Associate Principal Scientist/Principal Scientist, Phage Platform

Company Description

Bicycle Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a novel class of medicines, referred to as Bicycle® molecules, for diseases that are underserved by existing therapeutics. Bicycle molecules are fully synthetic short peptides constrained with small molecule scaffolds to form two loops that stabilize their structural geometry. This constraint facilitates target binding with high affinity and selectivity, making Bicycle molecules attractive candidates for drug development. The company is evaluating zelenectide pevedotin (previously BT8009), a Bicycle® Toxin Conjugate (BTC®) targeting Nectin-4, a well-validated tumor antigen; BT5528, a BTC targeting EphA2, a historically undruggable target; and BT7480, a Bicycle Tumor-Targeted Immune Cell Agonist® (Bicycle TICA®) targeting Nectin-4 and agonizing CD137, in company-sponsored clinical trials. Additionally, the company is developing Bicycle® Radio Conjugates (BRC™) for radiopharmaceutical use and, through various partnerships, is exploring the use of Bicycle® technology to develop therapies for diseases beyond oncology. 

Bicycle Therapeutics is headquartered in Cambridge, UK, with many key functions and members of its leadership team located in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Culture is key and all Bicycle employees actively embrace and role model our company values:

• We are Adventurous. We believe it’s the way to deliver extraordinary results for our patients.
• We are Dedicated to our Mission. You can’t change the world if you don’t have determination. 
• We are One Team. We only succeed when we work together.

Job Description

We have an exciting new opportunity for a skilled and diligent Associate or Principal Scientist to join our dynamic Phage Platform team. This role is suited to a technical leader with extensive and demonstrable track record of working in multidisciplinary teams. The ideal candidate will be highly motivated team player with the scientific knowledge to bring and develop new ideas and deliver on complex tasks independently.

You will enjoy a varied and rewarding leadership role within the phage platform team. This will be a technical, laboratory focussed role working in a dynamic environment to develop and deploy our proprietary technology. This opportunity allows meaningful contribution to our efforts in finding new life-changing drugs. The role will also involve significant cross-functional collaboration to deliver technology and process improvements.

Extensive multi-disciplinary technical experience with a focus utilising molecular and protein biology is essential. Experience of working with phage or other display technologies is also essential. This role would suit a technical leader with a strong team-work ethic and a strong awareness for effective stakeholder management. The candidate should also be an excellent problem solver and adapts well to changing priorities, with the ability to exercise independent judgement in project planning, application of scientific methods, techniques and evaluation criteria for obtaining results. Experience leading scientific teams in the matrix and previous experience of line management is desirable but not essential.

Key responsibilities

• Plan, execute, and troubleshoot phage display campaigns and innovation projects to generate robust data packages to support project milestones. 

• Present and explain complex data, help others to shape presentations for internal and external stakeholders 

• Develops tactical plans and contribute to setting team goals as an individual or a team, that are aligned to company strategy. 

• Able to lead in the matrix to deliver on project milestones. 

• Proactively identify potential problems/challenges and work with a broad range of stakeholders to find suitable solutions.

• Is able to supervise/or mentor other lab members though high level of technical knowledge. 

• Critique/peer review work of others to maintain high scientific standards in team.

• Propose and develop novel process and scientific ideas. Acts as a source of innovation in approach to experimentation. 

• May have formal line management responsibility. Develop direct reports identifying development and training opportunities and ensuring delivery. 

• A consistent team player and role model within the team. 

• Takes responsibility for driving success both within and outside of their own team. 

• A robust leader in the lab, championing good lab practice 

• Work to existing SOPs and risk assessments. Significantly contribute both directly and indirectly to generating new protocols. 

• Accurate and timely record keeping via electronic lab notebook system (Dotmatics)

Qualifications

Essential:

• Advanced and relevant industry or academic experience in a biological or chemical subject, or equivalent theoretical and laboratory experience 

• Extensive theoretical knowledge including phage or other display technology experience 

• Excellent problem solver and able to adapt approach in dynamic work environment 

• Demonstratable experience leading projects and delivering on complex tasks and strong awareness for effective stakeholder management and accountability 

• Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary laboratory

• Ability to exercise independent scientific judgement on experimental design, techniques and data evaluation to drive delivery of goals/improved processes 

• Diligence in documenting work and understanding of the importance of data integrity

• Strong interpersonal skills; confident communication within multidisciplinary teams with the ability to work effectively with all levels of the organisation 

• Track record of publications and/or patents to support subject matter expertise 

Essential for Principal Scientist: 

• Significant experience working in an industrial drug discovery environment

• Has led a function within a department or team; can make independent decisions in own area of responsibility within business context. 

• Track record of developing direct reports or mentees 

• A notable leader in their scientific area; track record of high impact publications/patents/presentations at international conferences 

Desirable:

• High throughput screening of biologics, peptides or small molecules

• Line management and/or demonstrable track record of mentoring others in the matrix 

Additional Information

• State-of-the-art campus environment with on campus restaurant and Montessori nursery
• Flexible working environment
• Competitive reward including annual company bonus 
• Employee recognition schemes
• 28 days annual leave in addition to bank holidays + option to buy up to 5 additional days annually
• Employer contribution to pension (employee does not have to contribute) 
• Life assurance cover 4x basic salary 
• Private Medical Insurance, including optical and dental cover. 
• Group income protection
• Employee assistance program
• Health Cash Plan
• Access to company subsidized gym membership.
• Eligibility for an option grant to subscribe to shares in Bicycle Therapeutics plc. 
• Cycle to work scheme 

Bicycle Therapeutics is committed to building a diverse workforce that is representative of the communities we serve. We recognize that diverse and inclusive teams build a stronger and more innovative company. Therefore, all qualified applicants will be considered for employment, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability status, marital status, or veteran status.