Intuitive Surgical, Inc

Pre-clinical Lab Coordinator

Intuitive Surgical, Inc$80K — $110K *
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, or related field
  • 2-5 years of experience in lab operations, pre-clinical research, or technical lab roles
  • Strong hands-on experience with lab equipment, setup, and troubleshooting
  • Experience coordinating lab workflows for multiple studies
  • Ability to manage execution and coordination responsibilities effectively

Responsibilities

  • Manage lab scheduling systems and ensure operational readiness
  • Coordinate lab technician activities and provide task direction
  • Deliver hands-on support for lab setups and equipment troubleshooting
  • Oversee resource planning, ensuring alignment of people and equipment
  • Ensure lab equipment is functional and coordinate maintenance as needed
  • Facilitate lab readiness for pre-clinical studies in collaboration with teams
  • Implement process improvements to enhance operational efficiency

Benefits

  • Flexible work arrangements
  • Professional development opportunities
  • Collaborative work environment
  • Health and wellness programs
  • Support for training and advancement within the organization
Full Job Description
Job Description

Primary Function of Position:

The Pre-clinical Lab Coordinator is a hands-on operations lead responsible for coordinating and executing pre-clinical lab activities. This role partners closely with cross-functional stakeholders including Clinical engineering, Product development, engineering and research teams to ensure labs are properly scheduled, staffed, equipped, and successfully delivered.

The Pre-clinical Lab Coordinator serves as the bridge between planning and execution, owning lab operations while stepping in as a hands-on operator for complex system setups, troubleshooting, and critical lab activities.

Essential Job Responsibilities:

1. Lab scheduling system management
  • Own and manage lab scheduling systems, request intake workflows, and tracking dashboards
  • Maintains and enables cross functional visibility into lab demand, capacity, and upcoming studies
  • Drive lab and specimen forecast planning activities working with cross-functional stakeholders
  • Identify and resolve scheduling conflicts, resource gaps, resource availability (prototype/system/sub-system/animal/tissue) and operational risks working with cross-functional stakeholders
  • Align with cross-functional stakeholders to ensure pre-clinical labs are fully prepared ahead of execution (staffing, equipment, materials)

2. Lab operations ownership & technician coordination
  • Partner with Clinical Engineering team to ensure smooth day-to-day lab readiness and study execution
  • Provide day-to-day task direction, prioritization, and coordination for lab technician(s)
  • Ensure alignment of technician activities with lab priorities and execution timelines
  • Ensure technician-dependent tasks (setup, reprocessing, equipment prep) are completed
  • Identify process gaps and create standard work instructions as needed for lab technician(s) to streamline and standardize
  • Provide real-time coordination and decision-making support to lab technician(s) during execution
  • Monitor quality and completeness of technician work

3. Hands-on lab support & technical leadership
  • Provide hands-on support for routine lab setup, equipment preparation, and troubleshooting; develop SOPs/playbooks for repeatability
  • Support non-routine or complex lab setups in collaboration with clinical engineering partners and help develop standardized workflows
  • Step in to support clinical engineering team for lab execution during critical or resource-constrained product development lab activities

4. Resource planning & management
  • Proactively review upcoming lab schedules to ensure alignment of people, equipment, and materials for lab execution readiness
  • Maintain visibility into technician availability, equipment readiness, and supply status
  • Identify and resolve resource gaps to ensure execution readiness
  • Align lab demand with available capacity and escalate constraints as needed

5. Equipment & lab readiness
  • Ensure all lab equipment is available, functional, and ready for use
  • Troubleshoot and resolve equipment issues, escalating when needed
  • Coordinate maintenance and repairs with internal and external technicians and vendors as needed
  • Ensure readiness of robotic systems, A/V setups and connectivity ahead of pre-clinical lab execution

6. Study coordination
  • Coordinate lab readiness for onsite and offsite pre-clinical studies in partnership with clinical engineering and supporting teams
  • Align stakeholders on timelines, dependencies, and requirements
  • Ensure materials, equipment, and setup requirements are met
  • Track readiness across all components required for successful execution

7. Training coordination
  • Support planning and execution of training programs defined by Supervisor
  • Coordinate training lab logistics, schedules, and participant tracking
  • Manage training documentation and completion records

8. Process improvement & operational efficiency
  • Identify inefficiencies in lab workflows and execution processes
  • Develop and maintain standardized workflows and playbooks to improve repeatability and reduce execution variability
  • Propose and implement improvements to scheduling, coordination, and execution
  • Create and manage dashboards to provide visibility into lab efficiency tracking
  • Support adoption of tools and systems to improve lab operations
  • Improve lab utilization, readiness, and execution consistency

9. Cross-functional collaboration and communication
  • Act as central coordination point across engineering, research, and operations teams
  • Communicate lab status, risks, and updates clearly and proactively
  • Build strong relationships with engineers, technicians, and collaborators


Qualifications

Skills, Experience, Education, & Training:

Required
  • Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, or related field
  • 2-5 years of experience in lab operations, pre-clinical research, or technical lab roles
  • Strong hands-on experience with lab equipment, setup, and troubleshooting
  • Experience coordinating lab workflows or supporting multiple studies
  • Ability to balance execution and coordination responsibilities
  • Proficient in working with computer systems and office applications including Word, Excel, Smartsheet, etc

Preferred
  • Experience in medical device or pre-clinical lab environments
  • Exposure to robotic or surgical systems
  • Familiarity with regulated environments (e.g., IACUC, GLP-adjacent)

Key Skills
  • Strong hands-on technical capability
  • Operational ownership and execution mindset
  • Ability to balance coordination and execution
  • Problem-solving in dynamic lab environments
  • Clear communication and stakeholder management
  • Attention to detail and quality

Travel: up to 25% (domestic).

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified.

Additional Information

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19. Details can vary by role.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on
business need and/or on the selected candidate's experience, knowledge and skills.
Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the
candidate's qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.

About Intuitive Surgical, Inc

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. is an American corporation that develops, manufactures, and markets robotic products designed to improve clinical outcomes of patients through minimally invasive surgery, most notably with the da Vinci Surgical System. The company is part of the NASDAQ-100 and S&P 500. Intuitive Surgical has installed more than 5,000 surgical systems worldwide, and has more than 4,000 employees.
Learn more about Intuitive Surgical, Inc
Size
9,793 employees
Market Cap
$93.6 billion
Industry
Net Income
$1 billion
Founded
1999
5 Year Trend
+16.1%
Revenue
$4.3 billion
NASDAQ

Similar Jobs

More Jobs at Intuitive Surgical, Inc

More Pharmaceuticals & Biotech Jobs

Find similar Pre-clinical Lab Coordinator jobs: