ProFound Therapeutics: Vice President, IP Counsel

Vice President – Legal (IP and Contracts)

Company Summary 

ProFound™ Therapeutics is a biotechnology company discovering novel proteins across the expanded human proteome to unlock first-in-class medicines and transformative drug targets. The company’s proprietary ProFoundry™ Platform integrates state-of-the-art protein detection, validation, and computational technologies to systematically identify and characterize previously inaccessible proteins and validate their therapeutic potential. This approach has generated a rapidly expanding portfolio of novel targets and programs advancing toward the clinic, along with strategic collaborations with leading pharmaceutical partners. Together, these efforts support the development of breakthrough treatments across a broad range of disease areas. For more information, please visit www.profoundtx.com.

Position Summary

ProFound Therapeutics is seeking an experienced and business savvy, creative, hands-on IP Attorney to build value through developing and executing IP strategies.  The successful candidate has the demonstrated ability to think strategically and is fluent in multiple scientific and technology areas.  This is an extremely interactive role in a unique environment that requires excellent communication skills and the ability to identify and leverage innovations, provide pragmatic and business-savvy advice, build transactional value, manage multiple priorities, and accurately and succinctly identify and communicate decisions and rationales to both scientific and executive teams.  This role will also own the development of the company’s contracting function, building fit-for-stage processes and governance for the negotiation, execution, tracking, and operational management of research, commercial, and strategic agreements as the company grows. This position reports to COO.   

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Lead the company’s IP and contracting infrastructure, including negotiation support, contract lifecycle management, governance processes, and cross-functional coordination to ensure effective execution of research, alliance, vendor, and strategic agreements.
• Collaborate with corporate and BD teams for partnering, IP due diligence, competitive intelligence, and IP licensing efforts.
• Provide both general legal and IP-focused counsel and education to company scientists and management teams.
• Support IP and contracting infrastructure and management as needed to manage growth and effect efficiencies.
• Drive brand protection by working with stakeholders to implement trademark strategy.

• Oversee contracting strategy and execution for collaborations, licenses, alliances, vendors, and strategic partnerships in close partnership with the COO and business teams.
• Build scalable contract management workflows for drafting, negotiation, execution, obligation tracking, amendments, and renewals.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Required: Juris Doctorate (for attorney) and graduate science degree (Ph.D. in biological field).
• Required: At least 10 years of IP advisor experience (prosecution, opinion work, strategic development, transactional work) and at least 4 years of in-house IP experience
• Required: Experienced patent agent, registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
• Required: Some transactional experience.
• Required: Extensive knowledge of patent law and procedure, including international and foreign patent prosecution procedure.
• Preferred: Demonstrated experience leading or significantly contributing to contracting and transactional workflows in a biotechnology or pharmaceutical environment.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS:

• Flexible, personable team-player, able to think flexibly in complex new areas of science; comfort with a fast-paced, small company environment, early-stage IP building, and helping design experiments to optimally support IP filings.
• Proven ability to set and meet ambitious deadlines, handle numerous multifaceted legal issues, and see projects through to conclusion.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills and demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with both scientists and management.
• Ability to distill complexity and to communicate decisively with sound judgment

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Flagship Pioneering (FSP) does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by FSP’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

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