Associate Principal Scientist, Biomarker Operations / Inventory and Data Management

Merck & Co. • Rahway, NJ

113d • $139,600 - $219,700 • Onsite

About The Position

We are seeking an Associate Principal Scientist to contribute to a pivotal role in our Inventory and Data Management team in our company Biomarker Operations group within Translational Medicine. The mission of this role is to design, build, and deploy the digital infrastructure that manages our biomarker specimen assets. You will transform a complex landscape of biomarker specimen data into a streamlined, accessible, and intelligent ecosystem. By automating workflows, powerful analytics, and stewarding these data, you will empower our scientists and clinical teams to make faster, data-driven decisions that propel our pipeline forward.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor's (with 12 years), Master's (with 8 years) or Ph.D. (with 4 years) in bioinformatics, computer science, data science, engineering, data analytics, life sciences or other related field and relevant experience.
• A deep understanding of the clinical trial process: You can speak the language of protocols, specimens, and clinical data, and have a proven ability to translate scientific needs into technical solutions.
• Proven expertise in designing and building solutions with modern data stacks (one or more of the following): Microsoft Power Platform: Demonstrated expertise in building complex solutions with Power Automate, Power Apps, and Dataverse.
• High proficiency in SQL for complex querying and data manipulation, and practical experience using Python for data processing and automation.
• Proven expertise in architecting and managing databases, skilled in designing normalized relational schemas and enforcing referential integrity.
• Proven experience designing and managing data solutions in a major cloud environment, with a strong preference for Azure, including Azure Data Factory, and Gen1/2 dataflows.
• Expertise in Power BI, including creating robust data models, writing advanced DAX, and focusing on performance optimization and user experience.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with LIMS Systems and building relational models and queries to empower stakeholder decisions.
• A builder's mindset with a demonstrated ability to take a problem from concept to a fully functional, automated solution.
• Hands-on experience wrangling and optimizing large-scale data transformations using platforms like Databricks.
• Familiarity navigating data ecosystems that span both Azure Blob Storage and Amazon S3.
• Experience with incorporating Large Language Models (LLMs) to make data and data adjacent tools smarter.
• Fluency in clinical development and experience navigating clinical systems with a strong preference for Veeva CTS.
• Mastery of tools like Jira and Confluence for fostering transparency and building a shared understanding across teams.

Responsibilities

• Be responsible for integrating, cleaning, and governing disparate data sources such as biorepositories, central, and testing labs, into a cohesive and governed data environment.
• Maintain accurate and comprehensive specimen inventory by tracking specimens collected from our company clinical trials and assay metadata generated from these collections.
• Embed automated quality control checks and validation rules directly into data pipelines, ensuring our data assets meet the highest standards for compliance and integrity.
• Support teams with reports of biomarker information using various query and database integration tools.
• Leverage the Microsoft Power Platform to eliminate manual processes in specimen tracking, data QC, and reporting.
• Build and deploy reusable automation solutions that increase efficiency and accuracy across dozens of clinical trials.
• Design and implement robust, scalable data pipelines using Azure Data Factory, Azure SQL.
• Create and manage dynamic, interactive dashboards in Power BI and Fabric.
• Develop data models and visualizations that provide our scientific and operational teams with self-service access to critical biomarker inventory and metadata.
• Maintain effective communications and relationships with project teams, vendors, and other cross-functional our company teams.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family).
• Retirement benefits, including 401(k).
• Paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Industry: Chemical Manufacturing
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree