Associate Director, Bioinformatics- Medical Informatics- Remote, USA

Compensation: $175,000- $220,000 per year You are eligible for a Short-Term Incentive Plan with the target at 15% of your annual earnings; terms and conditions apply.

Associate Director, Medical Informatics– Remote, USA

We seek an Associate Director to lead a team of data engineers, scientists, and wranglers in designing genomic research data platforms. The candidate will provide leadership and hands-on guidance, focusing on high-throughput sequencing data and FAIR-compliant metadata. Collaborate with bioinformaticians, software engineers, lab scientists, and clinicians to improve diagnostic and research workflows. Manage technical solutions with medical informatics and IT teams, participate in scrum ceremonies, and understand stakeholder needs. Oversee medical informatics strategies, align with organizational goals, mentor teams, set performance standards, manage project timelines, resources, budgets, and offer professional development for team members.

This individual will play a critical leadership role in designing and managing data models and products that support translational research, clinical development, and real-world data initiatives. The ideal candidate will bridge technical and scientific domains to deliver high-impact data solutions that drive decision-making across the organization

Essential Functions:

• Strategic Leadership & Team Development: Lead, mentor, and manage a hybrid team of engineers, bioinformaticians, and data scientists, ensuring effective performance. Define and implement long-term technical vision in alignment with enterprise R&D objectives. Promote cross-functional collaboration across R&D, translational research, and clinical development teams.
• Data Model Architecture: Co-develop robust, containerized (Docker/WDL/CWL) and cloud-optimized (AWS/GCP) environments to support production-level deployment. Implement data CI/CD best practices for platform stability and faster iteration in clinical data. Support the design, development, and maintenance of scalable data pipelines, warehousing solutions, and metadata management systems. Ensure efficient integration of data from internal and external sources (e.g., EHRs, genomics, real-world evidence, OMOP, FHIR and UMLS).
• Metadata & Interoperability Standards: Guide the evolution of metadata models and ontologies to support interoperability across internal and external data ecosystems. Align organizational data models with public standards from consortia such as ENCODE, HuBMAP, GREGoR, HGRP, UMLS, OMOP, and FHIR.
• Cross-Sector Program Engagement: Collaborate with external research partners to drive data alignment across multi-stakeholder efforts. Utilize insights from Ambry data to support R&D activities.
• Initiative & Project Management: Manage high-impact initiatives, ensuring strategic alignment, risk management, and resource optimization. Develop executive dashboards and metrics for data quality, project delivery, and long-term data value assessment.
• Governance & Compliance: Support data quality, governance, and security standards in collaboration with IT, QA, and compliance functions. Facilitate regulatory submissions and audit readiness through reliable data traceability and documentation.
• Innovation & Collaboration: Assess and apply emerging technologies in data science and informatics (e.g., AI/ML, cloud-based platforms). Encourage a culture of scientific inquiry, operational efficiency, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• Mentorship: Serve as a role model for the team, establishing standards for excellence and mentoring junior engineers.

