Senior R&D Engineer

Summary

Join BenchSci's growing team as a Senior R&D Engineer! Reporting to the Chief Science Officer, you will collaborate with stakeholders to develop and implement cutting-edge bioinformatics solutions. You will design and execute experiments using ML models, integrate prototypes into production systems, and optimize data pipelines for performance and scalability. This role requires expertise in Python, SQL, BigQuery, and large language models. You will actively collaborate with other teams, communicate effectively, and embrace a 'fail fast' mentality. BenchSci offers a remote-first culture, competitive compensation, robust benefits, and opportunities for professional development.

Requirements

• A MSc degree in life sciences (e.g. molecular genetics, cell biology, pharmacology, etc. ), PhD preferred
• 4+ years of experience as a professional developer
• Expertise in Python and programming fundamentals
• Expertise in intermediate/advanced SQL and BigQuery or similar serverless data warehousing solutions
• Experience with statistical analysis of datasets
• Experience with Large Language Models
• Experience with cloud reference architectures for common patterns in data pipelines
• Strong cross-team communication and collaboration skills

Responsibilities

• Design and execute experiments with various off-the-shelf ML models and training methods to determine evaluation criteria and select the best fit for each project
• Continuously track advancements in ML and AI, readily testing and applying new models to projects
• Integrate POCs into existing data tools and pipelines, and determine how existing pipelines and databases can be applied to discovery projects
• Leverage data from other teams to enhance discovery efforts
• Implement robust testing strategies and debug code errors efficiently to ensure data pipeline code quality
• Optimize ML pipelines for performance and scalability, balancing speed with code quality to minimize technical debt
• Utilize off-the-shelf models and APIs (e.g., LLM) to fine-tune models with datasets and creatively apply LLMs to build data collection pipelines with API calls
• Become an expert in at least one of the company's pipeline tools (Dataflow, BigQuery, Workflows) and master at least one internal pipeline tool (PipelinesV2, BQBT, Control Plane) to design and extend data models and data contracts owned by the team
• Actively collaborate with other teams, openly communicate successes and failures, and demonstrate a balanced approach to goal-setting that considers project complexities and resources
• Effectively communicate timelines and potential challenges to stakeholders, and proactively work with them to address concerns and ensure smooth transitions, especially during technology hand-offs and integrations
• Embrace a "fail fast" mentality, working independently and taking initiative to proactively test solutions, learn from failures, and effectively manage dependencies
• Be spontaneous and action-oriented, prioritizing action over extensive documentation, and timebox projects effectively, demonstrating a data-driven approach to success evaluation
• Develop and implement POC code quickly to demonstrate new ideas and applications, while ensuring code efficiency and scalability. Proactively test innovative code solutions and methodologies
• Collaboratively build components of a larger system without supervision, while minimizing technical debt and resolving system flaws. Maintain a comprehensive understanding of how individual components contribute to the overall system architecture
• Actively share R&D discoveries and knowledge across the organization, becoming a subject matter expert in at least one core language, framework, or technology used by the Discovery Team
• Showcase your expertise in the "discovery" codebase, stay updated on bleeding-edge technologies, and evaluate their potential application to existing projects while considering project requirements, stack considerations, and opportunity costs

Benefits

• An engaging remote-first culture
• A great compensation package that includes BenchSci equity options
• A robust vacation policy plus an additional vacation day every year
• Company closures for 14 more days throughout the year
• Flex time for sick days, personal days, and religious holidays
• Comprehensive health and dental benefits
• Annual learning & development budget
• A one-time home office set-up budget to use upon joining BenchSci
• An annual lifestyle spending account allowance
• Generous parental leave benefits with a top-up plan or paid time off options
• The ability to save for your retirement coupled with a company match!