Flagship Pioneering is a bioplatform innovation company that invents and builds platform companies that change the world. We bring together the greatest scientific minds with entrepreneurial company builders and assemble the capital to allow them to take courageous leaps. Those big leaps in human health and sustainability exponentially accelerate scientific progress in areas ranging from cancer detection and treatment to nature-positive agriculture.   

 What sets Flagship apart is our ability to advance biotechnology by uniting life science innovation, company creation, and capital investment under one roof in a way that is largely without precedent. Our scientific founders, entrepreneurial leaders, and professional capital managers are each aligned around an institutionalized process that enables us to innovate and transform for the benefit of people and planet.   

Many of the companies Flagship has founded have addressed humanity’s most urgent challenges: vaccinating billions of people against COVID-19, curing intractable diseases, improving human health, preempting illness, and feeding the world by improving the resiliency and sustainability of agriculture.  

Flagship has been recognized twice on FORTUNE’s “Change the World” list, an annual ranking of companies that have made a positive social and environmental impact through activities that are part of their core business strategies, and has been twice named to Fast Company’s annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. 

Position Overview:

We are seeking a business savvy, creative, hands-on IP Attorney or experienced patent agent to build value through developing and executing IP strategies for Flagship’s bioplatform companies.  The successful candidate has a demonstrated ability to think strategically and is fluent in multiple scientific and technology areas. The idea candidate is trained as a chemist.  This is an extremely interactive role in a unique environment that requires excellent communication skills and the ability to identify and leverage innovations, provide pragmatic and business-savvy advice, build transactional value, manage multiple priorities, and accurately and succinctly identify and communicate decisions and rationales to both scientific and executive teams.  The position will interface with both company and Flagship management, and will report to the Flagship Vice President, IP.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Build, execute, and manage a global IP strategy, including developing and growing a worldwide patent portfolio, identifying and mitigating 3rd party IP issues, and efficiently managing outside counsel.
• Collaborate with corporate and BD teams for partnering, IP due diligence, competitive intelligence, and IP licensing efforts.
• Provide both general legal IP-focused counsel and education to company scientists and management teams.
• Support IP and contracting infrastructure and management as needed to manage growth and effect efficiencies. 
• Drive brand protection by working with stakeholders to implement trademark strategy.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Required: Juris Doctorate (for attorney), or 7+ years of experience (for a patent agent)
• Required: graduate science degree (Ph.D. in organic chemistry or medicinal chemistry preferred)
• Required: At least 6 years of experience in core IP activities (prosecution, opinion work, strategic development, transactional work) related to chemistry/small molecules with good facility for the biological arts.
• Required: Registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
• Required: Extensive knowledge of patent law and procedure, including international and foreign patent prosecution procedure.
• Strongly Preferred: In-house IP experience.
• Preferred: transactional experience.
• Preferred: IP litigation experience.

PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS:

• Flexible, personable team-player, able to think “out-of-the-box”; comfort with a fast-paced, small company environment, early-stage IP building, and helping design experiments to optimally support IP filings.
• Ability to foster trust and create collaborative relationships with scientists, business partners and management.
• Ability to distill complexity and communicate decisively with sound judgment, even in ambiguous situations.
• Proven ability to set and meet ambitious deadlines, handle numerous multifaceted legal issues, and see projects through to conclusion.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Flagship Pioneering (FSP) does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by FSP’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

 

Location:  Cambridge, MA.  

Flagship Pioneering and our ecosystem companies are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

At Flagship, we recognize there is no perfect candidate. If you have some of the experience listed above but not all, please apply anyway. Experience comes in many forms, skills are transferable, and passion goes a long way. We are dedicated to building diverse and inclusive teams and look forward to learning more about your unique background.

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies:  Flagship Pioneering and its affiliated Flagship Lab companies (collectively, “FSP”) do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates.  The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Flagship Pioneering’s internal Talent Acquisition team.   Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

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