Head of Laboratory Operations
Operations · Full-time
Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Posted on Aug 10, 2026
Title: Head of Laboratory Operations
1 Role Summary
The Head of Laboratory Operations runs iReprogram's internal laboratory in Ann Arbor, Michigan, as the senior hands-on operator at the bench. This is an on-site role based in Ann Arbor (local or willing to relocate), reporting to the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO), Chief Medical Officer (CMO), or Director of Scientific Operations. The core goal is to execute the critical experiments the company depends on while continuously improving their speed, cost, and quality — developing and refining protocols, troubleshooting what fails, and working closely with subject matter experts to sharpen experimental design. This is an execution and operations role, not a research role: the priority is reliable, reproducible delivery on tight timelines and budgets. We are looking for a hands-on lab leader with top talent across four areas: (1) training and professional experience, (2) bench skills and protocol mastery, (3) operational execution, and (4) culture and personality.
2 Core Responsibilities
2.1 Bench Execution and Protocol Development
1. Works directly at the bench day to day — designing and optimizing experiments, running them hands-on, and serving as the senior technical authority for work performed in-house.
2. Develops, validates, and refines protocols, going deep into technical detail as the lab's in-house authority on methods.
3. Executes the experimental strategy set by senior scientific leadership, designing and optimizing the detailed experiments and workflows needed to deliver on it with rigor, reproducibility, and clear documentation.
4. Leads hands-on troubleshooting of failed or anomalous experiments as the lab takes on new techniques.
5. Works closely with internal and external subject matter experts to refine experimental design and resolve hard technical problems.
2.2 Day-to-Day Lab Leadership
1. Provides day-to-day technical direction and mentorship to the Laboratory Manager and Laboratory Scientist, overseeing execution and ensuring rigor and reproducibility; contributes to hiring decisions led by senior scientific leadership.
2. Coordinates internal execution with externally contracted work (CROs and academic partners) at the operational level, keeping in-house validation aligned with the broader program.
3. Manages bench work on tight timelines and within budget, making disciplined trade-offs to keep the lab on schedule.
4. Reports experimental progress and results to senior scientific leadership and flags risks and deviations promptly.
2.3 Compliance and Legal Responsibility
1. Holds legal responsibility for laboratory compliance, including BSL-2, bloodborne pathogen, and recombinant DNA requirements.
2. Owns laboratory safety registrations and biosafety protocols, and serves as the senior point of contact for environmental health and safety (EHS) and other regulatory oversight bodies.
3 Preferred Qualifications
3.1 Background
1. A PhD in Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, or a related life sciences discipline, with 5+ years of industry experience.
2. Able to serve as the accountable lab lead and hold legal responsibility for biosafety compliance, including registering with EHS and maintaining approved protocols for lentiviral and BSL-2 work.
3. Prior hands-on experience running experiments and operating a wet lab.
3.2 Core Experimental Skills + Industry Experience
1. Proven ability to independently design and optimize experiments — defining the right controls, conditions, and readouts to answer a question efficiently.
2. Hands-on expertise in human cell culture, including primary cells and/or stem cell systems.
3. Experience designing and producing lentiviral vectors and performing viral transductions in human cells.
4. Working knowledge of mmRNA (modified mRNA) design, synthesis, and delivery for transient expression applications.
5. Proficiency with sequencing approaches (RNA-seq, scRNA-seq), flow cytometry, and protein/nucleic acid quantification (PCR/qPCR, Western blot, ELISA).
6. Demonstrated experience designing validation or production-style lab work where reliability, documentation, and reproducibility are the primary measures of success.
3.3 Personal Attributes
1. Willing and able to contribute directly at the bench — this is a hands-on role, not a supervisory one; the Head of Laboratory Operations runs experiments alongside the team, not just oversees them.
2. Methodical and process-oriented — drives experiments to completion with rigorous documentation, clear timelines, and reproducible results.
3. Eager to learn from mistakes — readily diagnoses failed experiments, feeds the lessons back into better protocols, and adapts approaches as the program evolves.
4. Committed to continuous improvement in the speed, cost, and quality of lab work.
5. Highly collaborative — develops connections with subject matter experts and the broader team to refine and de-risk experiments.
6. Energetic, highly independent, and demonstrates strong initiative; thrives in an early-stage company where priorities and scope change frequently.
iReprogram is an equal opportunity employer.