Clinical Laboratory Associate 2

Company Description

Guardant Health is a leading precision oncology company focused on guarding wellness and giving every person more time free from cancer. Founded in 2012, Guardant® is transforming patient care and accelerating new cancer therapies by providing critical insights into what drives disease through its advanced blood and tissue tests, real-world data and AI analytics. Guardant tests help improve outcomes across all stages of care, including screening to find cancer early, monitoring for recurrence in early-stage cancer, and treatment selection for patients with advanced cancer. For more information, visit guardanthealth.com and follow the company on LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and Facebook. 

Position Summary:

The Clinical Laboratory Associate (CLA) II is responsible for supporting the daily operations of the Clinical Laboratory and assisting the Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) during patient testing. In addition to the primary role of CLA, there will be a need to provide back-up support to the other groups (Reporting, Biospecimen Management, QC, etc.). The CLA II may serve as a lead to the CLA team to coordinate tasks, divide workload, manage equipment usage schedule and documents reviewing/filing process as assigned. The CLA II has demonstrated the skills and competency to assist the CLSs in automated sample processing and in all other support functions. 

The nature of the work requires excellent attention to detail, effective written and verbal communication skills, the ability to multitask and be flexible with tasks and schedules, and the ability to work independently in a team environment.

Shift Details: Wednesday-Saturday; MN 9pm-7:30am PT

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

In accordance with California Business and Professions Code BPC § 1269, the following activities may be performed under the supervision of the laboratory director or appropriately licensed personnel:

• Sample collection or receipt, sample preparation, labeling, handling, preservation or fixation, assay processing or preparation, and/or transportation and storage of specimens; 
• Assist the CLSs in a licensed clinical laboratory in performing sample processing;
• Assist the CLSs during automated methods of patient testing;
• Perform routine equipment maintenance according to the laboratory’s standard operating procedures; 
• Create sample batches, print labels and label tubes and plates;
• Assist licensed testing personnel in troubleshooting activities; 
• Prepare and store reagents for sample processing and sample archiving;
• Order and stock laboratory supplies;
• Print and file of laboratory records;
• In the case of qualitative and semi-quantitative tests, the unlicensed personnel may add the test reagent to the specimen or vice versa, but the results must be read by the laboratory director or appropriately licensed personnel. 
• Check, monitor and resolve routine cold storage temperature and laboratory temperature and initiate a service request as necessary; 
• Perform general laboratory tasks include cleaning of racks, laboratory equipment and benches;
• Document all corrective actions taken when test systems deviate from the laboratory’s established performance specifications; 
• Assist with internal audits and inspection preparation,
• Organize the maintain schedule of the laboratory and equipment;
• Ensure calibration of laboratory equipment is scheduled and performed on time;
• Ensure laboratory equipment is properly labeled;
• Write and revise standard operating procedures under supervisor instruction, as needed;
• Identify process improvement opportunities and report to laboratory management; 
• Perform other duties as assigned; and
• Report all concerns of test quality and/or safety to the Laboratory Supervisor, Laboratory Director or Safety Officer.

Qualifications:

• Minimum of Associate degree or equivalent required;
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Biomedical Laboratory Science, Clinical Science or related field preferred;

• At least one year of Guardant Health Clinical Laboratory experience or equivalent high complexity and volume laboratory experience preferred;

• Strong computing skills;
• Proficiently executed good documentation practices;
• Advanced knowledge of reagent stability and storage, quality control policies, and factors that influence test results;
• Demonstrates strong practical reasoning and sound judgment;
• Skilled in making informed and effective decisions;
• Exhibits exceptional attention to detail and a strong commitment to precision in all tasks;
• Strong communicator with ability to maintain open communication with internal employees, managers;
• Proficient in giving and receiving constructive feedback, fostering open communication and continuous improvement;
• Capable of independently executing tasks with minimal direction, while maintaining a collaborative approach that avoids complete isolation;
• Ability to divide workload evenly among CLAs in accordance with operational needs;
• Ability to prioritize tasks with a high emphasis on quality and time; 
• Proactively initiate and drive projects, consistently contributing innovative solutions and seizing opportunities for process improvement; and
• Ability to participate in projects, update others on progress and complete assignments as expected

AI & Digital Fluency

• Demonstrate curiosity, sound judgment, and the ability to critically evaluate and responsibly leverage AI-enabled tools in accordance with company policies, ethical standards, and regulatory requirements to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and quality of work.

Hybrid Work Model: This section is applicable to onsite employees who are eligible for hybrid work location as specified by management and related policies.  Guardant has defined days for in-person/onsite collaboration and work-from-home days for individual-focused time. All U.S. employees who live within 50 miles of a Guardant facility will be required to be onsite on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. We have found aligning our scheduled in-office days allows our teams to do the best work and creates the focused thinking time our innovative work requires. At Guardant, our work model has created flexibility for better work-life balance while keeping teams connected to advance our science for our patients.

The annualized base salary ranges for the primary location and any additional locations are listed below. This range does not include benefits or, if applicable, bonus, commission, or equity. Each candidate’s compensation offer will be based on multiple factors including, but not limited to, geography, experience, education, job-related skills, job duties, and business need.

Primary Location: Redwood City, CA
Primary Location Base Pay Range: $40 - $55
Other US Location(s) Base Pay Range: $34 - $47
If the role is performed in Colorado, the pay range for this job is: $36 - $50