Strategic Partnerships Associate (Scientist)

About the Role

We're looking for a gregarious, operational scientist to fill a business role at Crownlands. The Strategic Partnerships Associate will originate and execute scientific partnerships with academic research centers, commercial partners, and other organizations where there is mutual interest in collaborating to further our research goals.

Science and research is central in all we do. You will need to understand the science well enough to evaluate datasets and research programs, the commercial structure well enough to negotiate licenses and partnerships, and the operational details well enough to get agreements across the finish line.

The right candidate is scientifically sophisticated, commercially minded, comfortable negotiating, and unusually effective at moving complicated institutional processes forward.

Responsibilities

• Build relationships with principal investigators, technology transfer offices, research administration, business partners, legal teams, and institutional leadership.
• Evaluate scientific assets and collaboration opportunities.
• Translate between scientists, lawyers, commercial teams, and institutional stakeholders.
• Own partnerships from initial outreach through diligence, negotiation, contracting, data transfer, and launch.
• Develop creative deal structures when standard institutional licensing approaches do not fit new uses of biomedical data.

Education

PhD in genomics or a biological field, OR medical degree. MBA is helpful but not required. This role is a fit for an early-career scientist with the skills to make the leap to business, and also a fit for an experienced PhD-background businessperson.

Scientific Background

• Scientific knowledge of modern human genomics and biomedical data, including areas such as WGS/WES, multi-omics, biobanks, imaging data, and structured and unstructured clinical records.
• Exceptional contributions to the scientific projects you have been a part of.
• Familiarity and thought leadership with frontier models and their current and future applications to healthcare, biotech, and medicine.
• Able to rapidly assess an unfamiliar scientific program and understand what is valuable, differentiated, and commercially actionable.

Partnership and Deal Experience

• Primarily, a natural relationship builder.
• Comfortable discussing commercial terms and negotiating with sophisticated counterparties.
• Experience working with university technology transfer offices, academic medical centers, research institutions, or commercial biomedical partners is preferred.

Communication and Execution

• Confident communication - excited to jump on a call with a leading PI or a sophisticated business partner without prep.
• Tactics - highly organized and persistent.
• Strategy - kind, courteous, and savvy.
• Incredibly fast-moving.