Jim Watters

As senior vice president, head of late research, Jim Watters oversees discovery and translational research activities required to advance Relay’s pipeline. Jim joined Relay from Third Rock Ventures, where he served as a Strategic Advisor in Biology.

Prior to Relay, Jim joined Sanofi in 2010 and served as the head of translational medicine for Sanofi Oncology. In this capacity, he led a group implementing translational science across Sanofi’s oncology portfolio. In 2004, Jim joined Merck Research Laboratories, becoming the head of molecular profiling for Merck Oncology, utilizing omics technologies and next-generation sequencing to tailor specific therapies to individual cancer patients based on their molecular profile.

Jim holds a B.S. in biology from Purdue University and a Ph.D. in genetics from Harvard University. He was a postdoctoral fellow at Washington University, where he performed research to elucidate the relationship between human genetic variation and response to cancer therapy.