Join Our Portfolio Company SummerBio in Accelerating COVID-19 Testing
Based in Menlo Park, California, SummerBio was founded in May 2020 to offer rapid, affordable, high-volume COVID-19 testing for all. Recognizing that existing testing options were falling short, with results often arriving late, SummerBio was formed to dramatically improve the COVID-19 testing process through the use of state-of-the-art robotics and automated liquid handling systems.
SummerBio recently joined the Toyota AI Ventures portfolio, and is now growing quickly and increasing the testing capacity of its CLIA-certified lab. SummerBio CEO Guido Baechler is leading a team of life science automation industry veterans, diagnostic molecular biologists, laboratory scientists, public health experts, software engineers, and other specialists. If you’re interested in building innovative diagnostics tools and contributing to SummerBio’s mission to accelerate COVID-19 testing, read on to learn about these two jobs available on the Toyota AI Ventures jobs board: senior automation scientist and commercial operations manager.
Senior Automation Scientist (Menlo Park, California)
In this role, you will develop plans and lead product-focused assay automation, optimization, and transfer. This includes identifying and implementing new products, processes, and quality control improvements. You will communicate plans and results internally, as well as align and coordinate work with engineering, research and development (R&D), clinical lab, and data scientists. You will manage R&D laboratory automation and staff and supervise documentation, standard operating procedures, and reports in collaboration with quality assurance and clinical laboratory scientists.
The ideal candidate will have a doctorate in biophysics, bioengineering, biochemistry, or a related discipline, or a master’s or bachelor’s in engineering (electrical, mechanical, industrial, or computer science). In addition, 15 to 20 years of biotechnology industry experience and seven or more years in the molecular diagnostics laboratory developed test sector is needed. You should have experience collaborating with interdisciplinary teams, outstanding team-building skills, and a proven track record in implementing change within organizations. You should be very familiar with liquid handlers, scripting, schedulers, and interfacing with detection instrumentation. Direct experience automating molecular assays, with some experience with RT-qPCR, is required.
Commercial Operations Manager (Menlo Park, California)
The commercial operations manager is responsible for providing operational and analytical support to sales, marketing, and customer support leadership to ensure commercial success. You will partner closely with leadership teams to identify, develop, and monitor optimal performance measures, and work with marketing leadership on channel strategy, market penetration, and lead generation. You will identify sales process bottlenecks and partner with cross-functional teams to drive system improvements, and help plan and develop sales and marketing training. This is a cross-functional role, and you will collaborate with finance, engineering, and operations to identify, develop, and lead the implementation of new processes to improve the commercial team’s efficiency. The ideal candidate is data-driven, creative, fluid, and able to adapt to meet the changing needs of the business.
You should have a bachelor of science degree, preferably in engineering, or an advanced degree, as well as five or more years of relevant work experience overseeing product development and implementation. You should be capable of managing large data sets, and you’ll need to efficiently prioritize projects to meet deadlines. You should be highly detail-oriented, with strong organizational and communication skills, and also have experience in creating and implementing business process documentation and training materials. Proficiency in the use of Tableau, Excel, Powerpoint, and customer relationship management systems such as Salesforce is a must.
Learn more about a career at SummerBio and explore other job opportunities on the Toyota AI Ventures jobs board. A number of our portfolio companies are also recruiting right now, so be sure to sign up for the Toyota AI Ventures Talent Network.
