Head of Adjuvants & Delivery Systems, Vaccines
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Site Name: Italy - Siena, Belgium-Wavre, Cambridge MA
Posted Date: Nov 24 2025
At GSK, we have bold ambitions for patients, aiming to positively impact the health of 2.5 billion people by the end of the decade. Our R&D focuses on discovering and delivering vaccines and medicines, combining our understanding of the immune system with cutting‐edge technology to transform people's lives. GSK fosters a culture ambitious for patients, accountable for impact, and committed to doing the right thing, ensuring that we focus our efforts on accelerating significant assets that meet patients' needs and have the highest probability of success. We're uniting science, technology, and talent to get ahead of disease together.
Position Summary
This is a newly created role within the ID Discovery Tech organization. The role will report to the head of Discovery Tech and will include previous Adjuvant CoE head accountabilities, integrating delivery system discovery and development into a more holistic Adjuvant System streamlined approach. The Adjuvant and Delivery System Platform integrates deeply within the matrix organization. By focusing on innovation and life‐cycle management, the Adjuvant and Delivery System Platform Lead will ensure that Adjuvant Systems are integrated as core pillars of the company's vaccine innovation strategy and that GSK leadership and competitiveness in the field are strengthened.
Possible office locations: Siena, Italy; Cambridge, Massachusetts; or Wavre, Belgium.
Job Purpose
The Adjuvant and Delivery System Platform Lead will define, adjust, and communicate the GSK adjuvant strategy for both the existing adjuvant portfolio and new adjuvants to be discovered. This role will work closely with the heads of the other technology platforms, as well as with the heads of Biochemistry, Chemistry, and Data Science, within Discovery Tech and with teams across the GSK organization (VIDRU, TRD, Research Tech, Translational Science, MSAT, and Global Supply Chain Strategy). The Lead will provide transformative leadership within GSK's matrix organization, driving the discovery, development, and life‐cycle management of Adjuvant and Delivery Systems. The role will be accountable for supporting, improving, and extracting the value of GSK's mature portfolio of adjuvants (AS01, AS03, and AS04). It will play a pivotal role in discovering, advancing innovative adjuvant and delivery system technologies, ensuring seamless transition from research to Technical Research and Development (TRD, MDS), and enabling new vaccine development. The Lead will build on GSK's legacy in adjuvant science using data‐driven strategies and advanced analytical tools to enhance adjuvanted vaccine efficacy and differentiation. By leveraging cross‐functional collaboration, state‐of‐the‐art science, and strategic alignment, this role will elevate GSK's capability to deliver next‐generation vaccines to address evolving public health needs and emerging opportunities in both infectious and non‐infectious diseases.
The Adjuvant and Delivery System Platform Lead will be accountable for expanding and managing GSK's adjuvant knowledge base, including generating appropriate scientific data on mechanisms of action and platform improvements, and designing and implementing a data strategy to maximize the value of GSK's adjuvant portfolio. The Lead will also ensure support for commercialized adjuvanted vaccines, addressing regulatory, medical, and competitive questions to uphold GSK's position in the adjuvanted vaccine market.
Key Responsibilities
Collaborate with Discovery Units to improve early adjuvant selection and ensure agile project delivery; support Development Teams during regulatory filings and establish adjuvantation as a differentiator in vaccine strategies; in the post‐marketing phase, support Development Teams on safety, competitive intelligence, and medical education.
Drive end‐to‐end innovation for adjuvant and delivery systems to fill unmet needs and enable next‐generation vaccine development.
Ensure scientific excellence in the design, generation, and communication of evidence related to GSK's adjuvant systems.
Additional Responsibilities
Lead a cross‐functional team of senior functional representatives to design and implement the overall strategy of GSK's adjuvant platform, encompassing both mature and new adjuvants.
Initiate new partnerships and build strong collaborations with leading academics, biotech, and regulatory agencies, contributing to global guidance development on adjuvant systems and adjuvanted vaccines.
Ensure close connection with Discovery and Development Units across the organization and support their ability to leverage the adjuvant and delivery system platform.
Collaborate with mRNA and polysaccharide/MAPs Platform Leads to investigate modular vaccine platforms that fill unmet needs or improve technology platforms, delivering next‐generation vaccines.
Build and sustain a cutting‐edge, scalable, high‐impact innovation pipeline in adjuvant and delivery systems, balancing short‐term deliverables with long‐term platform evolution.
Position the adjuvant and delivery system platform as a critical enabler of first‐in‐class and best‐in‐class products, including in the Global Health area.
Develop and implement rigorous, harmonized processes to ensure adjuvant knowledge management.
Collaborate with Regulatory, Safety, and Medical Teams to identify and communicate key scientific messages for regulatory and medical engagements, ensuring a patient‐centered, science‐led approach.
Lead efforts to build and disseminate robust data on adjuvant modes of action, enabling a better understanding of their unique immunological profiles and supporting vaccine development and market differentiation strategies.
Basic Qualifications
PhD in immunology, vaccinology, or related field.
Minimum of 10 years working in R&D industry in adjuvant science and vaccinology.
Expertise in adjuvant immunology and adjuvanted vaccines, including immunostimulation and immunomodulation.
Experience leading cross‐functional teams in a matrix organization and building collaborations across R&D functions, regulatory agencies, and external stakeholders.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience supporting adjuvanted vaccines in regulatory engagements.
Experience in translational science.
Ability to foster innovation and drive new ideas in a dynamic environment.
Experience working in a matrix organization.
Demonstrated cultural sensitivity and adaptability in international and cross‐functional environments.
US Annual Base Salary Range: $221,925 to $369,875. The range accounts for work location within the US market, candidate's skills, experience, education level and market rate. In addition, the position offers an annual bonus and eligibility to participate in a share‐based long‐term incentive program dependent on role level. Benefits include health care, retirement, paid holidays, vacation, paid caregiver/parental and medical leave.
Why GSK?
Uniting science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together. GSK is a global biopharma company with a purpose to unite science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together. We aim to positively impact the health of 2.5 billion people by the end of the decade, and we focus on four therapeutic areas: respiratory, immunology and inflammation; oncology; HIV; and infectious diseases.
People and patients around the world count on the medicines and vaccines we make, so we're committed to creating an environment where our people can thrive and focus on what matters most. Our culture of being ambitious for patients, accountable for impact, and doing the right thing is the foundation for how we deliver for patients, shareholders and our people.
GSK is an Equal Opportunity Employer. This ensures all qualified applicants receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity and sexual orientation), parental status, national origin, age, disability, genetic information (including family medical history), military service or any basis prohibited under federal, state or local law.
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