What are the responsibilities and job description for the Scientific Director Toxicology position at Novo Nordisk?
About The Department
Our Research & Development organization brings together the best minds in life science innovation. The teams located in facilities in Lexington, Watertown, Cambridge and Plainsboro reflect the full R&D continuum, from early research through late-stage clinical development. Here, we are building for the future, creating a distinct R&D community based on collaboration, partnerships, and cutting-edge research across multiple modalities and therapeutic areas. We recognize that improving human health starts here and that patients rely on us. Our R&D hub merges biotech speed and agility with large pharmaceutical company quality, resources, and stability, uniting the best of both worlds to develop new medicines for patients.
The Position
The Scientific Director will report to the Head of GDDS Boston and will be a critical team member of the GDDS Boston team. The role is responsible for defining and executing the investigative toxicology assay strategy to support early nonclinical development of small molecules at Novo Nordisk. The successful candidate will bring deep expertise in exploratory toxicology and nonclinical safety development, including the scientific and translational considerations required to progress compounds toward clinical and market success. The Scientific Director will lead in vitro screening programs and provide thorough data interpretation to enable risk assessment and guide decision-making. They will mentor and develop more junior colleagues and collaborate cross-functionally with Chemistry, DMPK, Pharmacology, and regulatory nonclinical safety teams to ensure that screening strategy is aligned with overall project goals. In addition, the role will lead toxicology contributions for early and later stage small molecule due diligence activities.
Relationships
The Scientific Director will be co-located with project chemists and ADME scientists, and part of the Novo Nordisk regulatory toxicology team. In addition, important stakeholders will include toxicologists located in GDDS Denmark, global project leaders, peer experts, scientific leadership, and other colleagues across global R&D. Individual may direct the work of other staff members. Individuals will interact with external research collaborators both academia- & industry-based.
Essential Functions
0-10% overnight travel required.
Qualifications
Employees are also eligible to participate in Company employee benefit programs including medical, dental and vision coverage; life insurance; disability insurance; 401(k) savings plan; flexible spending accounts; employee assistance program; tuition reimbursement program; and voluntary benefits such as group legal, critical illness, identity theft protection, pet insurance and auto/home insurance. The Company also offers time off pursuant to its sick time policy, flex-able vacation policy, and parental leave policy.
We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.
At Novo Nordisk, we're not chasing quick fixes – we're creating lasting change for long-term health. For over 100 years, we've been driven by a single purpose: to defeat serious chronic diseases and help millions of people live healthier lives. This dedication fuels our constant curiosity and inspires us to push the boundaries of what's possible in healthcare. We embrace diverse perspectives, seek out bold ideas, and build partnerships rooted in shared purpose. Together, we're making healthcare more accessible, treating and defeating diseases, and pioneering solutions that create change spanning generations. When you join us, you become part of something bigger – a legacy of impact that reaches far beyond today.
Novo Nordisk is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by local, state or federal laws, rules or regulations.
If you are interested in applying to Novo Nordisk and need special assistance or an accommodation to apply, please call us at 1-855-411-5290. This contact is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.
Our Research & Development organization brings together the best minds in life science innovation. The teams located in facilities in Lexington, Watertown, Cambridge and Plainsboro reflect the full R&D continuum, from early research through late-stage clinical development. Here, we are building for the future, creating a distinct R&D community based on collaboration, partnerships, and cutting-edge research across multiple modalities and therapeutic areas. We recognize that improving human health starts here and that patients rely on us. Our R&D hub merges biotech speed and agility with large pharmaceutical company quality, resources, and stability, uniting the best of both worlds to develop new medicines for patients.
The Position
The Scientific Director will report to the Head of GDDS Boston and will be a critical team member of the GDDS Boston team. The role is responsible for defining and executing the investigative toxicology assay strategy to support early nonclinical development of small molecules at Novo Nordisk. The successful candidate will bring deep expertise in exploratory toxicology and nonclinical safety development, including the scientific and translational considerations required to progress compounds toward clinical and market success. The Scientific Director will lead in vitro screening programs and provide thorough data interpretation to enable risk assessment and guide decision-making. They will mentor and develop more junior colleagues and collaborate cross-functionally with Chemistry, DMPK, Pharmacology, and regulatory nonclinical safety teams to ensure that screening strategy is aligned with overall project goals. In addition, the role will lead toxicology contributions for early and later stage small molecule due diligence activities.
Relationships
The Scientific Director will be co-located with project chemists and ADME scientists, and part of the Novo Nordisk regulatory toxicology team. In addition, important stakeholders will include toxicologists located in GDDS Denmark, global project leaders, peer experts, scientific leadership, and other colleagues across global R&D. Individual may direct the work of other staff members. Individuals will interact with external research collaborators both academia- & industry-based.
Essential Functions
- Lead global strategic alignment of small-molecule toxicology by defining a consistent, risk-based “toxicity discovery to decision” framework that standardizes how mechanistic hazards are identified, prioritized, tested, and translated into program-critical progression/mitigation/stop recommendations across sites and partners
- Define, own, and continuously evolve the exploratory/investigative toxicology strategy for early nonclinical small-molecule programs, translating mechanistic risk hypotheses into testable experimental plans
- Select, design, and prioritize in vitro screening assays by integrating risk-based rationale, MoA/target considerations, study feasibility, and translational relevance to human exposure and metabolism
- Provide program-level scientific leadership for the generation and quality of investigative toxicology data, ensuring methodological rigor and reproducibility
- Lead integrated data interpretation and toxicology risk assessment to inform key decision points, including progression, mitigation, or termination, with clear identification of risk drivers and uncertainty
- Articulate decision-ready scientific rationale by systematically mapping knowledge gaps, threshold/extent concerns, and mechanistic liabilities to actionable next steps
- Translate exploratory toxicology findings into practical, timeline-aware guidance for nonclinical development planning, including decision gates, study sequencing, and escalation criteria
- Collaborate with Chemistry, DMPK, Pharmacology, and nonclinical safety to align toxicology strategy with exposure, metabolism, and pharmacology hypotheses
- Partner with Regulatory Nonclinical Safety to ensure study approach, endpoints, documentation, and outputs support regulatory-aligned planning and risk communication defining
- Lead toxicology contributions across small molecule due diligence phases (early to later stage), conducting structured data gap assessment, risk triage, and recommendation of remediation or discontinuation actions as warranted
- Provide scientific governance across functions, delivering timely, evidence-based recommendations and ensuring clear escalation of emerging or unresolved risks
- Mentor and develop junior colleagues through coaching, review of work/products, and leadership in scientific discussions
- Represent GDDS Boston externally through thought leadership (presentations, publications, expert networks) and by staying current with emerging toxicology approaches
0-10% overnight travel required.
Qualifications
- PhD in Toxicology, Pharmacology, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, or a closely related field
- PharmD or PhD from an accredited university and 7 years of experience required. Equivalent experience requirements for advanced degrees would be an MD/DO from an accredited university and 3 years of experience
- Expert in exploratory toxicology and nonclinical safety assessment of small molecules
- Strong expertise in development of small molecules and regulatory expectations (e.g., ICH guidance mindset)
- Demonstrated hands-on experience with in vitro risk-relevant screening and data interpretation for decision-making
- Experience supporting early nonclinical development and progressing candidates toward clinical trials
- Expertise in designing and interpreting investigative toxicology assay strategies, including selection of assays, rationale, limitations, and integration into risk assessment
- Knowledge of mechanistic toxicology concepts relevant to hazard identification and translational relevance
- Experience with due diligence toxicology expectations (risk assessment for decision-making)
- Proven experience leading scientific strategy (not only executing assays)
- Ability to mentor junior scientists and influence cross-functional teams
- Strong collaboration track record with Chemistry, DMPK, Pharmacology, and regulatory nonclinical safety
- Conference presentations / invited talks
- Publications and/or participation in expert groups
- Active engagement in relevant scientific communities
- Experience with GLP/regulated safety development exposure (even though the core role is exploratory)
- Experience presenting toxicology strategy and outcomes to senior stakeholders and/or in cross-functional forums
Employees are also eligible to participate in Company employee benefit programs including medical, dental and vision coverage; life insurance; disability insurance; 401(k) savings plan; flexible spending accounts; employee assistance program; tuition reimbursement program; and voluntary benefits such as group legal, critical illness, identity theft protection, pet insurance and auto/home insurance. The Company also offers time off pursuant to its sick time policy, flex-able vacation policy, and parental leave policy.
We commit to an inclusive recruitment process and equality of opportunity for all our job applicants.
At Novo Nordisk, we're not chasing quick fixes – we're creating lasting change for long-term health. For over 100 years, we've been driven by a single purpose: to defeat serious chronic diseases and help millions of people live healthier lives. This dedication fuels our constant curiosity and inspires us to push the boundaries of what's possible in healthcare. We embrace diverse perspectives, seek out bold ideas, and build partnerships rooted in shared purpose. Together, we're making healthcare more accessible, treating and defeating diseases, and pioneering solutions that create change spanning generations. When you join us, you become part of something bigger – a legacy of impact that reaches far beyond today.
Novo Nordisk is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by local, state or federal laws, rules or regulations.
If you are interested in applying to Novo Nordisk and need special assistance or an accommodation to apply, please call us at 1-855-411-5290. This contact is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.
Salary : $187,100 - $327,500