Senior Expert Senior Principal PKS Data Scientist & Scientific Software Engineer (Dual level posting)

200 experimental datasets are generated every day in the Pharmacokinetic Sciences (PKS) department at Novartis Biomedical Research. This role sits at the center of efforts to unlock the value of these data for decision making and to shape the future of medicine through advanced data science.

As Senior Expert II / Senior Principal Data Scientist & Scientific Software Engineer you will join the Modeling & Simulation Data Science team in the Translational Medicine Unit and work at the intersection of data science software engineering and drug discovery. You will apply machine learning statistics and modern software development practices to harness ADME and PK data uncover structure-property relationships and translate scientific and business needs into scalable strategically aligned solutions.

You will collaborate closely with Data & Digital and PKS wet- (ADME and bioanalytical) and dry-lab (modeling) teams toidentifyopportunities where data applicationsand insilico methods can meaningfully improve decision quality efficiency and scientific addition to hands-on technical delivery you will help shape and champion fit-for-purpose solutions that are robust reusable and maintainable in a production setting.

This role is ideal for a scientifically grounded data scientist who combines strong analytical depth with practical software engineeringexpertise and who is motivated by delivering measurable impact in drug discovery through high-quality data products machine learning and computational innovation.

Key Responsibilities

• Senior Principal:Act as a senior Modeling & Simulation Data Science representative on discovery and lead optimization programs contributing scientific and strategic input to project discussions and decisions and helping shape data science direction across programs.
  Senior Expert II:Act as a key Modeling & Simulation Data Science representative on discovery and lead optimization programs providing expert scientific input and contributing to project discussions and decisions.

• Senior Principal:Partner with Data & Digital and PKS wet- and dry-lab teams toidentifypriority gaps clarify business needs and translate them into strategically aligned analytical and computational solutions with broad scientific and operational impact.Own the

• Senior Expert II:Partner with Data & Digital and PKS wet- and dry-lab teams toidentifypriority gaps clarify business needs and translate them into high-impact analytical and computational solutions for projects and platforms.

• Design build andmaintainscalable applications workflows and data pipelines that support scientific analysis and decision making across projects and modalities.

• Develop evaluate and deploy machine learning and statistical models to uncover relationships between chemical structure and molecular or pharmacokinetic properties.

• Apply data mining visualization and exploratory analysis to derive insight from complex experimental datasets and communicate findings clearly to diverse stakeholders.

• Senior Principal:Create and implement project- or modality-specific in silico models and data strategies that accelerate and streamline compound progression decisions while informing broader scientific direction and capability development.

• Senior Expert II:Create and implement project- or modality-specific in silico models and data approaches that accelerate and streamline compound progression decisions.

• Write production-quality code following strong software engineering practices including version control testing documentation and maintainability standards.

• Senior Principal:Lead and shape cross-functional initiatives across data science software engineering and laboratory teams driving strategic alignment and organizational impact.

• Senior Expert II:Contribute to and coordinate cross-functional initiatives across data science software engineering and laboratory teams to deliver high-quality solutions.

• Senior Principal:Promote and champion the broad adoption of in-house tools applications and data science methods helping shape best practices and strengthen data science capabilities across Translational Medicine and PKS.

• Senior Expert II:Promote the adoption and effective use of in-house tools applications and data science methods across projects and teams to maximize scientific impact.

• Senior Principal:Stay current with advances in AI/ML statistics and computational methods relevant to ADME PK/PD and drug discovery and proactively evaluate and bringappropriate innovationinto practice to improve efficiency and scientific impact.

• Senior Expert II:Stay current with advances in AI/ML statistics and computational methods relevant to ADME PK/PD and drug discovery and help bringappropriate innovationinto practice within projects and workflows.

Essential Requirements

• Advanced degree in a relevant scientific or quantitative field such as cheminformatics bioinformatics biomedical engineering computational biology computational chemistry AI/ML in life sciences or a related discipline.

• Senior Principal:PhD with 5 years or MSc with 8 years of relevant work experience applying data science in drug discovery translational research or related scientific environments witha track recordof leading complex initiatives and influencing scientific direction.

• Senior Expert II:Relevant work experience applying data science in drug discovery translational research or related scientific environments with a strong record of independent technical contribution and expert delivery in collaborative settings.

• Senior Principal:Strongexpertisein machine learning statistics and reproducible data science workflows withdemonstratedability to apply them to complex scientific problems and guide others in their effective use.

• Senior Expert II:Strongexpertisein machine learning statistics and reproducible data science workflows withdemonstratedability to apply them independently to real scientific problems.

• Proficiencyin Python and/or R with solid software development practices including version control testing documentation and production-quality coding standards.

• Senior Principal:Experience designing developing and deploying robust analytical applications computational workflows or machine learning systems including shaping reusable solutions and technical direction in collaborative environments.

• Senior Expert II:Experience designing developing and deploying robust analytical applications computational workflows or machine learning systems in collaborative environments.

• Senior Principal:Demonstratedability to work across multidisciplinary teams influence stakeholders and translate complex analytical concepts into clear actionable insights for scientists partners and leaders.

• Senior Expert II:Demonstratedability to work across multidisciplinary teams and translate complex analytical concepts into clear actionable insights for scientists and stakeholders.

• Senior Principal:Strong communication collaboration and leadership capabilities withdemonstratedability to influence decisions and help shape direction in cross-functional settings.

• Senior Expert II:Strong communicationand collaboration capabilities with the ability to influence project decisions in cross-functional settings.

• Senior Principal:Excellent understanding of drug discovery processes withparticular relevanceto ADME pharmacokinetics pharmacodynamics or related translational data domains and ability to articulate the impact and value of data science in strategic terms.

• Senior Expert II:Good understanding of drug discovery processes withparticular relevanceto ADME pharmacokinetics pharmacodynamics or related translational data domains and ability to apply data science effectively to relevant scientific problems.

Desirable Requirements

• Experience with discovery-stage PK modeling ADME data interpretation or relating preclinical properties to in vivo pharmacokinetic behavior.

• Familiarity with modern machine learning approaches such as deep learning generative algorithms or explainable AI in drug discovery contexts.

• Experience with modern scientific software or web application development frameworks including JavaScript-based front-end technologies (e.g. Svelte).

• Knowledge of SQL databases Linux-based environments and scalable data engineering patterns for scientific workflows.

• Experience working with small molecules peptides RNAs or other modalities in discovery-stage data analysis.