Associate Director, Next-Generation Sequencing Innovation

AstraZeneca • Gaithersburg, MD

1d

About The Position

We are seeking an entrepreneurial and visionary Associate Director to lead and transform our Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) capabilities within Biologics Engineering at AstraZeneca. This is not a role for maintaining the status quo—we need a strategic innovator who will actively identify unmet needs, forge partnerships with cutting-edge vendors, and build novel in-house capabilities, particularly for biologics discovery. You will be empowered to challenge conventional approaches and drive adoption of transformative NGS applications across our global organization. What Makes This Role Unique This position offers significant autonomy to shape NGS strategy and make technology development decisions, leading a high-performing NGS team directly embedded within an innovative biologics discovery group. You'll have the opportunity to build something transformative rather than maintain existing infrastructure, with scope to impact discovery across multiple therapeutic areas while working on cutting-edge biologics programs.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, Genetics, or related field with 10+ years of experience building and using NGS technologies, including a proven track record of identifying and implementing novel technologies that delivered measurable impact beyond standard vendor workflows.
• Previous experience managing a high performing team, especially for technology development
• Extensive experience with various NGS platforms (e.g. Illumina, PacBio) and their applications in biologics research.
• Demonstrated success building and empowering teams that push boundaries, with an entrepreneurial mindset comfortable with ambiguity and calculated risk-taking.
• Ability to influence, building coalitions across organizational boundaries and inspiring adoption of new technology.

Nice To Haves

• A strong background in laboratory automation and high-throughput workflows is desired, as is expertise in bioinformatics, data analysis, and HPC environments.
• Strong presentation skills are highly desired with the ability to articulate complex technical capabilities to diverse audiences.

Responsibilities

• NGS team management: Lead a high-performing NGS team delivering core and custom solutions across the company in a timely and effective manner.
• Contribute to global strategy and steering decisions regarding the use and analysis of NGS.
• Proactive Engagement: Systematically engage with discovery teams, therapeutic areas, and leadership to identify bottlenecks and opportunities where NGS could accelerate or transform research outcomes—then design and implement solutions.
• Wet and dry lab solutions: Bridge our wet lab and bioinformatics scientists to implement analysis solutions for every discovery platform.
• Build strategic relationships with technology vendors and academics to gain early access to emerging platforms, or develop custom solutions.
• Evaluate when to leverage external solutions versus developing proprietary in-house methods, balancing speed-to-impact with competitive advantage.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees