Senior Research Associate

Posted September 3, 2010 12:00 AM    

Sapphire Energy is a venture capital-backed company developing next generation biofuels based on recent advances in metabolic engineering. The company’s focus is the commercialization of high performance, low cost, and low carbon footprint biofuels that are direct replacements for conventional gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.

We are seeking an exceptional Senior Research Associate to join our Molecular Biology staff in San Diego, CA.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in biology, microbiology, molecular biology, or related field, plus at least 7 years of applicable industry experience.
• Exceptional organizational skills.
• Strong management and leadership ability.
• Demonstrated ability to independently design, execute, troubleshoot and interpret data and experiments.
• Creativity and the ability to work in an interdisciplinary team in order to achieve technical and business milestones.
• High quality interpersonal and communication skills are extremely important.
• Proficiency in writing and oral presentations.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Design and execute experiments to modify microbial metabolism, including high-throughput cloning and expression analysis.
• Develop assays and criteria for characterizing modified microorganisms.
• PCR, cloning, and sequence analysis.
• RNA purification and cDNA library preparation.
• SDS-PAGE and Western blotting.
• Supervise research projects in the short and long term, and manage a small team.
• Make and record detailed observations, analyze data, and interpret results.
• Work within a team in order to achieve departmental milestones.

Sapphire offers very competitive compensation packages including bonuses and equity, as well as full benefit packages, which include health, dental, vision insurance, 401k, and paid time off. To apply, please send your CV and cover letter to human.resources@sapphireenergy.com and reference SRA in the subject line.