Job Description
As a Staff Scientist on our R&D team, you will have the opportunity to lead groundbreaking research and development initiatives that have the potential to make a significant impact in the biotech industry and on human health. Your dedication to scientific excellence and collaborative approach will be instrumental in advancing knowledge and developing innovative biotechnological solutions. You will have the opportunity to lead and directly contribute to cutting-edge research projects and make impactful contributions to the advancement of our cutting-edge multi-omic detection platform.
You will play a defining role in assay and product development and have the opportunity to develop assays and reagents for Pleno’s product pipeline. Ideally, you have a proven track record in planning and leading assay development and experience with standard molecular biology techniques (DNA/RNA extraction, PCR, ddPCR, NGS) coupled with experience in advanced data analysis and scientific presentations. The ideal candidate will have experience applying molecular assays to cancer diagnostics.
In this role you will:
- Design, plan, oversee, and execute experiments, and validate assays using Hypercoding technology on Pleno’s detection platform
- Work with different molecular biology techniques including, nucleic acid (DNA/RNA) purification, manipulation, PCR, qPCR, genotyping
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including computational biologists, Engineers, and data scientists, to design experiments and interpret results.
- Utilize your expertise in assay & product development, verification and validation studies
- Stay current with emerging technologies and trends in Oncology, Pharmacology, Prenatal testing, MRD-monitoring, Infectious diseases etc.,
- Prepare technical reports, presentations, and publications to document and communicate findings internally to senior leadership and externally to customers.
- Make daily use of your proficiency in analyzing large-scale data sets using tools such as JMP, Python, R or MATLAB.
To be successful in this role, you have:
- Led a team of scientists and managed projects (planning project milestones, generating and optimizing timelines, risk management, and reporting to senior leadership)
- Experience with assay validation - experience in developing clinical assays with a focus on oncology a plus.
- Designed targeted assays for a range of biomarker types (DNA, RNA, protein, methylation).
- A proven ability to work in cross-disciplinary teams and manage multiple projects simultaneously.
- A proven track record in methods development, including experimental design, execution, and evaluation.
- Strong organizational skills with attention to detail, clarity, accuracy, and conciseness.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Education & Experience
- PhD in Biology, Chemistry, Biochemistry or a related field with
- 5 - 10+ years of experience.
NOTE: This position is based Onsite in San Diego and will require regular onsite participation at our office/lab in San Diego, CA - to apply you should be resident in the greater San Diego County area or in the process of relocating.
The compensation range for this position spans Senior Scientist to Senior Staff Scientist at $120,000 to $180,000. (Compensation decisions are dependent on several factors including, but not limited to, level of the position, skills, knowledge and experience, internal equity, and alignment with comparable market data.)
About Pleno
Pleno is a multidisciplinary team of scientists and technologists focused on collaboration and asking questions. We strive to find the best, and most meaningful answers for biochemistry and engineering problems in our mission to build a revolutionary multi-omic instrument platform that will revolutionize biological target detection for a wide array of meaningful applications. Come join us to be a part of the biomedical revolution!
We value our Pleno people and each person's wellbeing is important to us, so in addition to offering industry competitive compensation, we also offer the following:
- Equity - everyone at Pleno has a stake in our success
- Generous company-sponsored contribution to health, dental and vision coverage
- Company contributions to life insurance, short term and long-term disability
- Flexible Paid Time Off - plus 11 paid holidays including a winter break company-wide close
- Parental Leave - we value our families and include generous parental leave and wage replacement
- Free catered onsite meals twice weekly
- Fitness and wellness facilities
- Regular opportunities to spend social time together like happy hours & team building events - we stop to celebrate our wins
We are hiring for positions onsite at our office/lab in San Diego, CA – all positions are full time employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, or on the basis of disability, gender identity, and sexual orientation. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form.