Facilities/Lab Ops Lead

Octant Bio•Emeryville, CA

5d•$115,000 - $140,000•Onsite

About The Position

Octant is looking for an organized, hands-on lab and facilities manager to keep our research operations running smoothly. You'll be the operational backbone of our wet lab environment — managing supplies, equipment, safety, lab infrastructure, and day-to-day facilities needs so our scientists can focus on doing great science. This role sits at the intersection of operations and science and is critical to enabling Octant's high-throughput, fast-moving research environment.

Requirements

Have a B.S. or M.S. in a life sciences discipline (biology, biochemistry, chemistry, or related field), or equivalent experience
Have 5+ years of experience in an academic or industry laboratory setting, with at least 1 year in a management role
Are familiar with molecular biology, cell culture, and/or chemistry lab environments
Have experience with BSL-2 safety practices and chemical hygiene
Enjoy flexing your stakeholder management skills: able to partner with scientists, finance, and external vendors, set expectations clearly, push back diplomatically, and keep multiple constituents aligned and moving forward
Have experience with inventory management systems and lab purchasing platforms, e.g., Quartzy
Enjoy working seamlessly across functions, including coordinating with building management, vendors, and contractors on routine facilities matters
Are detail-oriented and thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative, team-oriented startup environment

Responsibilities

Cultivate and manage strategic vendor relationships to ensure a resilient supply chain for reagents, consumables, and critical laboratory equipment
Drive organizational accountability for lab safety and regulatory compliance, overseeing EHS standards, BSL-2 protocols, and waste management systems
Own the general laboratory equipment lifecycle, providing strategic oversight for preventive maintenance, calibration schedules, service contracts, and technological upgrades to minimize downtime and anticipate failures before they affect the science
Exercise rigorous budget stewardship, tracking operational spend and partnering with Finance to align facilities and lab resources with company growth and research milestones
Develop and govern optimized utilization strategies for shared equipment and high-throughput workflows to ensure maximum scientific output
Drive continuous improvement initiatives and strategic organizational change to enhance overall lab efficiency and research velocity
Lead facilities coordination strategy and long-term planning, owning preventive maintenance programs across our site, space planning, lab reconfigurations, and the infrastructure roadmap that supports company growth and research milestones