Job Title: Scientist (Clinical NGS)

Reports to: Associate Director, Clinical NGS and RHT R&D

FLSA Class: Exempt

How this role drives the company forward:

The Scientist works primarily hands-on in the lab conducting experiments to move projects through all stages of product development; from initial Proof of Concept, through Research and Development, to Product Launch. To accomplish these tasks, the individual works closely with other colleagues in R&D, Engineering, Marketing and Operations.

The Scientist role is lab-based.

Occasional travel, including overnight, may be required (e.g., to attend conferences).

How you will make an impact:

We are seeking a highly motivated and skilled Scientist to help strengthen our clinical NGS product portfolio. This role will drive impact by working at the intersection between technical innovation and applications in clinical research, screening, and diagnostics. You will leverage our leading assay technologies to design, develop, and customize new products to expand Takara Bio's role as a technical backbone for established and emerging clinical tests. Product usability, reliability, and reproducibility will be a primary focus. You will also take ownership beyond product launch and work in collaboration with Operations and Marketing to support continuous product quality improvement and customer satisfaction. Your impact will be anchored by your key role in communicating cross-functionally and serving as subject matter expert to help drive decision-making across the organization.

What will you do:

• Plans, schedules, and conducts experiments for one or more projects, exhibiting good skills in experimental design, data analysis, and result interpretation.
• Understands project goals, meets project specifications, and commits to deliver projects within set deadlines under guidance from Senior Scientists and colleagues in Marketing (Product Managers and/or Market Strategy Managers).
• Responsible for clear report preparation, including timely inputs to lab notebooks and project databases.
• Learns to draft SOPs, user manuals, technical notes and other related technical documents with assistance from Senior Scientists, Marketing and Operations teams.
• Identifies potential new products for development based on assessment of customer demand, market trends, and competitor analysis with help from Marketing and more senior researchers in the group.
• Serves as a resource to R&D and other departments within the organization, including Product Management and Operations - especially during product development and launch.
• Leads or supports efforts post-launch for continuous product quality improvement and customer satisfaction.
• Participates in R&D scientific meetings, and may represent company in front of customers, e.g. by presenting posters etc at conferences.
• May support Sales and Technical Support representatives on technical matters.
• This position does not have supervisory responsibilities.

How will you get here?

• Typically requires a Ph.D. in a relevant scientific discipline with 2-5 years of postdoctoral and/or industrial experience.
• Experience in clinical NGS assay development, validation, and workflow implementation is preferred.
• Solid knowledge of general scientific principles and concepts with specialized skills in assay design and development for clinical NGS applications.
• Familiarity with statistical analysis software (e.g. JMP) and statistical design principles.
• Familiarity with NGS bioinformatics analysis, including UNIX command line, standard packaged tools (e.g. aligners), and Python/R scripts.
• Experience with product development and tech transfer processes to manufacturing and QC.
• Familiar with laboratory procedures, protocols, and state-of-art instruments.
• Strong interest in technology development and translating scientific ideas into novel applications.
• Effective analytical and critical thinking skills, including excellent attention to detail, grounded knowledge of troubleshooting, and strong quantitative background.
• Collaborative personality with good interpersonal skills.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Experience with high-throughput experimentation using Design of Experiment (DOE) principles a plus.

Additional Information about the role:

Please note this job description may not cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice. The US base salary range for this full-time position, expected to be located in San Jose, CA, is $150,000 - $165,000 USD. We may consider other candidates for this position with more experience and would expect the salary range to change accordingly. This range may be modified at any time at our sole discretion. This base salary does not include additional bonus compensation and benefits. Learn more about benefits at https://www.takarabio.com/about/careers/company-benefits. Individual compensation packages are based on factors unique to each candidate, including job-related skills, training, experience, qualifications, work location, and market conditions.