Neurocrine Biosciences Inc. Posted September 3, 2026

Executive Director, DMPK

US CA San Diego, United States Full time
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Neurocrine Biosciences Inc. is the source of truth for this posting and owns the application process. We surface normalized context and market comparison you won't find on the original listing.

About this opportunity

Who We Are:

Neurocrine Biosciences is a leading biopharmaceutical company with a simple purpose: to relieve suffering for people with great needs. We are dedicated to discovering, developing and commercializing life-changing treatments for patients with under-addressed neurological, psychiatric, endocrine and immunological disorders. The company's diverse portfolio includes FDA-approved treatments for tardive dyskinesia, chorea associated with Huntington's disease, classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia, hyperphagia in Prader-Willi syndrome, endometriosis* and uterine fibroids*, as well as a robust pipeline including multiple compounds in mid- to late-phase clinical development across our core therapeutic areas. For more than three decades, we have applied our unique insight into neuroscience and the interconnections between brain and body systems to treat complex conditions. We relentlessly pursue medicines to ease the burden of debilitating diseases and disorders, because you deserve brave science. For more information, visit  neurocrine.com , and follow the company on  LinkedIn ,  X , Facebook and YouTube . ( *in collaboration with AbbVie )

At Neurocrine, strong leadership drives both business results and team success. We look for leaders who think strategically, anticipate what’s ahead and set clear direction, while building and empowering high-performing teams. Successful leaders foster an environment where people are motivated to do their best work and deliver meaningful, measurable impact through sound decision-making and accountability.

 About the Role:

Develops strategic plans, objectives and policies for overall function. Leads the Preclinical Pharmacokinetics function within the Preclinical Development organization. Provides scientific leadership and oversight to ensure that clinical candidates with acceptable drug development characteristics are identified and appropriately characterized and developed. Plays a key role in the discovery and advancement of Neurocrine’s development compounds. Works with Neurocrine colleagues to participate in all stages of Preclinical Pharmacokinetic assessments, from compound screening through to IND and NDA regulatory submissions. Represents Preclinical Development on Research and Development teams and regularly interfaces with internal and external colleagues to ensure timely and accurate dissemination of Preclinical Pharmacokinetics. _

Your Contributions (include, but are not limited to):

Your Contributions (include, but not limited to):

Provides strategic, functional leadership and oversight to the Preclinical Pharmacokinetic function within Preclinical Development

Responsible for the development and enablement of departmental strategies to evaluate Preclinical Pharmacokinetics including ensuring continued expansion and/or updating of training, techniques and/or equipment

Leads and manages the conduct, interpretation and reporting of preclinical pharmacokinetic studies

Works with Research and Preclinical Development colleagues to establish optimal lead candidate characteristics, develop appropriate testing schemes, and design, conduct and report on preclinical studies intended to characterize potential drug candidates

Designs & conducts Preclinical Pharmacokinetic and Toxicokinetic/Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic studies in support of clinical development compounds

Oversees the preparation of Preclinical Pharmacokinetic sections of regulatory documents (IND, NDA, briefing books, Investigator Brochures, etc.).

Actively leads/participates in research-stage and development-stage program teams from both a strategic and tactical level

Prepares data summaries and presents results to peers, colleagues, the Management Committee and regulatory agencies

Prepares Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) as needed to guide the Preclinical Pharmacokinetics activities

Performs other duties as assigned

Requirements:

Bachelor's in chemistry, life sciences or closely related discipline and 17+ years of pharmaceutical/biotech experience, with extensive management experience. Experience in managing preclinical Contract Research Organizations. Experience managing preclinical scientists and preparation of INDs, CTDs, NDAs, and MAAs. Experience with silico modeling and simulation tools is beneficial OR

MS in Pharmacokinetics, Pharmaceutical Sciences, or closely related discipline and 15+ years of similar experience noted above OR

PhD in Pharmacokinetics, Pharmaceutical Sciences, or closely related discipline or PharmD and 12+ years of similar experience noted above

Demonstrated leadership of a Preclinical Pharmacokinetic function

Extensive experience in managing preclinical Contract Research Organizations

Excellent knowledge of preparation of INDs, CTAs, NDAs, and MAAs

Working knowledge of in silico modeling and simulation tools

Proactive, innovative, with good problem-solving skills

Knowledgeable of and current on regulatory guidance

Acts as a "trusted advisor" across the company and may be recognized as an external expert

Provides strategy, vision and direction regarding issues that may have company-wide impact

Requires in-depth knowledge of the functional area, business strategies, and the company’s goals

Possesses industry-leading knowledge

Ability to work strategically in a cross functional team and matrix environment

Excellent written, presentation, and verbal communication skills

Exceptional leadership, coaching, employee development skills

Demonstrated ability to negotiate and influence others with or without authority at all levels of the organization

#LI-DM1

Requirements:

Neurocrine Biosciences is an EEO/Disability/Vets employer.

We are committed to building a workplace of belonging, respect, and empowerment , and we recognize there are a variety of ways to meet our requirements. We are looking for the best candidate for the job and encourage you to apply even if your experience or qualifications don’t line up to exactly what we have outlined in the job description.

_

The annual base salary we reasonably expect to pay is $277,200.00-$378,000.00. Individual pay decisions depend on various factors, such as primary work location, complexity and responsibility of role, job duties/requirements, and relevant experience and skills. In addition, this position offers an annual bonus with a target of 35% of the earned base salary and eligibility to participate in our equity based long term incentive program. Benefits offered include a retirement savings plan (with company match), paid vacation, holiday and personal days, paid caregiver/parental and medical leave, and health benefits to include medical, prescription drug, dental and vision coverage in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plans.

Job details

Seniority
Executive/VP
Function
Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
US CA San Diego, United States
Employment type
Full time

How this role compares

Computed from every other active Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research role in our database, not just this employer's listings.

We currently track 25 comparable Executive/VP Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research roles across 9 biopharma companies.

25Comparable roles tracked
23Currently active
9Companies hiring similar roles
2Countries represented

Salary context

17 of 25 peers report a salary range (USD, annualized)

Peers share this role's job function and a matching or adjacent seniority level -- not necessarily the same therapeutic area or country.

This roleSubject $277,200/yr – $378,000/yr
Highest disclosed · Executive Director, Biotherapeutics DMPK · Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (US) $268,000/yr – $402,000/yr
Peer group range $0 – $335,000 (median $278,850)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 25 comparable roles

United States24
United Kingdom1

Seniority mix

25 of 25 peers have a known seniority level

Senior Director16
Executive/VP9

Therapeutic area mix

7 of 25 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

Oncology5
Immunology1
Neuroscience1

Similar opportunities

The closest matches from our peer group, ranked by how similar they are, not how well you'd qualify for them -- treat this as market context, not a guaranteed shortlist; a weak match is labeled as one below.

60%similar
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60%similar
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60%similar
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60%similar
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc (US) Boston, United States Executive/VP
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
GlaxoSmithKline LLC Waltham, United States Executive/VP
Same function Same seniority Same country

Notify me about similar jobs

Get an email when we spot other openings like this one – same job function, comparable seniority, roles you'd actually want to see.

How we calculate "similar"

No black box, no LLM guesswork: a deterministic score built from four normalized attributes. Here's this role's own peer group at different match levels, so you can see the mechanism, not just the result.

Every comparison starts from the same 100-point budget: 25 for working in the same function, 40 for the same therapeutic area, 20 for the same or adjacent seniority, 15 for the same country. A dimension we can't confirm on both sides contributes nothing, never a guess, never a free pass.

60%
Director/Sr. Director/Exec. Director, Molecular Pharmacology (AMD)
Lilly · San Francisco, California, United States of America · Executive/VP
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
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Executive Director, Research Oncology
Amgen Inc. · South San Francisco, United States · Executive/VP
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
60%
Executive Director, Business Technology Partner, Discovery, Preclinical and Translational Medicine
Merck · Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America · Executive/VP
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
50%
Senior Director, Small Molecule Drug Discovery in Inflammation Discovery
Amgen Inc. · South San Francisco, United States · Senior Director
Function Therapeutic area Adjacent seniority Country
Unmatched or unknown dimensions score exactly the same: 0 points, never a partial guess. A role we know almost nothing about beyond its function bottoms out at 25%; it never inflates to 100% just because there's little to compare against. Seniority uses a defined ladder (Associate → Manager → Associate Director → Senior → Principal → Director → Senior Director → Executive/VP) so "Director" and "Senior Director" count as adjacent, but "Director" and "Executive/VP" do not.