Head of Finance, Corporate & Business Excellence

Backed by top-tier investors from Silicon Valley and Europe, Eligo is an industry-leading biotechnology company, co-founded by scientists from MIT and the Rockefeller University – now operating in Paris, France. Eligo Bioscience has raised more than 55 million dollars from leading investors in Silicon Valley and in France to develop next-generation drugs that are based on the genetic engineering of bacteria and their viruses and aim to address unmet medical need in microbiome-associated diseases.

Our pioneering work in the field of synthetic biology has enabled Eligo to be elected as one of the 30 Most Innovative Companies by the World Economic Forum, to receive multiple prestigious international awards. We have also been featured in international media and scientific journals such as Nature, Nature Biotechnology, Science, The Economist, The BBC and The New York Times and nominated as one of the '30 Most Innovative Companies' by the World Economic Forum.

Eligonauts are driven, passionate, and motivated to impact the lives of patients by applying cutting-edge science to solve real unmet needs. We are at a very exciting point in time of the Eligo journey as we are embarking on the transition from a start-up deeply rooted in innovation to a clinical stage biotech with the objective to bring our lead program to the clinic within the next two years. We are therefore building a development team, in which the clinical development program lead will play a central role.

Eligo Bioscience has attracted highly-diverse top talent from all over the world, who are driven, passionate, and motivated to impact the lives of patients by applying cutting-edge science to save lives and treat chronic disease. Eligo embraces diversity, equal opportunity and inclusion and is committed to building diverse teams.

YOUR MISSION

At Eligo Bioscience, we are passionate about developing new drugs to address unmet medical needs !

Eligo is advancing its program in moderate to severe acne vulgaris into the clinic and expanding its pipeline into new disease areas. Our platform has also matured significantly and allows us to form and grow partnerships with pharmaceutical industries and key contract research organizations. We need to strictly monitor and adapt our financial plan to make the best use of our capital, while continuously improving financial and internal processes and strengthening a culture of business excellence to achieve our corporate KPIs.

This position is a 360° financial & corporate role with a great mix of operational responsibilities, internal process design and implementation and strategic support to Eligo leadership. You will be a key Business Partner to R&D and support function managers.

You will be responsible for financial planning, analysis and reporting. You will be instrumental in setting up financial tools and processes, adapted to current company needs and lead its proper implementation. You will bring a continuous improvement mindset to your missions and act as a subject matter expert for other departments.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Finance Management & Operations

• Act as a business partner for all key functions (R&D, HR, IP, Operations) and departments.
• Be the referent for all finance related matters

Finance Management

• Prepare annual budget and business plan
• Cash flow monitoring and management
• Lead annual closing/audit and prepare financial statements
• Ensure fiscal/social tax compliance and oversee filings/controls

Finance Operations

• Control day-to-day administration tasks (invoice recording, payment batches, etc.)
• Design and prepare quarterly reporting to leadership (P&L, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow)
• Prepare various reports (financial, ESG etc.) to external stakeholders (investors, grant institutions etc.)
• Manage tax credits for all R&D activities
• Manage relationships with external partners (accountants, banks, auditors, corporate counsels)

Corporate Support

• Lead preparation and finalization of governance meetings documentation with corporate counsel (minutes, management report etc.)
• Coordinate with legal counsel on incentive plans (ESOP) and update the capitalization table accordingly
• Support CEO in organizing Board and Shareholders’ meetings
• Contribute to company-wide strategic initiatives in close collaboration with leadership

Business Excellence

• Ensure company tools and processes are adapted to current company’s needs, culture and vision: set them up, propose improvement or alternative and lead their proper implementation, including change management
• Act as the reference for continuous improvement and performance tracking for the company to further embed an operational excellence mindset.
• Facilitate strategic planning and performance tracking.
• Oversee and manage cross-organizational projects depending on the needs

APPLICANT PROFILE

We are seeking a motivated candidate that can act as a vital thought partner to the Leadership team for all financial, corporate and business operations at Eligo.

• Exceptional work ethics and interpersonal skills: You demonstrate rigor, excellent analytical and organizational skills and autonomy. You have a sense of responsibility, a good ability to adapt and know how to combine great work ethics in your work with real interpersonal and managerial qualities.
• Driven to achieve results: You are incredibly driven to achieve results. You are tenacious in the face of adversity and carry a can-do attitude. You anticipate needs or issues to solve, you provide well-thought proposals to address those and deliver high-quality outputs on time. You know how to be comfortable with both strategic topics and operational issues with the ability to do it yourself.
• Strategic thinker: You deeply understand team and business operations. You act as a real business partner, with an entrepreneurial temperament, an assertive, dynamic, committed, educational and open personality.
• Supportive & altruistic: You have a collaborative attitude and are constantly looking for ways to offer support and maintain a trusting team environment. You must be confident enough to be candid & push back at times, while also humble enough to happily work behind the scenes.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Advanced degree in business, finance, biotechnology or engineering (MBA, MSc)
• 5+ yrs experience in life sciences or startup environments, with a track record in business operations, finance, or management consulting. Experience in early-stage biotech strongly preferred.
• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal) in English and French
• Interested and at ease with using new technological tools (software, apps) to support process & tools design and implementation