Bioinformatics Scientist

Job Summary

IFF stands a global leader in biotechnology. In early 2021, we strengthened our leadership by merging with DuPont's Nutrition & Biosciences division. Our Palo Alto laboratories have a long and dynamic history that goes back to the origins of industrial enzyme technology (Genentech/Corning: Genencor, 1982) and evolving into the world market leader in sustainable bio-solutions (Danisco).

At IFF Health & Biosciences, our R&D team is dedicated to developing microbial production strains and engineering enzymes for diverse applications, including in the areas of food & beverages, home & personal care, animal feed, paper & textile processing, health and wellness and more. We are committed to providing sustainable solutions on an industrial scale, continually evolving and innovating to offer competitive, high-end products to our international customers.

We are seeking a highly motivated Bioinformatics Scientist to join our strain engineering team, working towards improving our fungal-based enzyme production hosts. This position is located at our Research and Development site in Palo Alto, CA, where you will collaborate closely with a multidisciplinary team of scientists, including molecular biologists, fermentation engineers, and data scientists. Your expertise in bioinformatics/computational biology will contribute to an iterative hypothesis-driven scientific team.

• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams and apply expertise in computational biology/bioinformatics to impact the strain engineering team.
• Analysis of DNA/RNA sequencing data (Illumina, Oxford Nanopore, Pacific Biosciences).
• Conduct whole genome characterization, variant detection, and RNA-seq analysis.
• Integrate complex strain-associated data with omics datasets to drive hypothesis-based experiments.
• Identify, investigate, and implement new and emerging technologies.
• Prepare technical reports, data summaries, presentations, protocols, and other technical and regulatory documents.

• PhD with at least 3 years of experience in an academic or industry lab, with a proven track record of hands-on experience running/developing computational algorithms and statistical analysis for omics datasets.
• Proficient in computational and statistical programming (Python preferred), Linux command line, and bioinformatic tools.
• Track record of working with microbes, strong preference for filamentous fungi.
• Demonstrated ability to drive projects independently and contribute to multiple projects simultaneously.
• Experience with experimental science and a healthy curiosity to learn more.
• Strong teamwork, communication, and presentation skills.

• Familiarity with version control systems (e.g., Git).
• Familiarity with AWS cloud services.
• Bioinformatics software development experience.
• SQL programming and database development.
• Web development frameworks for data organization and/or communication of results.

We emphasize reaching goals through a collaborative effort. It is essential that you can use your good interpersonal and communication skills to achieve results together with others.

We are a global leader in taste, scent, and nutrition, offering our customers a broader range of natural solutions and accelerating our growth strategy. At IFF, we believe that your uniqueness unleashes our potential. We value the diverse mosaic of the ethnicity, national origin, race, age, sex, or veteran status. We strive for an inclusive workplace that allows each of our colleagues to bring their authentic self to work regardless of their religion, gender identity & expression, sexual orientation, or disability.

Visit IFF.com/careers/workplace-diversity-and-inclusion to learn more