Head of Pipeline Strategy & Opportunity Assessment

About the role

The Head of Pipeline Strategy & Opportunity Assessment is a senior, cross-functional role responsible for scanning the early-stage IP landscape and building a prioritised pipeline of reformulation and repurposing candidates. This role sits at the intersection of science, strategy, and commercialisation — translating fragmented signals from the research and IP environment into a coherent, investment-ready asset pipeline. The successful candidate will serve as the company's primary authority on what to pursue, what to deprioritise, and why.

Key responsibilities

• Conduct systematic surveillance of patent filings, academic disclosures, licensing databases, and pre-clinical literature to surface early-stage reformulation and repurposing opportunities.

• Monitor competitor pipelines, clinical trial registries, and regulatory submissions to identify white space and unmet need.

• Develop and maintain a proprietary opportunity database, ensuring the funnel is continuously refreshed and tracked.

• Build relationships with academic technology transfer offices, biotech incubators, and IP holders to access off-market opportunities.

• Assess the scientific credibility of proposed reformulation or repurposing hypotheses, drawing on literature review, formulation science, pharmacology, and clinical data.

• Evaluate formulation feasibility, including route of administration, delivery technology compatibility, stability, and manufacturability considerations.

• Size the commercial opportunity for candidate assets, including target patient population, competitive landscape, pricing dynamics, and market access considerations.

• Apply a structured, evidence-based scoring framework to rank opportunities across scientific, commercial, regulatory, and strategic dimensions.

• Present investment-ready asset profiles to the executive team and Board.

• Collaborate on in-licensing conversations, term sheet negotiations, and due diligence processes.

About you

• Advanced degree (PhD, PharmD, MD, or equivalent) in a relevant scientific discipline — pharmaceutical sciences, pharmacology, medicinal chemistry, or clinical medicine preferred.

• Minimum 5–8 years' experience in drug development, business development, or asset evaluation within the pharmaceutical or biotech industry.

• Proven ability to synthesise complex scientific, commercial, and IP data into clear strategic recommendations.

• Demonstrated experience evaluating reformulation or repurposing assets.

• Strong understanding of the drug development process from pre-clinical through to regulatory submission.

• Experience preparing and presenting investment-grade asset profiles or business cases to senior stakeholders.

• Applies critical, evidence-based thinking to evaluate data; comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty in early-stage science.

• Communicates complex information with clarity and conviction to both scientific and non-scientific audiences.

• Comfortable making go/no-go calls with incomplete information; willing to defend and revisit positions as evidence evolves.

• Builds strong working relationships across functions and external partners; operates effectively in a matrix or lean team environment.

About us

This company is a specialised therapeutics business focused on unlocking the latent value of known compounds through reformulation and repurposing. Rather than de novo drug discovery, the company's model depends on rigorous, systematic identification of assets where a differentiated formulation, novel indication, or new patient population can generate a compelling commercial and clinical return.