Associate Principal Scientist

Location: Macclesfield, UK (Hybrid - 3 days on site)

AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven biopharmaceutical company where we not only focus on the discovery, development and delivery of life-saving medicines to our patients but believe in sustainability and are determined to minimise the impact of our work on the environment. We are proud to be a great place to work and have a culture that inspires innovation and collaboration. We empower our colleagues to express diverse perspectives and at the same time feel valued, respected and rewarded for their ideas and creativity.

**The Role**

As a scientific leader (Associate Principal Scientist) specialising in developing kinetic and mechanistic understanding for continuous chemical transformations you will be working in a group dedicated to identifying, developing and delivering continuous manufacturing opportunities in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). The role involves working collaboratively with chemists, engineers, analysts, specialists in instrument automation and control, physical organic scientists, data scientists and others. In the role you will:

- Provide kinetic and reaction mechanistic expertise in the development and implementation of new continuous processes to achieve robust and sustainable manufacturing for the delivery of drug substances. This will include both laboratory experimentation and in-silico modelling.
- Collaborate with AZ scientists or third-party organisations in the development and optimisation of continuous manufacturing processes for new Active pharmaceutical ingredients, with consideration of the requirements of speed, quality, cost, sustainability, reproducibility and efficiency.
- Drive new ways of working, in collaboration with technology experts, to focus on data driven experimentation which will enable AZ’s modelling and simulation aspirations.
- Support problem solving when development or manufacturing issues arise.
- Contribute to the development and delivery of the continuous manufacturing strategy for AZ through collaboration with other leaders in the Continuous group.
- Provide mentorship and coaching to AZ colleagues to help with their long-term development.

**Essential Requirements**
- BSc/MSc/ PhD in Chemistry or relevant experience to an equivalent level.
- Demonstrated experience in the practical development of continuous organic chemistry processes
- A good understanding of synthetic methodologies, reaction mechanisms and modern analytical techniques
- Good collaborative skills to enable effective working with different skillsets.
- Strong communication and influencing skills.

**Desirable Requirements**:

- PhD in mechanistic chemistry or equivalent industrial experience.
- Lab-based pharmaceutical industry and/or process development experience, using a broad range of practical techniques.
- Experience in using a wide variety of off-line analytical techniques and be able to identify and implement more specialist (in-line) approaches when required by liaising with analytical experts.
- Proven record of innovation through, for instance, authorship of papers, inventor status on patents, or presenting at external conferences.
- The ability to develop and analyse multiple solutions to problems.
- Experience mentoring and driving performance and development of your peers.
- Experience in scaling up manufacturing processes from lab to pilot plant.

**Skills and capabilities**
- Ability to challenge, innovate, think critically and flexibly, bringing new solutions and opportunities for chemical development.
- Ability to analyse and interpret complex problems and provide solutions with a high attention to detail.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to communicate across interfaces of scientific disciplines, culture, and expertise both internally and externally.
- The ability to confidently participate in, and potentially lead, improvement projects.