Associate Director, Analytical Development and Vendor Management
TLDR
Play a critical role in bridging discovery-stage science with development needs, combining hands-on analytical assay development with leadership of outsourced activities.
About the role
Sana Biotechnology is growing, and we are hiring new team members who believe in the potential of engineered cells as medicines, who are passionate about delivering the possible to patients, and who lead with the desire to work on novel ideas. As Associate Director, Analytical Development and Vendor Management, you will report into Translational Sciences within the Research organization and play a critical role in bridging discovery‑stage science with downstream development needs. This role combines hands‑on analytical assay development with scientific leadership of outsourced analytical activities, ensuring assays are fit‑for‑purpose, interpretable, and ready to support translational decision‑making and program advancement. You will spend approximately 40% of your time developing and executing assays in the lab, with the remainder focused on leading external CRO‑based assay development and integration of internal and external data across research and translational programs.
What you’ll do
- Design, develop, optimize, and execute analytical assays in the laboratory to support research and translational studies across cell and gene therapy programs (hands‑on lab work, ~30-40%).
- Lead outsourced analytical development at CRO partners, serving as the internal scientific owner for external assay development, qualification, and data delivery.
- Define analytical approaches and success criteria to support translational questions, program milestones, and handoff to downstream development functions.
- Author and manage CRO scopes of work, technical plans, timelines, and budgets; actively manage performance, risks, and dependencies.
- Serve as the primary scientific interface with CROs, providing clear technical direction, troubleshooting guidance, and decision‑making leadership.
- Ensure alignment and comparability between internally developed assays and externally executed methods to enable robust data interpretation and future tech transfer.
- Review, interpret, and approve analytical data generated internally and externally, ensuring scientific rigor, consistency, and appropriate documentation.
- Partner closely with Research, Process Development, Translational Sciences, and early CMC stakeholders to align analytical outputs with program needs and readiness.
- Contribute to analytical strategy development that supports translational insight generation, program prioritization, and progression toward IND‑enabling activities.
- Drive continuous improvement in assay robustness, experimental design, CRO engagement, and data quality across the research portfolio.
What we’re looking for
- PhD with 5+ yrs, Bachelor's or MS with 8+yrs or equivalent combination of education and work experience
- 4+ years of experience in analytical development within biotech or pharmaceutical research organizations, ideally supporting biologics and/or cell and gene therapy programs.
- Proven extensive hands-on experience in various molecular and biochemical methodologies. (ddPCR, MSD, ELISA, Flow, NGS etc)
- Experience in designing and executing Assay development, qualification, and validation.
- Experience working in a GCP compliant environment
- Proven experience managing outsourced analytical work at CROs, including technical oversight and integration with internal research efforts.
- Strong understanding of assay fitness‑for‑purpose, data quality, and comparability in support of translational decision‑making.
- Ability to operate effectively as both an individual contributor and a scientific leader across internal and external teams.
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to translate analytical data into actionable insights for cross‑functional stakeholders.
- Ability to proactively engage groups with diverse functions within a highly matrixed organization.
What will separate you from the crowd
- Industry experience, including working in regulatory BioA environment is a plus (GCP, GLP)
- Experience working with Clinical development and site management
- Experience with fast-paced and dynamic working environment and ability to adapt is a plus
- Experience with various molecular and cellular methods
- Experience with assay validation and qualification
- Ability to communicate, mentor, and lead
What you should know
- The base pay range for this position at commencement of employment is expected to be between $170,000 and $210,000/year; however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience
How we work together for patients
- Lead from every seat – we seek to understand, act with honesty, and engage in the crucial conversations
- Thrive as a team – we hire amazing people, are intensely curious, and cultivate inclusion and personal connectivity
- Make it happen – we value vigorous debate, alignment around our decisions, and resilient execution
Get to know us
At Sana, we believe that a workforce with varied backgrounds strengthens us as a company and helps us to achieve our mission to meaningfully change the outcome of many human diseases. This belief is a pillar of our business and is critical to our success. Our goal is that Sana is the place for talented people to bring their authentic selves to work, to have a great career and to deeply, positively impact patients.
Core to our values, we believe there is nothing more important than the health and wellness of you and your family. For benefit eligible employees, we cover a generous portion of the cost for employee health coverage, making high-quality care more accessible and affordable. We offer ample time-off (various paid time off benefits, such as holidays, vacation, sick time, and parental leave), short- and long-term disability, employer paid basic life insurance, additional voluntary life insurance protection, financial wellness programs including financial planning resources, a 401(k) Plan with an immediately vested employer match, Tuition Reimbursement and Student Loan Repayment, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, commuter subsidy and a variety of wellness offerings to support each person individually. For more details on our benefits, visit Sana’s Benefits Portal.
We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, age, gender, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental or sensory disability (including the use of a trained guide dog or service animal by a person with a disability), genetic information, actual or perceived HIV or Hepatitis C infection, medical condition (cancer or a record or history of cancer and genetic characteristics), marital status, sexual orientation, sexual preference, pregnancy (including childbirth and related medical conditions), disability, veteran status, political ideology, social class (including caste/caste identity), taking or requesting statutorily protected leave, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.
To perform this job successfully, you must be able to perform each job responsibility satisfactorily. The job description listed above is representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or abilities required for this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions described above.
Sana Biotechnology develops engineered cells as medicines, focusing on innovative therapies for type 1 diabetes, autoimmune diseases, and oncology. Our work is centered around using cutting-edge cell and gene therapies to transform the treatment landscape for these conditions.