Director of Bioinformatics - SAGA Diagnostics

Company Overview
SAGA Diagnostics is a personalized cancer diagnostics and disease monitoring company focused on molecular genetic analysis of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA). The company’s mission is to improve precision cancer medicine, provide more accurate treatment monitoring, and improve patient survival using minimally-invasive liquid biopsy cancer testing services. SAGA’s proprietary tests can help patients, oncologists, and drug developers detect actionable mutations, stratify patient groups, and monitor treatment response, residual disease, and disease recurrence at unprecedented sensitivity and scale.

We recently established our U.S.-based R&D operations in North Carolina and are seeking a Director of Bioinformatics to lead, expand, and globally manage our Bioinformatics team. This role offers an exceptional opportunity to shape our bioinformatics strategy, drive innovation in cancer diagnostics, and make a lasting impact on patient care worldwide.

Position Overview
The Director of Bioinformatics will play a central role in building and guiding a high-calibre bioinformatics team and will collaborate closely with our talented R&D team in Lund, Sweden, as well as our Clinical Development and Biopharma teams. As the global lead for bioinformatics, you will drive the development of cutting-edge bioinformatics solutions, collaborate on data interpretation for clinical studies, and foster engagement with key stakeholders, including leading Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and biopharma partners.

Join SAGA Diagnostics at a pivotal stage of growth, where you will contribute directly to scaling our cancer genomics capabilities and shaping our bioinformatics function for the future.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and Enhance Bioinformatics Tools: Design and refine novel bioinformatic tools, with an initial focus on minimal residual disease (MRD).
• Scale and Optimize Pipelines: Expand and fine-tune our bioinformatics pipelines and deploy solutions on AWS.
• Holistic Data Interpretation and Analysis: Collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop innovative approaches for interpreting and analyzing SAGA’s data, focusing on deriving actionable insights and presenting findings supporting clinical decision-making.
• Biopharma Partnership Support: Lead collaboration with the business development team developing data analyses in support of partnership generation in addition to packaging and presenting completed analyses of biopharma projects.
• Regulatory and Operational Validation: Work alongside Laboratory Operations and Regulatory teams to validate and ensure compliance of bioinformatics tools with industry standards.
• Strategic Leadership: Lead and expand the bioinformatics team, fostering a dynamic and collaborative environment to drive innovation and excellence.
• Independent Oversight: Take ownership of key projects and responsibilities, reporting to the Senior Vice President of R&D.
• This is a full-time position with expected travel to Lund, Sweden approximately once every two months.

Requirements

Qualifications

• Extensive Experience in NGS: Advanced experience in next-generation sequencing (ideally with a focus on whole genome sequencing) and bioinformatics tool development.
• In-Depth Cancer Genetics Knowledge: Strong foundation in cancer genomics with a strategic, solutions-oriented approach to bioinformatics.
• Experience in Regulated Environments: Familiarity with CLIA/CAP standards and experience in validating NGS or molecular biology tools are highly desirable.
• Adaptability and Initiative: A hands-on, proactive approach and a drive to thrive in a high-growth, fast-paced startup environment.

Benefits

• Team Building and Autonomy: An opportunity to build and lead a world-class bioinformatics team and contribute to groundbreaking solutions in cancer genomics.
• Early Influence in a Growing Team: As an early member of our North Carolina site, play a key role in shaping the direction and culture as we expand.
• Competitive Compensation: Competitive salary, membership in SAGA’s equity scheme, flexible working arrangements, and a dynamic startup culture with regular team events.

Primary location: Morrisville, North Carolina  

SAGA Diagnostics is an equal opportunity employer, fully committed to achieving a diverse and inclusive workplace that embraces and encourages applicants of every background.  The company’s policy regarding equal employment opportunity means that all decisions regarding recruitment, hiring, benefits, wage and salary administration, scheduling, disciplinary action and termination will be made without unlawful discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, race, color, age, national origin, religion, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, citizenship status, pregnancy or maternity, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable federal, state or local law. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application, interviewing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to hr@sagadiagnostics.com.