Scientific Engagement Manager
Bioptimus
Bioptimus is building the first universal AI foundation model for biology to fuel breakthrough discoveries and accelerate innovation in biomedicine. With more than $75M in funding, Bioptimus is a fast-growing start-up headquartered in Paris, incorporated in October 2023. Backed by leading international venture capitalists, our world-class team of scientists and engineers is redefining the frontiers of AI and life sciences.
Locations:
- Europe: Paris / UK / Germany / Remote (EU)
- US: Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, San Diego / Remote (US)
About the role
We are looking for a scientifically credentialed strategist to lead the post-sales journey for our pharmaceutical partners. In this role, you will be the bridge between our cutting-edge foundational models and the R&D pipelines of the world’s leading biopharma companies.
You will use your deep expertise in biology and data science to build credibility with stakeholders, identify new opportunities for model application within their pipelines, and translate customer feedback into our product roadmap.
What you'll be doing
As our Scientific Engagement Manager, you will operate across three key strategic domains:
1. Strategic Account & Program Management
- Post-Signature Leadership: Orchestrate the partner journey immediately following contract execution. You will act as the Project Manager for the deployment, ensuring seamless onboarding and integration of our foundational models.
- Scientific Advisory: Consult with client R&D teams (ranging from bench scientists to Heads of R&D) to diagnose their specific therapeutic challenges. Design and guide proof-of-concept studies that demonstrate the clear utility of our models in drug discovery and translational research.
- Adoption & Expansion: Proactively identify opportunities to expand the scope of the partnership. Leverage your understanding of the client’s pipeline to suggest new use cases, therapeutic areas, or departments where our technology can drive value.
2. Product Intelligence & Roadmap Influence
- Voice of the Customer: Synthesize technical feedback and performance metrics from the field. Translate complex biopharma user requirements into actionable technical specifications for our internal Research and Product teams.
- Gap Analysis: Collaborate with our machine learning engineers to identify data modalities or functional gaps in our current offering, directly influencing future product iterations.
3. Industry Presence & Thought Leadership
- Scientific Ambassadorship: Represent Bioptimus at top-tier scientific conferences, consortiums, and technical workshops.
- Network Development: Leverage and expand a professional network within the global biopharma R&D community to maintain Bioptimus reputation as a market leader in AI-driven biology.
What you'll bring
The successful candidate will have a ‘team-first’ attitude; be independent, curious, and detail-oriented; thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced environment; and be fun to work with. We value individuals who bring deep domain expertise in pharmaceutical R&D alongside strong hands-on business development skills.
Scientific & Technical Credibility
- Educational Background: PhD in Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, Genomics, or a related field is required.
- Domain Expertise: Deep understanding of the biopharma R&D value chain (target discovery to clinical trials). You understand the specific pain points of drug developers.
- Technical Fluency: Extensive experience with multi-omics datasets (single-cell, transcriptomics, proteomics). You can comfortably discuss ML concepts (LLMs, benchmarking) with data scientists.
Relationship & Strategic Skills
- Stakeholder Management: Proven experience navigating complex, matrixed organizations (Big Pharma experience is a plus). You can present to a VP of R&D in the morning and troubleshoot with a bioinformatician in the afternoon.
- Consultative Mindset: You are not just a support agent; you are a trusted advisor. You have experience in roles such as Field Application Scientist (FAS), Solution Architecture, or Scientific Consulting.
- Feedback Synthesis: Ability to distill complex client complaints or requests into clear, prioritized product requirements.
How to stand out:
- Experience in a startup or innovative environment, showing adaptability and proactiveness.
- A strong existing network within Global Top 20 Pharma R&D.
- Experience specifically with "Foundation Models" or Generative AI in a biological context.
- Track record of high-impact publications (Nature, Cell, NeurIPS).
The candidate journey
To be considered, please submit your CV in English.
We believe in a transparent and collaborative interview process. Here is what you can expect after submitting your application:
- Screening: Once you have applied, the hiring team will review your application. If your experience and skills align with the role, you will be invited to a 30-minute introductory call with the Hiring Manager to discuss your background, motivations, and the position in more detail.
- Interviews: Following a successful screening, you will be invited to a series of interviews:
- Case Study (60 min): You will engage in a live, interactive case study focused on Business Development and Strategy. No prior preparation is required. We want to see how you think on your feet, how you structure complex problems in real-time, and how you approach strategic decision-making with our commercial team.
- Scientific Peer Presentation (60 min): You will present a piece of scientific work to a cross-functional panel of our researchers and engineers, led by a senior member of our technical team. The content is up to you: it can be your own past research, a relevant paper in the field, or a specific Bio AI use case. The goal is to assess your technical fluency, your ability to facilitate scientific debate, and how you communicate complex concepts to experts.
- Executive Interview (60 min): A comprehensive discussion with our Senior Leadership. This session moves beyond technical competency to focus on long-term vision, values, and mutual potential.
- Offer: Following the completion of all interviews, our hiring team will make a final decision and will be in touch to share the outcome. Please note that an offer is contingent upon the successful completion of a reference check.
- Onboarding: We are happy to have you joining the team! Once you have accepted and signed your offer, we will be in touch to begin the process of onboarding you.
Why this is a unique opportunity
- A collaborative and mission-driven work environment.
- Competitive salary and equity package.
- Flexible work arrangements, including remote options.
- Opportunities for professional growth and leadership development.
- Shape the future of biology and AI by contributing to groundbreaking work.
We believe that the unique contributions of all Bioptimists create our success. To ensure that our culture continues to incorporate everyone’s perspectives and experience, we never discriminate based on race, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, or marital, or disability status. Decisions related to hiring are made fairly, and we provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified candidates. We take responsibility for always striving to create an inclusive environment that makes every employee and candidate feel welcome.