VP - Research & DevelopmentLocation: Billerica, MAROLE SUMMARY:The Vice President, Research & Development (R&D) is a senior leader responsible for the strategy, execution, and operational management of Quanterix's R&D portfolio across our
Simoa® and Spatial technology platforms. This role will lead R&D activities spanning
instrument and technology development, assay development, reagent development, and associated project and program workstreams.The VP of R&D will have end-to-end responsibility for managing the R&D portfolio, ensuring that projects and programs are appropriately prioritized, resourced, governed, and executed against clearly defined milestones, timelines, budgets, and business objectives.
This leader will bring together scientific excellence and disciplined program execution, creating greater visibility and accountability across R&D. This role will work closely with Engineering, Commercial, Operations, Quality, and other functions to translate business and customer needs into executable development priorities and successful product outcomes. This role will report to the Chief Technology & Product Officer.
WHAT YOU'LL DO:R&D Strategy & Portfolio Leadership- Lead the overall R&D strategy and portfolio across Simoa and Spatial technologies, ensuring alignment with Quanterix's corporate, product, and commercial priorities.
- Provide leadership across R&D, assay development, reagent development, technology development, and related scientific workstreams.
- Establish and maintain an integrated R&D roadmap that provides visibility into all major projects, programs, and workstreams.
- Partner with executive and functional leadership to evaluate new development opportunities and make recommendations regarding investment, prioritization, and resource allocation.
- Balance investment across new product development, platform innovation, assay and reagent development, product improvements, and sustaining activities.
Program & Project Execution- Own the execution of all R&D projects, programs, and workstreams, establishing clear accountability for scope, timelines, milestones, resources, dependencies, risks, and deliverables.
- Implement rigorous program management practices across R&D to drive greater predictability, transparency, and accountability.
- Establish appropriate tollgates, design reviews, and governance processes to evaluate program progress and development readiness.
- Develop and maintain integrated program plans that identify critical paths, interdependencies, decision points, and resource requirements.
- Conduct regular portfolio and program reviews to assess progress against milestones and quickly identify programs that are at risk.
- Ensure risks, delays, resource constraints, and technical challenges are identified early, escalated appropriately, and supported by clear mitigation plans.
- Drive timely decision-making and ensure teams remain focused on the highest-value activities and deliverables.
- Establish meaningful R&D performance metrics and dashboards, including milestone achievement, program timelines, resource utilization, development productivity, and portfolio health.
Scientific & Technical Leadership- Provide strategic and technical leadership across the development of Quanterix's Simoa and Spatial platforms.
- Oversee assay development and reagent development activities supporting both existing and future product offerings.
- Ensure development programs are scientifically rigorous, technically feasible, scalable, and aligned with customer and market requirements.
- Foster innovation while ensuring that research activities translate into clearly defined development pathways and commercial opportunities.
- Maintain awareness of emerging technologies, competitive developments, and scientific advances relevant to Quanterix's technology platforms.
Product Development & Cross-Functional Partnership- Partner closely with Product Management to translate market and customer requirements into R&D priorities and product development roadmaps.
- Work with Operations to ensure new technologies, assays, and reagents are designed with manufacturability, scalability, quality, cost, and supply considerations in mind.
- Partner with Quality and Regulatory teams to ensure development activities meet applicable design control, documentation, verification, validation, and regulatory requirements.
- Collaborate with Commercial and customer-facing teams to incorporate customer insights and market feedback into development priorities.
- Establish clear handoffs and accountability from early research and feasibility through product development, transfer, launch, and sustaining support.
Organizational & People Leadership- Lead, develop, and build a high-performing multidisciplinary R&D organization.
- Establish clear roles, responsibilities, decision rights, and accountability across teams and programs.
- Develop organizational capabilities in scientific leadership, product development, program management, and technical execution.
- Assess organizational structure and talent needs to ensure resources are aligned with the company's highest-priority programs.
- Attract, develop, coach, and retain high-performing scientific, engineering, assay, reagent, and program leadership talent.
- Build a culture of innovation, urgency, accountability, collaboration, and disciplined execution.
- Encourage teams to challenge assumptions, make data-driven decisions, and resolve issues quickly while maintaining scientific and quality standards.
Key Areas of Accountability- Simoa technology and product development
- Spatial technology and product development
- Assay development
- Reagent development
- Instrument and platform development
- New product development
- Technology innovation and feasibility programs
- R&D project and program management
- Product improvements and sustaining R&D
- Development roadmaps and portfolio prioritization
- Resource and capacity planning
- Technical transfer and cross-functional product development
- R&D budget and external development partnerships
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:- Advanced degree (Ph.D., or equivalent) in a relevant scientific or engineering discipline strongly preferred;
- 15+ years of progressive experience in R&D, product development, life sciences, diagnostics, biotechnology, or life science tools.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:- Demonstrated ability to prioritize resources across competing programs and make difficult portfolio decisions based on business and technical considerations.
- Strong financial and business acumen, including experience managing R&D budgets, headcount, capital requirements, and external development resources.
- Leadership experience managing multidisciplinary R&D organizations and complex product development portfolios.
- Demonstrated experience leading multiple concurrent projects, programs, and technical workstreams from concept and feasibility through development and commercialization.
- Strong experience in assay, reagent, instrumentation, platform, or integrated life science product development.
- Experience working within regulated product development environments and knowledge of design controls, quality systems, and applicable regulatory requirements preferred.
EXPECTATIONS, COMPETENCIES, SKILLS & ABILITIES:- Workplace location: Billerica, MA; onsite, hybrid, or remote designation to be confirmed.
- Travel requirement: to be confirmed.
- Execution-oriented: Creates structure and accountability and consistently drives programs toward measurable outcomes.
- Strategic: Connects scientific and technical priorities to company strategy, customer needs, and commercial opportunities.
- Decisive: Ability move with speed and accuracy to make data-driven decisions and is comfortable stopping, redirecting, or accelerating programs based on changing priorities.
- Collaborative: Builds strong partnerships across functions and creates shared ownership for product development outcomes.
- Scientifically credible: Possesses the technical depth to effectively challenge, guide, and support highly experienced scientific and technical teams.
- Operationally disciplined: Establishes effective processes without creating unnecessary bureaucracy.
- People-focused: Builds strong teams, develops leaders, and creates an environment of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
- Comfortable with ambiguity: Thrives in a fast-paced environment where priorities evolve and teams must balance innovation with execution.
Success MeasuresSuccess in this role will be demonstrated through:
- Delivery of R&D programs against committed milestones and timelines.
- Clear visibility and accountability across the R&D portfolio.
- Effective prioritization and deployment of R&D resources.
- Strong execution across Simoa and Spatial development roadmaps.
- Successful advancement of assay and reagent development programs.
- Improved cross-functional execution from R&D through product launch and commercialization.
- Rapid identification and resolution of technical and program risks.
- A balanced portfolio that advances innovation while delivering against near- and long-term business priorities.
Pay Range: $270,000 - $315,000 per year
