Chief of Staff, Special Projects

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Job description

About Formation Bio

Formation Bio is a tech and AI driven pharma company differentiated by radically more efficient drug development.

Advancements in AI and drug discovery are creating more candidate drugs than the industry can progress because of the high cost and time of clinical trials. Recognizing that this development bottleneck may ultimately limit the number of new medicines that can reach patients, Formation Bio, founded in 2016 as TrialSpark Inc., has built technology platforms, processes, and capabilities to accelerate all aspects of drug development and clinical trials. Formation Bio partners, acquires, or in-licenses drugs from pharma companies, research organizations, and biotechs to develop programs past clinical proof of concept and beyond, ultimately helping to bring new medicines to patients. The company is backed by investors across pharma and tech, including a16z, Sequoia, Sanofi, Thrive Capital, Sam Altman, John Doerr, Spark Capital, SV Angel Growth, and others.

You can read more at the following links:

• Our Vision for AI in Pharma
• Our Current Drug Portfolio
• Our Technology & Platform

At Formation Bio, our values are the driving force behind our mission to revolutionize the pharma industry. Every team and individual at the company shares these same values, and every team and individual plays a key part in our mission to bring new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently.

About the Position

As Chief of Staff, Special Projects you will report to our CEO & Co-Founder, Benjamine Liu, and work closely with the Leadership Team to drive strategic initiatives and oversee special projects that shape the company's direction. This entrepreneurial role offers the opportunity to have a meaningful impact on Formation Bio's long-term success by ensuring the seamless execution of high-impact initiatives that advance our mission to bring new treatments to patients faster and more efficiently.

You will serve as a trusted partner to the CEO, acting as a force-multiplier by managing company priorities, supporting strategy development, and coordinating cross-functional collaboration. Your focus will be on overseeing special projects from conception through execution, while ensuring alignment across teams and maintaining strong relationships with external stakeholders, including investors, advisors, and high-profile leaders. Ideal candidates are strategic, proactive, highly organized, detail-oriented, and capable of navigating ambiguity.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic projects from conception to execution, collaborating with internal leadership and external partners to ensure project success.
• Identify, engage, build and manage relationships with external partners to keep projects on track and maintain stakeholder engagement.
• Oversee internal project management by engaging stakeholders, defining scopes, managing deliverables, and ensuring timely execution of next steps.
• Partner with Legal and external counsel to negotiate agreements and establish partnerships with individuals and organizations.
• Partner with finance and other key stakeholders to develop and manage budgets related to ongoing projects
• Develop and track goals, success metrics, and reporting for ongoing projects, ensuring long-term value creation.
• Create materials for high-level meetings with pharmaceutical executives, investors, and other stakeholders, using storytelling and visual communication to simplify complex concepts.
• Support the CEO and Leadership Team by managing agendas, preparing materials, and ensuring execution of strategic priorities.
• Use AI to enhance project workflows, optimize outcomes, and drive efficiencies.

About you

• Degree in business, life sciences, biotechnology, or a related field required; MBA or Master's preferred.
• Minimum of 8 years of experience in biotechnology, life sciences, business development, or fund management.
• Experience forming and managing complex partnerships, with strong leadership skills and strategic initiative management.
• Understanding of AI and curiosity about its impact on the pharma industry.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and interpersonal skills, with cross-functional collaboration experience.
• Advanced ability in creating decks for meetings and conveying complex scientific and business concepts effectively.
• Strong project management and budgeting skills, with the ability to engage stakeholders and manage resources.
• Kind, thoughtful, and mission-driven, passionate about bringing medical treatments to patients faster.
• Curious, adaptable, and able to navigate ambiguity while shifting between priorities in a dynamic environment.

Availability & Travel Requirements:

This role requires a high degree of flexibility and availability. The successful candidate must be prepared to:

• Be available for touch bases and urgent communications with our CEO as needed, including on weekends.
• Travel as required, potentially with short notice, to support company priorities, including client meetings, strategic initiatives, or other business-critical events.

We offer competitive compensation because we want to hire the best people and reward them for their contributions to our mission. We pay all employees competitively relative to the New York City market, regardless of their location. In compliance with NYC's pay transparency law and in pursuit of pay equity and fairness, we publish salary ranges for all open roles at Formation Bio. The target salary range for this role is $204,000 - $260,000.

On top of base salary, we also offer equity, generous perks, location flexibility, and comprehensive benefits - learn more about them and our compensation philosophy here .

If this range doesn't match your expectations, please still apply because we may have something else for you.

You will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

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