Head of Platform Bioengineering & Assay Development

Parallel Bio
San Francisco
Workplace: OnsiteFull timeUSD 203,000 - 229,000 annuallyFunction: Administration & Executive AssistanceExperience: 10-15 yearsEducation: phdSkills: ["Scientific leadership","Experimental rigor","Troubleshooting","Systems thinking","Decision-making"]

Lead platform science at the San Francisco site by managing scientists and research associates and setting experimental strategy. Own assay development and maturation—from characterization and optimization through technology transfer and platform readiness, including acceptance criteria and documentation. Drive scale-up and robustness of organoid and cell-based workflows, troubleshoot complex failures with hypothesis-driven experiments, and serve as scientific lead for external partner programs, ensuring reproducible, interpretable results.

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Parallel Bio
Parallel Bio
1 week ago

Head of Platform Bioengineering & Assay Development

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Job Summary

Lead platform science at the San Francisco site by managing scientists and research associates and setting experimental strategy. Own assay development and maturation—from characterization and optimization through technology transfer and platform readiness, including acceptance criteria and documentation. Drive scale-up and robustness of organoid and cell-based workflows, troubleshoot complex failures with hypothesis-driven experiments, and serve as scientific lead for external partner programs, ensuring reproducible, interpretable results.
Location: San Francisco
Workplace: Onsite
Employment Type: Full time
Job Function: Administration & Executive Assistance
Seniority: Director level

Key Responsibilities

  • •Lead and manage the scientific team at the San Francisco site, setting direction and holding a high bar for rigor and pace.
  • •Set experimental strategy for the platform and run data reviews to distinguish biological vs technical effects and reach clear conclusions.
  • •Own assay and process development and maturation, including characterization, optimization, controls, acceptance criteria, and readiness for routine execution.
  • •Define and execute technology transfer frameworks from R&D to development and Technical Operations, partnering to ensure reproducible execution by trained operators.
  • •Serve as scientific lead for external partner programs and drive scale-up strategies for robustness, throughput, and cycle-time while partnering with automation/software teams.

Pay and Benefits

Salary: USD 203,000 - 229,000 annually
Equity and Bonus:Equity

Key Requirements

  • •Ph.D. in Immunology, Cell Biology, Biology, Bioengineering, Biomedical Engineering, Molecular Biology, or a related discipline, with typically 10–15+ years developing complex biological assays, models, and platforms.
  • •Direct management of bench scientists, including setting scientific direction and running data review to develop scientific judgment.
  • •Deep immunology expertise and hands-on work with complex human in vitro models (organoids, primary immune cells, or advanced mammalian cell culture).
  • •Experience building biological systems from 0 to 1 and adapting them onto automated or higher-throughput platforms.
  • •Proven assay development, characterization, optimization, and technology transfer, including defining controls, acceptance criteria, reference standards, and sources of variability.
Experience:10-15 yearsBiotechnologyImmunologyOrganoidsIn vitro modelsAutomated platformsTechnology transfer
Education:PhD / Doctorate
Skills:Scientific leadershipExperimental rigorTroubleshootingSystems thinkingDecision-making
Tech Stack:AIOrganoidsCell-based assaysAutomationHigh-throughputData systems

Company Brief

Parallel Bio
Parallel Bio develops human immune-system organoids combined with AI and automation to run 'clinical trials in a dish', enabling drug and vaccine testing in human-derived models to improve prediction of safety and efficacy before human trials.
Industry: Biotech
Company Size: Small (11 to 50 employees)
Growth: Growth Stage Startup
Funding: Series A
Headquarters: Cambridge, United States
Founded: 2021
WebsiteLinkedIn