Position: Field Applications Scientist/ Senior Field Applications Scientist, NAM

Position Type: Full-Time

Department: Scientific Support

Location: Remote, with preference for candidates based in the West Coast United States. Must be close to a major airport (within 30 miles).

Experience: MS required; 4+ years of experience in a Field Applications role. Candidates with 8+ years of relevant experience may be considered at the Senior level.

Position Summary

Watchmaker Genomics (WMG) is inviting applications for the full-time position of Senior Field Applications Scientist / Field Applications Scientist, North America (remote), with preference for candidates based in the West Coast United States.

This position reports to the Associate Director, Field and Automation Support and will be mainly responsible for providing field technical support for Watchmaker’s Next-Gen Sequencing (NGS) and precision enzyme product portfolios. This position will support the North American technical team by providing pre- and post-sales technical and scientific support, including presenting technical content to customers, co-travel with sales team members, attending and/or presenting at conferences and assisting with various marketing activities. This position is field based, with approximately up to 75% travel within the US (potential for some international travel).

The position is expected to have a deep technical understanding of our current product portfolio, maintain knowledge of current and new NGS products, workflows-associated applications, competitor products and NGS support offerings, and identify and escalate changes in the market dynamics. This position is also accountable for providing customer feedback on WMG products, in addition to identifying unmet customer needs that will enable the development of new and innovative products.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for providing pre- and post-sales technical and scientific support, both onsite and remote, for customers across WMG’s NGS and precision enzyme product portfolio. 
• North America-based travel (up to 75%) activities including co-travel with sales team members, meetings with key customers, providing training and troubleshooting, and participating in trade shows/conferences. Possible opportunity for international travel.
• Provides deep product knowledge to solve customer challenges. Triages issues, troubleshoots investigations, and identifies solutions.
• Creation of training material, and presenting technical content to new or current customers.
• Inform and implement processes as a part of our North American-field based scientific support organization.
• Maintain expert-level knowledge of current and new NGS products and workflows, our precision enzyme portfolio and associated applications, competitor products and NGS automation support offerings. 
• Provide customer and market feedback on WMG products; Identify and communicate unmet customer needs that will aid in the development of new and innovative products.
• Work closely with the commercial team to identify and support collaborations with leading research institutions and industry partners to accelerate the sales cycle, including both pre-sales and post-sales troubleshooting. 
• Support marketing activities including generation of customer-facing technical content (i.e. posters, app/tech notes, white papers, webinars) as well as participating in and presenting at trade shows/conferences.
• Participate in sales, marketing, and product strategy meetings when appropriate. 
• Follow best practices and documentation requirements for customer-related activities and events in CRM. 
• Additional duties as required within the remit and responsibilities of the role.

Skills and Requirements

Relevant experience providing field-based applications support for next-generation sequencing (NGS) experiments and/or other advanced genomics applications. Relevant experience includes working in high-throughput sequencing labs developing, optimizing and troubleshooting NGS workflows both manually and on automated platforms and managing large sequencing projects. 

Qualified candidates will have a proactive approach with a can-do attitude, and be great communicators with a high level of self-motivation. Candidates will also have a strong desire to continually improve, learn and collaborate to help WMG stay at the forefront of exciting new applications spaces. Candidates will be able to demonstrate a high standard experience to our customer base, excel in the art of troubleshooting, and take ownership and pride in their work.

Candidates will have the courage to initiate discussions with customers to challenge the current "status quo" and have the confidence to drive change and adoption of new concepts. Full product training will be provided.

Education and Experience

• MSc in Genetics, Molecular Biology, Biochemistry or related field
• 4+ Years experience within NGS field applications. Candidates with 8+ years of relevant experience may be considered at the Senior level. 
• Advanced knowledge of and practical experience with experimental design, applications/assay development, NGS library preparation, PCR, qPCR, good lab practices, and troubleshooting. Automation knowledge of NGS assays is a plus. 
• Ability to travel up to 75% of time 
• Strong customer consultative skills which includes application of scientific knowledge and analysis, exceptional customer engagement, and fostering of customer relationships
• Experience with CRM software (particularly Salesforce.com) highly desirable

Compensation

The base compensation for the Field Applications Scientist role starts at $100,000 - $130,000; base compensation for the Senior Field Applications Scientist role starts at $120,000 - $150,000 + bonus + equity; actual pay will be adjusted based on skills, experience and level of role. 

Employees are eligible for Flexible Time Off, Holidays, employer covers 75% of base medical plan with buy-up options, EAP (employee assistance program), employer paid dental with a buy-up option, employer paid vision, employer paid $25,000 life/AD&D policy, paid parental leave, and a 401(k) retirement plan with a 4% match.

Application Requirements 

To apply for the position, please submit the following in a PDF format on watchmakergenomics.com: 

• Letter of motivation (upload where it says cover letter)
• Resume or Curriculum vitae, highlighting relevant qualifications and experience

Applications without a Letter of Motivation will not be considered.

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis and the position will remain open until filled; however, early submission is encouraged as review will begin immediately.

If selected to participate in the interview process, the names and contact information of three professional references who are able to assess your suitability for the position in terms of the specified requirements will be requested.

*** NO RECRUITMENT AGENCIES PLEASE

We are only accepting direct applications for this position. We are not working with external recruiters or agencies at this time. Unsolicited resumes or candidate submissions from third-party recruiters will not be considered and will be deemed the property of Watchmaker Genomics.

*** WE ARE AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION EMPLOYER

Watchmaker Genomics is committed to being an equal opportunity employer and creating a culturally diverse environment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability status, age, or veteran status or any other characteristics as protected by applicable law.

All applicants will be asked if currently eligible to work in the United States of America; and if now or in the future will require visa sponsorship to continue working in the United States.

This position may be subject to pre-employment checks, including driving history check, drug screening and a background check for any convictions directly related to its duties and responsibilities. All pre-employment checks will comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws.