Vice President, Early Pipeline Delivery

Job description

Overview Alnylam is seeking an experienced executive leader to stand up and lead a new, dedicated team within the Pipeline Delivery organization focused on accelerating speed-to-Proof-of-Concept (PoC) across the company's rapidly growing early development portfolio. Reporting to the SVP, Pipeline Delivery, the Vice President of Early Pipeline Delivery will design an early pipeline operating model, establish ways-of-working, and lead cross-functional capability building, while driving execution on priority studies. Alnylam’s early stage portfolio is expanding quickly with plans to double in size by 2030, and Phase 1/2 programs already represent >60% of the 2027 pipeline. This role is central to Alnylam's ambition of achieving industry-leading, top-quartile (top-decile for Tier 1 programs) speed-to-PoC performance. Key Responsibilities Team Leadership & Build • Lead the onboarding and build-out of the new Early Pipeline Delivery team and expand scope to additional studies as the team scales and development candidates (DCs) are endorsed to move into the clinic. • Recruit, develop, and manage a team of study leads who carry operational accountability for early stage studies. • Serve as the senior point of accountability for early phase studies, providing hands-on leadership on priority programs while building organizational depth. Operating Model & Capability Building • Own the design and evolution of the operating model, scaling toward a fully dedicated early pipeline study management function. • Develop and institutionalize a playbook covering healthy-volunteer and patient models, country strategy, protocol operationalization, and vendor selection, ensuring learnings transfer across programs rather than being re-solved study by study. • Integrate adaptive execution practices across Pipeline Delivery and partnering functions, and apply AI-enabled tools for feasibility and enrollment forecasting to accelerate PoC timelines. • Establish standardized ways-of-working and consistent performance oversight across early development studies, replacing today's reactive, program-by-program approach with proactive risk anticipation. Cross-Functional Influence & Portfolio Impact • Partner closely with Global Trial Strategy & Operations, Research & Early Develpoment, and Technical Operations & Quality to manage the critical path from development candidate nomination through CTA and into PoC. • Provide input on portfolio prioritization and resourcing, ensuring Early Pipeline Delivery leadership maintains sufficient influence and connectivity across both dedicated and transitioning studies. • Support delivery of complex, novel study types — including first-in-human, healthy-volunteer, and novel-country studies (e.g., Australia, China) — and emerging therapeutic areas such as ophthalmology and neuromuscular disease. • Represent Early Pipeline Delivery to senior R&D and Pipeline Delivery leadership, reporting on progress, risks, and resourcing needs as the function scales. Qualifications • MSc, MBA, PhD or equivalent in relevant discipline strongly preferred • 20+ years industry experience focused on Clinical Operations with significant experience leading early-stage study management within a biopharmaceutical company, including direct accountability for Phase 1/2 program delivery. • Track record of building or scaling a team or operating function, ideally including standing up new organizational capabilities in a growth environment. • Experience with first-in-human and healthy-volunteer study designs; exposure to novel or emerging geographies is a plus. • Demonstrated success driving cross-functional alignment • Strong operational and analytical rigor, with comfort using data and benchmarking to diagnose bottlenecks and drive continuous improvement. • Builder's mindset — energized by ambiguity and the opportunity to shape a new function rather than inherit an established one. • Executive presence and communication skills sufficient to influence senior R&D leadership and partner functions without direct authority. • Familiarity with applying A