Qualifications

•  Education: D., M.D., or Master’s in Biomedical Informatics, Data Science, Computer Science, or a related field.
•  Work Experience: 7+ years in medical/clinical informatics, data engineering, or bioinformatics, preferably in biotech or pharma. 3+ years in a leadership or team management role.
• Medical Informatics: Proven experience in medical informatics, including the development and implementation of systems such as clinical informatics systems, electronic health records (EHR), or health information exchange (HIE) systems.
• Project Oversight: Experience in managing large-scale projects and cross-functional teams, with a focus on improving clinical workflows and patient outcomes. Demonstrated success leading large-scale data efforts in academic, or biotech/pharma settings.
•  Cross-functional Collaboration: Proven success in building informatics infrastructure supporting clinical research, translational science.
• Data Standards, Compliance, and Best Practices: Strong understanding of data standards (e.g., CDISC, OMOP, HL7, FHIR), privacy regulations (HIPAA, GDPR), and GxP compliance. Deep understanding of FAIR principles, metadata standards, and medical informatics best practices.
• Computational Expertise: Proven track record in developing standardized, interoperable data platforms serving large consortia or user communities. Proficient in Python, cloud-native tools (AWS), Docker, GitHub, and workflow engines (WDL, Nextflow, or Snakemake). Proficiency in cloud environments (AWS, Azure, GCP). Experience with modern data stacks (e.g., Snowflake, DBT, Airflow, SQL, Python/R).
• Client Collaboration and Service: Demonstrated ability to collaborate with healthcare professionals, IT teams, and external partners to drive innovation and improve healthcare delivery.
• Data Analysis: Familiarity with real-world data (RWD), electronic health records (EHR), or clinical trial data systems (e.g., EDC, LIMS). Proficiency in cloud environments (AWS, Azure, GCP). Experience with modern data stacks (e.g., Snowflake, DBT, Airflow, SQL, Python/R).
• Clinical Genetics and Biology: In-depth knowledge of clinical genetics, mutation analysis, and medical informatics principles, with experience in gene-disease ontologies and databases (HGVS nomenclatures, ClinVar, HGMD). Proficient in molecular biology, and genomics for automated clinical interpretation.

Preferred:

• Technical Expertise: Proficiency with medical informatics databases (ClinVar, HGMD, OMIM) and programming languages (Python, R, SQL, bash, Perl, C/C++, Java) in Linux/Unix. Skilled in cloud computing (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud), CI/CD (Bamboo, Jenkins), containerization (Docker), and high-performance computing. Strong knowledge of gene-disease ontologies, medical informatics software.
• Software and Engineering Skills: Experienced in API development, statistical analysis methods, and use of frameworks/tools like PHP, React, Symfony, and Atlassian suite (Jira, Confluence).
• Analytical and Problem-Solving Skills: Advanced analytical skills focused on creating efficient, reproducible medical informatics solutions for clinical and research applications, with strong statistical analysis expertise.
• Communication and Teamwork: Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to work both independently and collaboratively across teams. Demonstrated leadership in mentoring and setting high performance standards.

About Us: 

Ambry Genetics Corporation is a CAP-accredited and CLIA-licensed molecular genetics laboratory based in Aliso Viejo, California. We are a genetics-based healthcare company that is dedicated to open scientific exchange so we can work together to understand and treat all human disease faster.

At Ambry, everyone is welcome. A career at Ambry Genetics is a chance to be part of a dynamic company that aims to improve health by understanding the relationships between genetics and human disease. We earned our reputation as industry leaders by responsibly introducing cutting-edge genetic testing solutions and continually sharing what we learn with the global scientific community.

At Ambry you will be learning, challenging yourself, and having fun while collaborating with teammates through the open exchange of ideas. Our outstanding benefits program includes 401k, medical, dental, vision, FSA, paid sick leave and generous paid time off (PTO) program. Ambry Genetics is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) and we maintain a drug-free work environment.

The Company believes in second chance employment. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction history will be considered regardless of their arrest or conviction history, consistent with local laws such as Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance and the California Fair Chance Act. You do not need to disclose your criminal history or participate in a background check until a conditional job offer is made to you. After making a conditional offer and running a background check, if the Company is concerned about conviction that is directly related to the job, you will be given the chance to explain the circumstances surrounding the conviction, provide mitigating evidence, or challenge the accuracy of the background report. For the purpose of the above job description, “Essential Functions” are “Material Job Duties”.

Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race (and traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locks, and twists), color, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression (including transgender status), national origin, ancestry, age, marital status or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability, protected medical condition as defined by applicable state or local law, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws and ordinances. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please contact us at careers@ambrygen.com

Ambry does not accept unsolicited resumes from individual recruiters, third party recruiting agencies, outside recruiters or firms without an executed contract in place. We are not responsible for any fees related to resumes that are unsolicited or are received by Ambry. Such resumes will be deemed the sole property of Ambry and will be processed accordingly.

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Equal Opportunity Employer
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