Keyword Search
High Throughput Antibody Production, Evaluation, and Process Optimization
Physical Life Sciences | livermore, CA | 05/12/2023
Job Code: SES.3 Science & Engineering MTS 3
Organization: Physical and Life Sciences
Position Type: Flexible Term
Security Clearance: None/Position does not require US citizenship (assignments longer than 179 days require a federal background investigation)
Drug Test: Required for external applicant(s) selected for this position (includes testing for use of marijuana)
Medical Exam: Not applicable
Company Description
Join us and make YOUR mark on the World!
Are you interested in joining some of the brightest talent in the world to strengthen the United States’ security? Come join Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) where our employees apply their expertise to create solutions for BIG ideas that make our world a better place.
We are committed to a diverse and equitable workforce with an inclusive culture that values and celebrates the diversity of our people, talents, ideas, experiences, and perspectives. This is essential to innovation and creativity for continued success of the Laboratory’s mission.
Pay Range
$148,650.00 - $190,932.00 Annually
Please note that the pay range information is a general guideline only. Many factors are taken into consideration when setting starting pay including education, experience, the external labor market, and internal equity.
Job Description
We have an opening for a Rapid Response Laboratory Lead to oversee a High Throughput Antibody Production & Characterization Laboratory. You will be responsible for the development, implementation, and continuous optimization of automated high throughput protein production and screening platforms for the characterization of computationally designed therapeutic antibodies. You will also oversee day-to-day operations of the laboratory, assess performance metrics, and ensure programmatic objectives are met while maintaining safe and compliant operations. This position is in the Biosciences and Biotechnology Division.
You will:
- Oversee stand up of the laboratory capability, including defining optimal production characteristics, optimizing high-throughput process, and troubleshooting.
- Supervise day-to-day laboratory operations and personnel producing and characterizing antibodies in support of broader effort to develop biological countermeasures.
- Provide technical direction and daily oversight of ~6 staff, including molecular biologists, microbiologists, and lab automation specialists.
- Monitor antibody production cycle processes (including molecular, transfection, purification, filtration) and down-stream characterization (including binding, affinity, and structural) to ensure analytic performance and compliance with Quality Assurance/Quality Control requirements.
- Collaborate with our team of diverse expertise, including biochemists, infectious disease biologists, engineers, and computational biologists, to develop and optimize antibody screening and selection strategies.
- Interact with external collaborators and/or contract research organizations to explore and/or execute commercial complementation toward program goals.
- Contribute to and actively participate in the development of integrated research programs to meet sponsor needs in multiple national security focus areas. Interact with senior project staff and management to influence programmatic decisions.
- Develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and maintenance records; ensure best practices for data reporting via LIMS.
- Participate in preparing for annual safety inspections and maintaining a safe laboratory environment in collaboration with EH&S.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
- PhD in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, or a field related to Antibody Production and Screening or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
- Significant experience developing and managing workflows for high throughput antibody production and screening platforms.
- Significant experience implementing and/or maintaining best practices for LIMS.
- Advanced leadership, communication, and project management skills.
- Ability to work collaboratively with researchers from diverse fields and provide guidance, support, and leadership as needed.
- Advanced written, verbal communication and interpersonal skills necessary to deliver presentations, prepare written reports and to interact with a diverse set of scientists, engineers, and other technical and administrative staff.
Qualifications we desire:
- Experience developing and managing workflows for large-scale (batch) antibody production, purification, and characterization.
- Experience with automated workflows and automation platforms (e.g., Hamilton robotic liquid handlers)
- Experience designing and executing high throughput screening assays to identify and evaluate antibody candidates with desired properties such as specificity, affinity, and stability.
- Experience analyzing and interpreting data generated from high throughput screening assays to guide protein optimization.
- Experience with additional protein purification and characterization techniques.
- Expertise in library display technologies for high throughput screening, e.g., mammalian cell-based expression/display, yeast display, and/or other platforms.
Additional Information
All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.
Position Information
This is a Flexible Term appointment, which is for a definite period not to exceed six years. If final candidate is a Career Indefinite employee, Career Indefinite status may be maintained (should funding allow).
Why Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory?
- Flexible Benefits Package
- 401(k)
- Relocation Assistance
- Education Reimbursement Program
- Flexible schedules (*depending on project needs)
- Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accountability (IDEA) - visit https://www.llnl.gov/diversity
- Our core beliefs - visit https://www.llnl.gov/diversity/our-values
- Employee engagement - visit https://www.llnl.gov/diversity/employee-engagement
Security Clearance
None required. However, if your assignment is longer than 179 days cumulatively within a calendar year, you must go through the Personal Identity Verification process. This process includes completing an online background investigation form and receiving approval of the background check. (This process does not apply to foreign nationals.)
Pre-Employment Drug Test
External applicant(s) selected for this position must pass a post-offer, pre-employment drug test. This includes testing for use of marijuana as Federal Law applies to us as a Federal Contractor.
Beware of Fraudulent Job Postings. LLNL’s hiring practices:
- Never requires job applicants to pay an application/training fee or submit personal documents like bank account details, passport number, Social Security number, tax forms or credit card information as part of the application process.
- For interviews and to be granted access to a Federal facility, a LLNL employee will contact you directly to collect visa, passport number, and/or Social Security number. To vet the authenticity of the employee please have them provide you their name and phone number and verify at people.llnl.gov.
- Involves at least one interview (virtual or in-person) and never interviews job applicants through chat platforms such as Google Hangouts, or via correspondence through text and instant messaging systems.
- Only sends email communications to job applicants from domain “@llnl.gov” or via their applicant tracking system, [email protected]. Occasionally LLNL uses third-party vendors that will contact you about job opportunities. If a recruiter contacts you to apply, you will always be directed to our career page to apply through our career site.
- Encourages all applicants to visit LLNL’s careers page at www.llnl.gov/join-our-team/careers if they saw the job posting on another site prior to applying to ensure the job posting is accurate and valid.
Equal Employment Opportunity
We are an equal opportunity employer that is committed to providing all with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, protected veteran status, age, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws.
We invite you to review the Equal Employment Opportunity posters which include EEO is the Law and Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision.
Reasonable Accommodation
Our goal is to create an accessible and inclusive experience for all candidates applying and interviewing at the Laboratory. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application or the recruiting process, please use our online form to submit a request.
California Privacy Notice
The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) grants privacy rights to all California residents. The law also entitles job applicants, employees, and non-employee workers to be notified of what personal information LLNL collects and for what purpose. The Employee Privacy Notice can be accessed here.