Chief Officer of Drug Development (Hiring Immediately)

If you are a current Jazz employee please apply via the Internal Career site.

Jazz Pharmaceuticals is a global biopharma company whose purpose is to innovate to transform the lives of patients and their families. We are dedicated to developing life-changing medicines for people with serious diseases — often with limited or no therapeutic options. We have a diverse portfolio of marketed medicines, including leading therapies for sleep disorders and epilepsy, and a growing portfolio of cancer treatments. Our patient-focused and science-driven approach powers pioneering research and development advancements across our robust pipeline of innovative therapeutics in oncology and neuroscience. Jazz is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland with research and development laboratories, manufacturing facilities and employees in multiple countries committed to serving patients worldwide. Please visit for more information.

The Executive Director, Head of Discovery Chemistry is accountable for the scientific leadership, strategic direction, and operational excellence of small‑molecule drug discovery from target validation through candidate nomination and transition into Early Development. The role ensures the delivery of high‑quality, differentiated molecules across Neuroscience and Oncology programs, integrating medicinal, computational, and AI/ML‑enabled drug design approaches to maximize probability of technical and clinical success.

Essential Functions / Responsibilities

• Serve as global head of Discovery Chemistry with end‑to‑end accountability for small‑molecule discovery programs from hit identification through candidate nomination (Decision Point 0), including discovery formulation and synthesis enablement of transfer to Pharmaceutical Development partners

• Define and execute a Discovery Chemistry strategy aligned with portfolio priorities in Neuroscience and Oncology, emphasizing molecule quality, translation, and long‑term value.

• Ensure rigorous molecular design standards addressing potency, selectivity, CNS exposure where applicable, safety margins, and developability.

• Lead and integrate medicinal chemistry, computational chemistry, and structure‑based design capabilities across internal teams and external partners.

• Oversee state of the art and future-facing disciplined use of AI/ML‑enabled drug design platforms to accelerate design cycles, improve decision quality, and reduce technical risk.

• Ensure quality of due diligence activities within chemistry and discovery domain of corporate development evaluations

• Drive timely and high‑confidence candidate nominations, ensuring transfer and chemistry readiness for IND‑enabling activities.

• Represent Discovery Chemistry at the level of Research and Non-Clinical Leadership Team , Scientific Review meetings, and Early Development Portfolio Review Committee governance forums, and development transition reviews.

• Partner with Neuroscience and Oncology Research , Translational Science , DMPK, Toxicology, CMC, Regulatory, Pharmaceutical Development, and Clinical Development to ensure seamless progression into development.

• Provide executive scientific chemistry leadership in support of external collaborations and M&A

• Develop, mentor, and retain senior chemistry leaders, fostering a culture of scientific excellence, accountability, and continuous innovation.

• Manage chemistry contribut ions to Oncology, Neuroscience new target prioritization working teams and process , ensuring med chem, structural inform ation , tractability tools appropriately integrated into target matrix assessments .

• Ensure Chemistry functional and capacity discipline and continuous improvement

Governance & Portfolio Accountability

• Serve as the Discovery Chemistry representative and accountable leader at Early Development Project Review Committee (EDPRC), Development Project Review Committee (DPRC), and other portfolio governance forums as appropriate .

• Prepare, present, and defend Discovery Chemistry strategies, molecular design rationale, candidate quality attributes, and risk assessments at stage‑gate, portfolio, and governance reviews.

• Ensure the timely escalation of scientific, technical, and resourcing risks related to molecule quality, developability, or program execution to EDPRC, DPRC, and senior R&D leadership.

• Partner with senior R&D leadership to enable portfolio decision making across Neuroscience and Oncology programs.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Executive‑level Discovery Chemistry leader with extensive progressive experience in medicinal chemistry and small‑molecule drug discovery within pharmaceutical and/or biotechnology organizations.

• Demonstrated track record of pipeline impact, including:

• Multiple high‑quality clinical candidate nominations, and

• Documented contributions to late‑stage development assets and/or approved medicines.

• Deep scientific expertise in medicinal chemistry, lead identification and optimization, and structure‑activity relationships across complex target classes relevant to Neuroscience and Oncology, including CNS‑penetrant small molecules.

• Proven experience establishing and enforcing molecule quality standards, including potency, selectivity, pharmacokinetics, CNS exposure where applicable, safety margins, chemical developability, and differentiation versus standard of care.

• Extensive experience leading and integrating computational chemistry, structure‑based drug design, and AI/ML‑enabled drug discovery approaches, with clear understanding of:

• Model validation and limitations

• Data integrity and provenance

• Appropriate application to decision‑making rather than exploratory novelty.

• Demonstrated ability to balance innovation, speed, and scientific rigor in early discovery environments characterized by uncertainty and evolving targets.

• Successful leadership in global, matrixed discovery organizations, with proven ability to influence outcomes and align diverse functional teams toward common objectives .

• Strong strategic and portfolio‑level thinking, with experience shaping discov]]>