Executive Operations Associate/Director, Office of the CSO

Arcadia Science•Emeryville, CA

9h•Onsite

About The Position

Arcadia Science is seeking an Executive Operations lead for the Office of the CSO at either the Associate or Director level. This role reports directly to the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) and supports her across her entire work portfolio, which includes Arcadia's research and scientific vision, spearheading open science at Astera Institute, and broader reform efforts for open science, research infrastructure, and the future of scientific communication. The primary function of this critical role is operational support and execution, aiming to make the CSO more effective by protecting her attention, keeping work moving, and simplifying complexity into clear frameworks for decision-making. Initially, the role involves managing the CSO's calendar, handling inbound requests, and understanding the surrounding people and problems. It also requires stepping into operational gaps and filling new or temporary needs as the organization evolves. These foundational activities support additional project management and strategic work. This position is ideal for a scientifically trained individual who has transitioned from bench work and is energized by supportive roles that amplify the science and mission led by the CSO. Promising candidates should excel at bringing structure to chaos and act as a force multiplier, operating effectively behind the scenes. An ideal candidate possesses a sense of urgency, meticulous attention to detail, and a bias towards quantitative thinking. They should be enthusiastic about utilizing cutting-edge AI tools to develop agile, data-driven processes, enhance communication, and improve the quality of deliverables. Ultimately, this role will be responsible for building and managing a suite of agents that form the core executive operations team for the CSO.

Requirements

PhD in the life sciences with direct research experience within the last five years.
Scientific fluency across a broad range of biology, sufficient to engage meaningfully with working scientists.
Demonstrated operational judgment and at least one year of hands-on project management or execution-heavy experience.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
The maturity to approach high level or sensitive matters with discretion and judgement.

Nice To Haves

Computational experience in machine learning, computational biology, or evolutionary biology.
Comfort in fast-moving, ambiguous environments and matching that with lean, nimble processes.
A genuine passion for open science and some familiarity with the landscape.
An early-riser that, by default, acts with urgency.

Responsibilities

Own the CSO's calendar in partnership with her executive assistant, optimizing for strategic focus and minimizing unnecessary context-switching.
Serve as the primary intake point for inbound requests, issues, and proposals: filter, synthesize, and route appropriately so the right things reach the CSO at the right time.
Handle logistics and first-pass screening for external engagements, candidate interactions, and inbound inquiries, with a clear understanding of scope and representation.
Build situational awareness by engaging with leaders across the CSO's cross-organization network, ensuring they have consistent visibility into collaborative work without important things falling through the cracks.
Increase ease and efficiency of CSO’s executive processes by deploying existing AI agents tools.
Help project manage scientific operations on behalf of the CSO: track progress toward goals, surface misalignments, and ensure that decisions turn into outcomes.
Translate ambiguous situations into clear decision prompts, defining the question, mapping the options, and identifying who needs to be involved.
Prepare concise written and visual materials (briefs, slides) that raise the quality of internal and external decision-making.
Lead special strategic and operational projects at the CSO's direction, with scope clearly defined and revisited as needs evolve.
Step into new or temporary gaps as they emerge, serving as a flexible operational resource wherever the organization needs coverage.
Identify targeted process improvements that reduce friction, favoring lightweight and adaptable systems over heavy or bureaucratic processes.
Continuously develop, update, and manage custom agents to assist with executive operations.