OneLab Laboratory Team Leader

Ipsen · Dreux

Apply on the company website

About Ipsen:

Ipsen is a mid-sized global biopharmaceutical company with a focus on transformative medicines in three therapeutic areas: Oncology, Rare Disease and Neuroscience. Supported by nearly 100 years of development experience, with global hubs in the U.S., France and the U.K, we tackle areas of high unmet medical need through research and innovation.

 Our passionate teams in more than 40 countries are focused on what matters and endeavor every day to bring medicines to patients in 88 countries. We build a workplace that champions human-centric leadership and fosters a culture of collaboration, excellence and impact. At Ipsen, every individual is empowered to be their true selves, grow and thrive alongside the company’s success. Join us on our journey towards sustainable growth, creating real impact on patients and society!

For more information, visit us at https://www.ipsen.com/ and follow our latest news on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Job Title:  

OneLab Laboratory Team Leader

Division / Function: 

Early Development/Clinical Pharmacology, DMPK & Pharmacometrics

Manager’s Job Title: 

Director, Immunogenicity and Immunoanalysis (IMA)

Location:

Dreux Laboratories

WHAT - Summary & Purpose of the Position

The Early Development (eDev) department plays a critical role in advancing Ipsen’s portfolio of products of biologics and small molecules across all therapeutic areas, from early non‑clinical development to Proof of Concept in humans.

eDev is organized around three interconnected functions: Non-Clinical Drug Safety (NCDS); Translational Sciences (TS) and Clinical Pharmacology/DMPK, BioAnalysis (BioA)/ImmunoAnalysis (IMA)/OneLab, and Pharmacometrics.

Together, these multi-disciplinary functions provide comprehensive expertise in evaluating safety, efficacy, and pharmacological profiles of drug candidates prior to clinical development.

The newly established OneLab laboratory in Dreux provide state‑of‑the‑art capabilities to design, develop, and execute experimental work supporting the entire Ipsen R&D pipeline.

Within this environment, the OneLab Laboratory Team Leader plays a strategic role in ensuring the effective leadership, coordination, and continuous improvement of OneLab laboratory activities.

In this role, the OneLab Laboratory Team Leader ensures the day-to-day coordination of OneLab teams across TS/IMA, BioA, and NCDS, while allocating resources effectively to support laboratory planning, execution, documentation, and the delivery of high-quality outputs. The position also contributes to the continuous improvement of laboratory organization, processes, and ways of working, and includes hierarchical responsibility for technical staff and postdoctoral researchers within the OneLab TS/IMA teams.

This position requires in addition to a high scientific background and more particularly any experiences in non-clinical drug development, a strong experience in laboratory operations, team management, combined with demonstrated leadership, organizational excellence, and the ability to drive high‑quality scientific output in a dynamic and multidisciplinary environment.

WHAT - Main Responsibilities & Technical Competencies

OneLab Laboratory Management

• Functional management of all OneLab teams (NCDS / TS / IMA / BioA). Act as the representative for all OneLab teams based in Dreux (TS/IMA, BioA, NCDS) to ensure efficient interactions with:
  • EHS teams (e.g., BSL2 lab representative, human material authorization requests, biological sample listings, quality audits, genetically modified organism authorization dossier)
  • IT services (e.g., network access for new equipment, platform updates, maintenance)
  • Facility Management (e.g., equipment and infrastructure maintenance).
• Anticipate needs and ensure centralization and sharing of information and actions required for optimal laboratory operations.
• Manage equipment investment requests (CAPEX).
• Enforce EHS regulations, promote a safety culture, conduct safety inspections, and ensure mandatory EHS training for lab staff, newcomers, students, interns, and postdoctoral researchers.
• Ensure proper organization of OneLab team documents in shared spaces (SharePoint, Teams, eLN).
• Identify, develop, and coordinate synergies between OneLab and PharmDev teams on the Dreux site.
• Attract, develop, and retain laboratory staff to maintain scientific excellence.
• Manage trainees, PhD students, and postdoctoral fellows.

Hierarchical Management of OneLab TS/IMA Teams and all Postdocs

• Directly manage a team composed of postdocs, scientists, and research assistants.
• Adjust and coordinate experimental workload and planning based on project strategies defined by TS and IMA Leads to ensure high-quality deliverables within timelines.
• Provide technical support and expertise for experimental activities and equipment use/maintenance.
• Ensure detailed and accurate reporting of experimental activities for TS/IMA teams.
• Conduct performance evaluations for team members.
• Participate in scientific and technological monitoring in TS/IMA domains.
• Occasionally contribute to wet lab activities to support experimental work.

Environment, Health & Safety (EHS)

• Comply with current EHS regulations and procedures.
• Contribute to site EHS performance by reporting risks, malfunctions, or improvement opportunities.
• Participate in mandatory EHS training sessions.

HOW - Behavioural Competencies Required

Competency

Competency Behavioural Markers

Explanation of Choice

References to Job Description

Excellence in Execution

• Approaches priority setting and setting the stage through the lens of execution
• Establishes clarity about the goals, accountabilities, timelines, and next steps; can identify/spot opportunities for real impact on patient and society
• Able to be focused and performance‑driven with clear KPIs
• Plans and aligns effectively (steps, resources, timelines etc.)
• Displays a commitment to best practice sharing and setting
• Promotes single point of accountabilities

This role is responsible for planning, coordinating, and delivering a high volume of laboratory work across TS/IMA, NCDS, and BioA. The position requires excellent operational rigor, prioritization, and consistent delivery of high‑quality scientific outputs aligned with project timelines and regulatory expectations.

Ensure the effective management of OneLab activities...; Adjust and coordinate experimental workload...; Prepare QC reports...

Ensures Accountability

• Ensures single accountable referents per task/project/outcome (independent of organizational context or multi‑team projects)
• Builds and anchors an environment where people have the skills and habits to ask for clarification when accountabilities are unclear
• Consults/seeks relevant stakeholder views/expertise and coaches/ensures decisions are made by consent vs. consensus
• Takes personal accountability for decisions, actions, successes and failures, and fosters the same for others
• Follows through on commitment and makes sure others do the same

The Team Leader oversees multiple technical teams, postdocs, scientific staff, and cross‑functional interfaces, requiring strong clarity of roles, team accountability, and consistent follow‑through on scientific and operational commitments.

Hierarchical responsibility for all technical staff...; Conduct performance evaluations...; Ensure proper organization...

Develops / Coaches Talent

• Able to identify and align career goals, and blend organizational objectives into a cohesive development plan for self and team
• Able to coach
• Provides structured, actionable, regular and directional feedback and acts as a coach to empower people to own their own growth/development
• Prepares their own succession plans
• Displays a radically human‑centered mindset; puts people first; focuses on doing good
• Demonstrates ability to build team effectiveness

The role includes direct hierarchical management, mentorship of postdocs and scientists, development of technical capabilities, and fostering a culture of scientific rigor and continuous learning necessary for a translational science environment.

Attract, develop, and retain laboratory staff...; Directly manage a team...; Provide technical support and expertise...

Manage Complexity

• Identifies contradictory information/demands/inputs to effectively solve problems
• Develops and evaluates alternative scenarios and solutions
• Able to identify what truly matters and ruthlessly focus/prioritize on making decisions with real impact

The Team Leader must navigate multiple scientific domains, operate within a multidisciplinary environment (TS, IMA, NCDS, BioA), and make strategic decisions regarding internal vs outsourced studies, assay feasibility, and scientific interpretation.

Identify gaps related to in‑vitro pharmacology...; Assess feasibility of conducting assays...; Contribute to translational science plans...

Collaborates

• Collaborates and communicates without boundaries, continuously removes organizational barriers
• Focuses on continuous improvement; integrates and leverages key learnings, showcases resourcefulness, learning/experimenting at scale, demonstrates strong entrepreneurial behaviors and mindset

The role requires seamless coordination across TS, IMA, NCDS, BioA, EHS, IT, Facility Management, and external CROs, demanding strong collaborative behavior to ensure smooth lab operations and scientific output.

Act as the representative for all OneLab teams...; Interact with TS lead...; Identify, develop, and coordinate synergies...

HOW - Knowledge & Experience

Knowledge & Experience:

• Proven experience managing teams of 5–10 people at different levels (technicians, research associates or engineers, postdoctoral fellows)preferably in Pharmaceutical, Biotech and/or CRO companies.
• Education / Certifications / Experience: PhD + Postdoctoral training in Life Sciences,
• Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize effectively.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a multidisciplinary and matrix environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to anticipate and coordinate multiple activities simultaneously.
• Eagerness and willingness to learn and grow.
• Knowledge and/or previous experiences in  non-clinical drug development of small molecule and/or Biologics including in vitro pharmacology, immunogenicity, pharmacokinetic and immunoanalysis would be a plus

Education / Certifications :

• PhD plus a minimum of 5 years of experience in biotech and/or pharmaceutical companies.

Language(s):

• Fluent in French and English.

#LI-MM1 #LI-hybrid

More jobs at Ipsen · Other jobs in Dreux