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GRAIL is a healthcare company whose mission is to detect cancer early, when it can be cured.
The Role
The Director of Engineering Operations provides leadership for engineering teams, ensuring quality and compliance in laboratory processes, and partners across functions to enhance operational excellence.
Summary Generated by Built In
Our mission is to detect cancer early, when it can be cured. We are working to change the trajectory of cancer mortality and bring stakeholders together to adopt innovative, safe, and effective technologies that can transform cancer care.
We are a healthcare company, pioneering new technologies to advance early cancer detection. We have built a multi-disciplinary organization of scientists, engineers, and physicians and we are using the power of next-generation sequencing (NGS), population-scale clinical studies, and state-of-the-art computer science and data science to overcome one of medicine’s greatest challenges.
GRAIL is headquartered in Menlo Park, California, with locations in Washington, D.C., North Carolina, and the United Kingdom. It is supported by leading global investors and pharmaceutical, technology, and healthcare companies.
For more information, please visit grail.com.
The Director of Engineering Operations will provide executive leadership and strategic direction to GRAIL’s engineering operations teams, responsible for ensuring the smooth and compliant functioning of all laboratory automation, systems, and equipment. This leader will champion operational excellence, continuous improvement, and cross-functional collaboration to support GRAIL’s mission of delivering our groundbreaking multi-cancer early detection test to more patients at scale.
The ideal candidate has deep experience leading large teams responsible for technical support, reliability, and process improvement in a regulated, high-throughput laboratory or manufacturing environment. This individual will ensure that all engineering functions—including maintenance, calibration, and automation—meet the highest standards of quality, compliance, and performance.
This is an onsite role, 5 days a week at our Durham lab - 4001 E NC 54 Hwy Assembly Suite 1100, Durham, NC 27709.
Responsibilities
- Provide strategic vision and operational leadership to multi-site engineering teams supporting process automation, laboratory equipment, and scientific computing environments within a regulated laboratory environment.
- Define and execute objectives, policies, and growth plans that drive uptime, scalability, and operational excellence for GRAIL’s high-throughput labs.
- Build, mentor, and empower a high-performing management team of engineers, technicians, and technical leaders.
- Oversee the execution of major engineering infrastructure projects, system implementations, and technical upgrades.
- Partner cross-functionally with Operations, R&D, Quality, Regulatory, Software Engineering, and IT to proactively solve challenges, improve workflows, and ensure high-quality support for GRAIL’s product, laboratory, and business goals.
- Ensure operations meet cGMP/GLP and QMS requirements, and champion a culture of compliance, safety, and continuous improvement.
- Lead and manage operating expenses (OPEX) and provide input on capital planning (CAPEX) for engineering operations investments.
- Direct the timely completion of investigations, change control, CAPAs, deviations, and other compliance activities, utilizing KPIs to drive efficiency, safety, cost, and quality improvements.
- Optimize the allocation of internal and external resources across a complex, high-growth operational landscape.
- Serve as a thought leader and role model for GRAIL’s values and policies.
Preferred Qualifications
- BS, MS, or PhD in Engineering, Science, or a related technical field; advanced degree highly desirable.
- 15+ years of relevant engineering and operations experience in regulated lab, production, or manufacturing settings, with at least 8 years in progressive management roles leading multi-disciplinary teams.
- Demonstrated success in strategic leadership, organizational scaling, and team development in a dynamic, growth-focused company.
- Deep technical proficiency in laboratory automation, equipment reliability, maintenance, calibration, and troubleshooting (including software, robotics, and next-generation sequencing workflows).
- Expert understanding of compliance and quality systems in FDA-regulated, cGMP/GLP environments.
- Excellent communication, influence, and collaboration skills with a strong track record of partnering with diverse functional groups.
- Advanced understanding of maintenance and calibration management systems, risk management, and business continuity planning.
- Hands-on knowledge of complex lab automation platforms (e.g., Agilent, Hamilton, Labcyte, Illumina), and IT systems (LIMS, MES, CRM, scheduling software).
- Experience leading large-scale capital projects and system implementations from concept to delivery.
- Proven ability to operate effectively in high-pressure, mission-critical operational environments.
- Highly Preferred
- Experience supporting systems for next-generation sequencing (NGS) or molecular biology workflows.
- In-depth understanding of IT networking, systems infrastructure, and laboratory automation software (GBG and others).
- Industrial electrical and mechanical engineering expertise, with advanced troubleshooting abilities.
- Exposure to Illumina NGS technology and related lab platforms.
- Familiarity with advanced safety training, hazardous materials handling, and lockout/tagout protocols.
Expected full time annual base pay scale for this position is $167K-222$K. Actual base pay will consider skills, experience and location.
Based on the role, colleagues may be eligible to participate in an annual bonus plan tied to company and individual performance, or an incentive plan. We also offer a long-term incentive plan to align company and colleague success over time.
In addition, GRAIL offers a progressive benefit package, including flexible time-off, a 401k with a company match, and alongside our medical, dental, vision plans, carefully selected mindfulness offerings.
GRAIL is an Equal Employment Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status. We will reasonably accommodate all individuals with disabilities so that they can participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation. GRAIL maintains a drug-free workplace.
Top Skills
Calibration Management Systems
CRM
Laboratory Automation
Lims
Mes
Next-Generation Sequencing
Scheduling Software
What the Team is Saying
Neda Ronaghi
Bioinformatics Scientist
Ruth Mauntz
Bioinformatics Scientist
Tristan Matthews
Senior Director, Software Engineering
David Jenions
Principal Automation Engineer
Satnam Alag
SVP, Software Engineering
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The Company
What We Do
GRAIL is a healthcare company whose mission is to detect cancer early, when it can be cured. GRAIL is using the power of high-intensity sequencing, population-scale clinical studies, and state-of-the-art computer science and data science to enhance the scientific understanding of cancer biology, and to develop and commercialize pioneering products
Why Work With Us
Everything we do is guided by our mission to detect cancer early, when it can be cured. It’s the reason we’re here, and it’s no small task.
The right people make all the difference. That’s why we’re looking for those who strive to share their knowledge, contribute their skills, inspire each other and commit to something bigger than themselves.
Gallery
GRAIL Offices
Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
GRAIL has a variety of work types depending on the roles. Some are onsite like a lab role, others are hybrid and still others are remote. Hybrid is typically Tuesday and Thursday but leaders may be flexible depending on the role.
Typical time on-site:
2 days a week
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