience in line management, mentorship, and developing scientific talent.
• Excellent strategic thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making capabilities applied to complex drug discovery challenges.
• Experience of working with and closely managing CRO resource. 
• Strong track record of scientific achievement, evidenced by publications, patents, and presentations.

Nice to have:

• Experience of successful application of fragment-based drug design approaches. 
• Experience of structure-based drug design
• Proven track record of leading large teams and managing through other managers.