Associate Director, Microbial Process Operations

Job Description

The Microbial Process Operations (MPO) Team is seeking an Associate Director to lead operations supporting enzyme process development and characterization. Our team is part of Continuous & Expression Technologies (CET) within the Process Research & Development Enabling Technologies (PR&D ET) group focused on advancing technologies for the manufacturing of diverse biomolecules including novel biotherapeutics vaccines and engineered enzymes. The Associate Director will collaborate cross-functionally to drive scientific innovation and operational excellence ensuring robust scalable and compliant microbial fermentation processes.

The chosen candidate should possess strong interpersonal communication and collaboration skills and should embrace and model our core values of diversity equity and inclusion and foster a supportive culture where all employees can thrive.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Lead the design execution and analysis of complex fermentation experiments at multiple scales (e.g. mini bioreactors benchtop bioreactors pilot scale) ensuring high-quality reproducible results.
• Oversee downstream processing operations to ensure efficient enzyme recovery and purification delivering high-quality enzyme powders that meet quality and yield specifications.
• Ensure timely accurate and comprehensive documentation of all experimental work and process data in compliance with company standards.
• Lead the team in troubleshooting and resolving operational issues related to bioreactor and downstream process to ensure consistent reliable and robust operations.
• Lead initiatives to improve process efficiency reproducibility and scalability incorporating automation data visualization pipelines and process analytical technologies.
• Champion laboratory safety compliance and best practices fostering a culture of operational excellence and continuous improvement.
• Mentor and provide technical guidance to junior engineers and associates promoting knowledge sharing skill development and adherence to operational discipline.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to support technology transfer scale-up activities and process robustness.

Education Minimum Requirement:

• PhD with 8 years of relevant industry experience
• Masters degree with 10 years of relevant industry experience or
• Bachelors degree with 13 years of relevant industry experience in chemical engineering bioengineering biological sciences or related fields.

Requirements:

• Expertise in aseptic techniques and fermentation process control strategies for batch and fed-batch processes.
• Experience implementing or driving adoption of process analytical technologies (PAT) automation or data pipelines with proven ability to translate data into process decisions.
• Proven experience with operation and troubleshooting of bioreactors at various scales including mini bioreactors bench scale and pilot scale systems with strong problem-solving skills for both equipment and process challenges.
• Demonstrated success leading scale-up and technology transfer from R&D to pilot and commercial manufacturing scales.
• Understanding of statistical data analysis design of experiments and data visualization tools to support process optimization and operational excellence.
• Knowledge of biochemistry microbiology molecular biology and protein purificationprocesses.
• Excellent organizational documentation and problem-solving skills with a strong commitment to maintaining rigorous safety and quality standards.
• Demonstrated leadership ability to guide teams foster a culture of continuous improvement and uphold operational discipline.
• Demonstrated experience leading projects or programs and being leveraged as a technical resource across multiple areas.
• Ability to collaborate effectively across multidisciplinary teams and promote diversity equity and inclusion in the workplace.
• Commitment to driving process robustness reproducibility and scalability through data-driven risk management and continuous improvement initiatives.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• Proven track record of driving process improvements that enhance yield quality and operational efficiency.
• Experience with downstream unit operations such as microfluidization continuous centrifugation tangential flow filtration and precipitation.
• Experience with Ambr250 mini bioreactor platform.
• Understanding of microbial strain development and genetic engineering techniques to support process optimization.
• Experience working in a regulated environment (e.g. cGMP) supporting biopharmaceutical or enzyme manufacturing processes.
• Knowledge of quality systems regulatory requirements and documentation practices in bioprocess development.
• Prior experience mentoring or supervising junior scientists and engineers in a laboratory or manufacturing setting.

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The salary range for this role is

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employees position within the salary range will be based on several factors including but not limited to relevant education qualifications certifications experience skills geographic location government requirements and business or organizational needs.

The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical dental vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family) retirement benefits including 401(k) paid holidays vacation and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at can apply for this role through (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

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