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Director Preclinical Development Jobs (NOW HIRING)

CEDENT

Director of Preclinical Research

Durham, NC · On-site +1

To date, we've developed a suite of research-enabling resources, funded or collaborated with over ... hiring a Director of Preclinical Research to help us pursue a growing number of research ...

Rock Connections

Director, Curing NF

Detroit, MI

The ideal Director of Curing NF is a scientist by education with experience leading team members to ... preclinical development, and/or clinical studies * Demonstrated successful track record as a leader ...

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$92.4K

$155K

How much do director preclinical development jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 21, 2026, the average yearly pay for director preclinical development in the United States is $92,386.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $70,000.00 and $108,500.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a Director Preclinical Development job?

A Director of Preclinical Development oversees the early-stage research and testing of drug candidates before they enter clinical trials. They manage preclinical studies, ensuring regulatory compliance, safety, and efficacy assessments. This role involves coordinating with cross-functional teams, external partners, and regulatory agencies to advance promising compounds. Strong expertise in toxicology, pharmacology, and regulatory guidelines is essential. The director plays a key role in shaping the preclinical strategy to support successful drug development.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the Director Preclinical Development position, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Director Preclinical Development, you need deep expertise in pharmaceutical or biotechnology research, strong project management abilities, and an advanced degree (Ph.D., Pharm.D., or equivalent) in a life sciences field. Familiarity with regulatory guidelines (such as GLP), experience using data management and statistical analysis software, and prior leadership roles in preclinical studies are essential. Exceptional communication, problem-solving, and team leadership skills set candidates apart in managing multidisciplinary teams and collaborative projects. These competencies are crucial for successfully guiding drug candidates through preclinical stages while ensuring regulatory compliance and timely project delivery.

What are the typical responsibilities and team dynamics for a Director of Preclinical Development?

A Director of Preclinical Development is responsible for overseeing the planning, execution, and management of preclinical research programs, ensuring that studies meet scientific, regulatory, and project milestones. You will typically work with cross-functional teams including toxicologists, pharmacologists, regulatory affairs professionals, and external partners, fostering collaboration throughout the drug development process. The role often involves reviewing study designs and data, preparing regulatory submissions, and providing strategic direction to advance compounds toward clinical testing. Working closely with upper management, you'll play a key part in shaping research priorities and resource allocation. This position offers significant influence over drug development strategies and opportunities for advancement to higher executive or scientific leadership roles.

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Director Preclinical Development jobs near you
Infographic showing various Director Preclinical Development job openings in the United States as of June 2026, with employment types broken down into 33% As Needed, and 67% Part Time. Highlights an 91% Physical, 3% Hybrid, and 6% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $92,386 per year, or $44.4 per hour.
Director of Preclinical Research

Director of Preclinical Research

CEDENT

Durham, NC • On-site, Remote

Full-time

Posted 14 days ago

Job description

The Client is seeking an experienced and high-agency individual to support the development of new treatments for Client, a rare bone cancer with no approved drug therapies. To date, we’ve developed a suite of research-enabling resources, funded or collaborated with over 120 researchers and companies, and launched our own research lab to support drug discovery and repurposing. Through these collective efforts, we’ve helped bring over 10 therapies into clinical trials for Client. With the goal of further increasing the pace of progress towards better treatments, we’re hiring a Director of Preclinical Research to help us pursue a growing number of research opportunities spanning resource development, target discovery, drug discovery, drug repurposing and translational research. In this position, you’ll play an instrumental role in enabling, supporting and driving research by:
  • Awarding and managing grants, guiding collaborations, and outsourcing internally-conceived projects
  • Developing, acquiring, and distributing research-enabling resources
  • Establishing and maintaining relationships and alliances with investigators, companies, and other stakeholders around the world
Position Overview
  • New, full-time position on the client research team
  • Position is office-based (not lab-based)
  • Travel 4-8 times per year for team meetings, collaborator/grantee visits and conferences
  • Reports to the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO)
  • Local or remote candidates are encouraged to apply
  • Preferred start date is August 2025
Responsibilities
Preclinical research grants:
  • Oversee our preclinical grants portfolio and manage the entire lifecycle of grantmaking activities, including RFP development, inviting/recruiting applicants, peer review, grant awards, and progress reporting
  • Review progress reports, attend progress update meetings, record notes, offer scientific feedback
  • Arm grantees with research-enabling resources, help them navigate barriers, identify opportunities for collaboration based on your bird’s eye view of the research ecosystem
Outsourced research projects:
  • Identify appropriate opportunities to outsource projects to contract research vendors to advance our goals
  • Oversee all aspects of the vendor management process including selection, project scoping, ensuring execution on time and on budget, and data analysis
  • Assist CSO with the in vivo evaluation of promising therapeutic concepts in Client mouse models to develop rationale for new clinical trials
Research resource management:
  • Oversee our repositories of models, biospecimens, and data, and manage associated vendors
  • Distribute models, biospecimens, and data in support of global research efforts
  • Identify and import new datasets or models developed by researchers into our repositories to facilitate resource centralization
  • Stimulate the development of new preclinical models to fill gaps in our current repository, including immunocompetent models
Alliance management and ecosystem development:
  • Assist CSO in forging and maintaining relationships with external stakeholders across our various research programs
  • Facilitate effective and efficient preclinical research collaborations with academic investigators and companies
  • Stimulate new research by recruiting investigators with relevant interests and capabilities and educating them about our research-enabling resources
  • Assist CSO in writing grant applications to support internal research
  • Develop new knowledge through attendance at relevant conferences, workshops, symposia, and staying up to date on the scientific literature
  • Help our Development and Engagement teams develop research-related updates for various constituents, donors and funders
  • Update and further develop content and resources on our website for researchers
Required Qualifications
  • PhD, MD, PharmD or equivalent degree in the biological sciences
  • At least 5 years of industry experience in oncology R&D
  • Prior experience building and maintaining strategic relationships with CROs, companies, and academic researchers to achieve research goals
  • Adept at navigating bureaucracies, can effectively persuade and influence external stakeholders
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills
  • Experience with research grants (writing, reviewing, and/or managing)
  • Highly organized, can effectively multitask and deliver results across multiple projects
  • High agency, proactive, takes initiative, makes decisions independently, escalates issues when appropriate
  • Must be legally authorized for employment in the U.S. We are not able to sponsor visas at this time
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About Cedent

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

CEDENT strives to attract and retain the best people and provide an environment where they can all develop professionally and build a rewarding career. As a result, we create an inclusive environment that is rich in diversity, acknowledges each individual's uniqueness and promotes respect, personal achievement and stewardship. Our clients are global and so is CEDENT. We build and maintain a global workforce that includes people from different backgrounds, with a vast range of skills and experience all united by a common culture and commitment to help our clients achieve high performance. Cultivating a diverse workforce and inclusive work environment makes business sense. Our peoples varied skills are the talent engine that powers CEDENT, enabling it in turn to deliver the innovative solutions that help our clients outperform competitors.

Industry

It services

Company size

11 - 50 Employees

Headquarters location

Plano, TX, US

Year founded

2008

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