About Us

Kardigan is a heart health company working to make cardiovascular disease preventable, curable and no longer the leading cause of death in the world.

It is Kardigan’s mission to develop multiple targeted treatments in parallel that bring people with cardiovascular diseases to the cures they deserve.

Led by Tassos Gianakakos, Jay Edelberg, M.D., Ph.D., and Bob McDowell, Ph.D., Kardigan’s co-founders have reunited after leading MyoKardia to discover and develop mavacamten, the first cardiac myosin inhibitor, resulting in an acquisition by Bristol Myers Squibb in 2020.

We have a cutting-edge discovery and translational research platform, a pipeline of late-stage candidates, and an industry-leading team that is driven to improve the lives of patients.

At Kardigan, we are motivated by our values which guide how we work, interact, and achieve our goals. Driven by patients and their families, we are deeply committed to improving the lives of patients and prioritizing their needs above all else. We believe in being authentic—leading with truth to bring out the best in others by creating an environment where every person knows they will be fully accepted. With an eagerness to learn, we encourage the highest levels of curiosity and are open to changing our minds. We are committed to winning as a team with urgency, excellence, and intention, and support each other no matter what role we play or where we sit. Lastly, we strive to enable the impossible because patients are counting on us. We are not afraid to take risks to unlock innovation and advance scientific discoveries.

These values are the foundation of our work, empowering us to make a real difference, every day.

Job Title: Executive Director, Global Program Manager

Department: Portfolio Management

Reports to: Vice President, Global Program Head

Location: South San Francisco or CA, Princeton, NJ - On-site 4 days per week (Mon to Thurs)

Job Overview

As the "COO" of the global program team, the Executive Director, Global Program Manager collaborates closely with the GPH to connect strategy to execution, functions to outcomes, and teams to purpose. This role requires operating through influence across the full development lifecycle of the GPT, overseeing products from IND-enabling studies through approval and post-approval initiatives.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Strategic Program Management

Act as a key strategic partner to the GPH, developing and stress-testing program strategies and serving as the operational program manager across the GPT.
Serve as the primary integrator across GPT functions, facilitating high-quality decisions and seeking continuous improvement.
Translate program strategy into actionable operating and integrated program plans.

Drug Development Knowledge & Integrated Development Planning (IDP)

Utilize deep expertise from IND to approval, including clinical, regulatory, CMC, and commercial aspects.
Identify risks and opportunities for acceleration throughout the integrated development plan.
Lead, facilitate and organize the development of IDPs by driving input, resolving trade-offs, assessing risk, and building alignment.

Integrated Planning & Execution

Own and maintain oversight of integrated timelines, budgets, resource forecasts, and governance packages.
Lead scenario planning and contingency strategies while managing cross-functional risks.
Ensure GPT readiness at all key program inflection points.

Team Culture & High Performance

Foster psychological safety and shared accountability within the GPT.
Design and facilitate workshops to advance strategy and align cross-functional activities.
Sustain team health and energy and support the development of world-class GPM capabilities.

Executive Communication & Stakeholder Alignment

Represent program health and strategic narratives to leadership and governance bodies.
Facilitate stakeholder pre-alignment to ensure efficient decision-making and limit decision churn.
Communicate program complexity in an executive-ready manner, maintaining a single source of truth for status and decisions.

Qualifications and Preferred Skills

12+ years of extensive experience in global program management, ideally at a Director level.
Proven knowledge of drug development processes and integrated planning.
Strong leadership skills with an ability to influence without authority.
Excellent communication skills, capable of translating complex ideas into clear insights for diverse audiences.
Experience in facilitating cross-functional workshops and promoting high-performance team cultures.

Executive Director, Global Program Manager

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