Sr. Bioinformatics Scientist

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Position Overview

The Senior Bioinformatics Scientist, with input from senior scientists and leaders, works in collaboration with others on one or more projects which are complex in scope. The Senior Research Scientist participates in or leads planning of projects and analyses and is often the bioinformatics lead responsible for the successful execution of the project. This position involves independently making detailed observations, analyzing data, interpreting results, and providing insights into the next steps and direction of the project, as well as independently determining methods and procedures on new assignments or projects. Working in a team setting, the Senior Bioinformatics Scientist will be involved in Research and Development projects serving as a technical lead and/or a subject matter expert in exploring and researching new technologies, providing ideas and concepts to improve or develop processes, and/or establish methods and processes for product development towards development of diagnostic assay products. The Senior Bioinformatics Scientist will mentor and provide technical guidance to junior scientists in project teams.

This position is onsite at our San Diego office.

Essential Duties

Include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Conduct analyses within several product or technology areas and identify problems and discrepancies.
• Independently develop, plan, and analyze results of bench level experiments within several product or technology areas; effectively present and clearly communicate findings at data meetings, group meetings and project team meetings.
• Analyze research/experimental data, interpret the results, and provide insights into the next steps and the direction of the project.
• Independently develop methods and procedures for new assignments/study/experiments.
• Provide technical guidance to junior scientists in project teams.
• Manage bench-generated data and bioinformatics outputs within high performance computing (HPC) or cloud computing environment.
• Determine, utilize, and apply methods or technologies effectively and provide ideas for new techniques, when appropriate.
• Maintain knowledge of technological industry developments that could assist in completion of an assignment or aid in the development of new processes or procedures.
• Provide technical input and participate in decisions affecting project planning and experimental design.
• Prepare and provide information and data for scientific abstracts/conferences/project meetings/publication.
• Contribute to the intellectual property portfolio by implementing innovative and creative ideas to solve problems or improve on current methods.
• Generate, document, and communicate development plans for critical aspects of a project.
• Develop research plans and experimental outlines to write experimental protocols and perform laboratory experiments.
• Prepare detailed technical procedures, protocols, and reports.
• Evaluate impact of nonconforming data to product or process.
• Identify and address trends in study data.
• Prepare and approve written reports.
• Lead identification of areas for process improvements.
• Maintain lab notebook in a clear, complete, and consistent manner, following all legal, ISO, and QSR requirements.
• Prepare reports and documentation providing highly technical analysis or summarization of experimental results, outcomes, next steps, and the future direction of the project to functional leader, technical teams/groups, or project teams.
• Present experimental results and defend scientific ideas and findings at data meetings, group meetings, project team meetings and/or departmental meetings, lead meetings as subject matter expert.
• Demonstrate technical proficiency, scientific creativity and rigor, collaboration with others, and independent thought and ability to provide insights and defend scientific ideas. 
• Work on problems of extremely complex scope in which analysis of data requires an evaluation of intangible variables. 
• Exercise independent judgment in developing methods, techniques, and evaluation criteria for obtaining solutions.
• Work on assignments individually and with project team members as appropriate to meet department and project objectives.
• Work within project timeframes with successful outcomes on multiple projects and key responsibilities.
• Act as bioinformatics leader for one or more projects that are complex in scope.
• Act as subject matter expert in core team and/or cross-functional meetings.
• Exercise discretion and independent judgement within broadly defined practices and policies in: selecting methods, techniques and evaluation criteria for obtaining and interpreting results; analyzing data and presenting findings in a professional and knowledgeable manner.
• Promote an open, collaborative environment built on trust to foster positive teamwork.
• Plan and recommend activities that account for prioritization of organizational and department goals.
• Train, guide and mentor research associates and junior level scientists.
• Organize, present, and convey complex problems or issues.
• Communicate clearly and frequently with all levels of the organization; including team members, project team members (core and extended), functional managers, clinical lab, and other stakeholders.
• Create high quality presentations that effectively communicate and tie into a cohesive story, the project status, and/or experimental results.
• Apply strength in performing complex analyses and the ability to present data and recommendations to a variety of audiences throughout an organization.
• Apply qualitative and analytical skills with strong attention to detail.
• Ability to effectively work on several varied projects at one time, with frequent changing priorities.
• Demonstrate excellent analytical, problem solving and decision-making skills.
• Apply sound technical knowledge and ability gained through experience and/or learning.
• Apply previous knowledge and outcomes to new and valuable problems (able to make predictions based on a deep understanding of the fundamental nature of the inputs into a decision or action).
• Uphold company mission and values through accountability, innovation, integrity, quality, and teamwork.
• Support and comply with the company’s Quality Management System policies and procedures.
• Maintain regular and reliable attendance.
• Ability to act with an inclusion mindset and model these behaviors for the organization.
• Ability to work on a mobile device, tablet, or in front of a computer screen and/or perform typing for approximately 90% of a typical working day.
• Ability to work on a computer and phone simultaneously.
• Ability to travel 5% of working time away from work location, may include overnight/weekend travel.

Minimum Qualifications

• Ph.D. in bioinformatics, computational biology, computer science, mathematics, or related field; or Master’s degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, computer science, mathematics, or related field plus 4 years of experience in lieu of a Ph.D.; or Bachelor’s degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, computer science, mathematics, or related field plus 6 years of experience in lieu of Ph.D.
• 5+ years of industry or academia experience in bioinformatics.
• 3+ years of experience in medical device/IVD, biotech, life science or pharmaceutical industry.
• Extensive experience in Linux-based HPC or cloud computing environments and associated tools.
• Ability to write custom code in at least three programming or scripting languages.
• Technical expert in the area of molecular biology and/or biochemistry and/or next-generation sequencing (NGS) and genomics.
• Knowledge of product/assay research, design, or development.
• Working knowledge of statistical and mathematical methods in biology/genetics, including experience with statistical software, such as JMP or R.
• Basic computer skills to include Internet navigation, Email usage, and word processing.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office to include Excel and Word and PowerPoint.
• Demonstrated ability to perform the essential duties of the position with or without accommodation.
• Authorization to work in the United States without sponsorship.

Preferred Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in medical device/IVD, biotech, life science or pharmaceutical industry.
• Previous industry experience in product development or technical support.
• Background containing a substantial amount of bioinformatics work including troubleshooting.
• Previous experience working in a molecular diagnostics/clinical laboratory setting.
• Variant calling (SNV/CNV/SV) experience in algorithm development/building pipelines.
• Experience with NextFlow to create NGS pipelines.
• Experience with AWS or other similar cloud platforms.

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Salary Range:

$113,850.00 - $193,200.00The annual base salary shown is for this position located in US - CA - San Diego on a full-time basis. In addition, this position is bonus eligible, and is eligible to be considered for company stock at hire and on an annual basis.

Exact Sciences is proud to offer an employee experience that includes paid time off (including days for vacation, holidays, volunteering, and personal time), paid leave for parents and caregivers, a retirement savings plan, wellness support, and health benefits including medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage. Learn more about our benefits.

Our success relies on the experiences and perspectives of a diverse team, and Exact Sciences fosters a culture where all employees can develop personally and professionally with a sense of respect and belonging. If you require an accommodation, please contact us here.

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