Lab Director

Valius Sciences•Boston, MA

23h•$200,000 - $300,000•Onsite

About The Position

Valius overview At Valius, we believe that the future of cancer care will be defined by “maximalist” diagnostics: deep, comprehensive assessments of DNA, RNA, and protein designed to give patients and their care teams the best possible understanding of how their tumor works and what its vulnerabilities are. We’re building the diagnostics and bioinformatics company to power this future, starting by applying this approach to patients with challenging cancers. In our first year, we worked with over 75 of these patients and, in many cases, identified plausible therapeutic targets which had not been discovered previously. This coming year, we’re on track to scale our patient volume significantly, all while bringing new diagnostic modalities (e.g., single-cell transcriptomics) and analytical approaches into clinical care for the very first time. We’ve just raised a $13.5M seed round, led by 8VC and Basis Set Ventures, and are looking for people passionate about changing cancer care to join our growing team. Lab Director role We're hiring a Lab Director to join our team in Boston to lead the buildout and operation of Valius’s first lab. You’ll own the strategy and day-to-day operations end-to-end, including finding the right space, procuring the relevant equipment, hiring and supervising the lab talent, and overseeing the development and validation of our spatial/single-cell transcriptomic assays (using 10x Genomics instruments). This is a rare opportunity to build a new capability from scratch in a mission-driven, high-ownership environment. This is an in-person role in Boston.

Requirements

Advanced degree (PhD, MD, or MD/PhD) in a relevant scientific discipline (molecular biology, genomics, clinical laboratory science, or related field)
Minimum 8-10 years of experience in clinical laboratory operations
Proven track record of successfully establishing or scaling a molecular or clinical lab
Experience overseeing the development of advanced molecular diagnostic assays such as bulk RNA sequencing, whole exome sequencing, and/or spatial/single-cell RNA sequencing using a 10x Genomics platform
Strong ability to recruit, develop, and retain scientific staff
Excellent written and verbal communication skills; ability to translate complex laboratory data into clear, actionable information for clinical, scientific, and executive stakeholders
Commitment to our patient-focused mission
Interest in working for a small, early-stage startup

Responsibilities

Lead the design, buildout, and commissioning of Valius’s laboratory, from physical space planning through instrument installation and workflow validation
Define lab infrastructure requirements including equipment, consumables, LIMS, and workflow automation to support clinical-grade reproducibility and scale
Establish and document standard operating procedures (SOPs) and training programs from the ground up
Direct day-to-day clinical lab operations, ensuring timely, accurate, and compliant processing of patient samples and reporting of results
Oversee development and validation of complex molecular assays, including 10x Genomics spatial/single-cell RNA sequencing
Manage technical transfer of assays from R&D into clinical operations
Implement metrics for assay performance, turnaround time, and quality
Recruit, train, and lead a team of clinical laboratory scientists, supervisors, and technologists
Collaborate closely with computational biologists and translational scientists to integrate lab outputs into patient-facing reports
Partner with bioinformatics and operations teams to ensure data integrity and compliant reporting of high-complexity results
Contribute to scientific and operational strategy as a senior leader within Valius