Principal Scientist, SOP & Workflow Automation Champion, AI for Drug Discovery (AIDD)

Roche • South San Francisco, CA

4d • $201,300 - $373,800

About The Position

Roche’s AI for Drug Discovery (AIDD) group within the Computational Sciences Center of Excellence is building a unified, modular system for computational drug discovery. The system will integrate machine-learning methods into executable workflows to help scientists across Roche’s Research and Early Development organizations discover medicines faster. This Principal Scientist will architect how computational models become standard operating procedures (SOPs) and automated workflows that portfolio teams can use and trust.

The role focuses on turning research-stage machine-learning capabilities, including those for large-molecule discovery, into scalable and operationalized workflows. The successful candidate will design computational workflow architecture, establish standards across Genentech (gRED) and Pharma (pRED), and work with platform engineering teams to implement systems at scale. The role also involves integrating with Roche’s centralized data infrastructure (DDC), translating models into production-ready components, aligning stakeholders, and mentoring engineers and scientists.

Requirements

• PhD in Computer Science, Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related field, or equivalent advanced experience (8+ years building computational systems).
• Deep expertise in workflow orchestration, data-pipeline design, and software architecture.
• Proven experience designing systems that integrate heterogeneous data sources, models, and processes at scale.
• Strong proficiency in Python and modern machine-learning frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX.
• Understanding of software engineering practices, including version control, testing, documentation, and CI/CD pipelines.
• Demonstrated experience working at the intersection of computational methods and experimental biology.
• Understanding of drug-discovery workflows, including scientists’ needs, breakdowns in handoffs, and usability considerations.
• Track record of translating research code into production systems used by real teams.
• Experience working across technical and non-technical stakeholders, including biology, chemistry, and engineering.
• Proven ability to lead complex, cross-functional initiatives involving multiple teams and organizations.
• Track record of driving adoption of new standards, tools, or processes in larger organizations.
• Strong communication skills, including explaining complex technical concepts to diverse audiences and building consensus.
• First-author publications or equivalent evidence of research contributions.
• Ability to design systems for reliability, debuggability, and adoption, and to balance scientific rigor with pragmatic engineering constraints.

Nice To Haves

• Familiarity with workflow tools such as Nextflow, Snakemake, or Airflow, or similar.

Responsibilities

• Design computational workflow architecture that operationalizes modular machine-learning components into scalable, reproducible, agentic-ready systems.
• Lead the development and standardization of SOPs for model integration, data pipelines, and workflow execution across gRED and pRED.
• Partner with Roche’s platform engineering teams to implement workflows at scale.
• Architect data integration with Roche’s centralized data infrastructure (DDC), enabling seamless model-data-workflow loops.
• Collaborate with the modeling team to translate research-stage models into production-ready components with clear interfaces, performance benchmarks, and failure modes.
• Align portfolio teams, platform organizations, and technology development groups on standards and drive adoption.
• Lead and mentor engineers and scientists on workflow design, automation best practices, and computational architecture.

Benefits

• A discretionary annual bonus may be available based on individual and Company performance.
• The position qualifies for the benefits detailed at the link provided in the posting.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree