Strain Engineering Jobs in Illinois (NOW HIRING)

The Fynder Group began with a NASA-funded mission to the volcanic springs of Yellowstone National Park. There, we discovered a remarkable fungal microbe: an extremophile, Fusarium strain flavolapis (Fy). Fy’s evolutionary resilience provides the naturally efficient and versatile biological backbone for our expertise in the development and scaled manufacturing of filamentous fungi.

From our origins in Yellowstone, we’ve developed a vertically integrated biotechnology platform that centers on the unique capabilities of extremophiles to engineer disruptive solutions to problems that require differentiated performance. 

We offer a fast-paced, startup environment centered around solving complex, world-changing problems.

We are seeking an engaged, strategic, and accomplished R&D leader to serve as the Senior Manager or Director of Strain Development (level to be determined based on qualifications).

You will serve as the resident technical expert on the engineering of filamentous fungi, leading a high-performing team of scientists and research associates. You will drive the implementation of molecular tools to genetically modify our strain and drive the development of strains expressing heterologous proteins.  

The successful candidate will be instrumental in coordinating cross-functional collaboration with protein chemistry, fermentation, analytical, regulatory, and new business development. The applicant will be an accomplished leader and scientist with technical and business acumen to drive research projects from ideation-to-finish line.

• Set Direction & Priorities: Manage and set strategic direction for scientific staff, engineering filamentous fungi, and characterizing proteins; translate high-level corporate OKRs into actionable technical milestones.

• Team Building & Mentorship: Build, lead, and mentor a productive technical team of scientists and research associates, fostering a collaborative culture where individuals develop technology you'd never achieve on your own.

• Innovation Management: Manage innovation activities, project proposals, and the execution of complex research projects within agreed timelines, maintaining business and technical acumen.

• Strain Design & Builds: Design advanced strain builds to develop new products and realize the full potential of our Fusarium strain as an expression host.

• Tool Development: Develop and optimize cutting-edge molecular biology, synthetic biology, and gene-editing tools (including CRISPR/Cas platforms and traditional transformation methods) specifically tailored for filamentous fungi.

• Genotype-to-Phenotype Discovery: Lead efforts to discover deep biological connections between genotypes and key phenotypes of Fusarium to engineer improved strains with enhanced yield, stability, and secretion profiles.

• Biofoundry & HTP Screening: Modernize and scale high-efficiency micro-scale screening protocols, automation systems, and liquid-handling workflows to increase efficiency of fungal strain engineering and mutant screening.  

• Data-Driven Insights: Champion a science-based, data-driven approach to solving technical bottlenecks, utilizing advanced statistical methods, Design of Experiments (DOE), and standard genomics databases.

• Multi-Omics Integration: Oversee the integration of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) data, transcriptomics, and metabolic flux analysis to accelerate predictive strain engineering.

• Cross-Functional Interface: Interface seamlessly with Fermentation, Protein Chemistry, Analytical development, Regulatory, Manufacturing, and New Business Development to ensure seamless tech transfer of optimized strains from benchtop to commercial scale.

• External Ecosystem Partnerships: Identify, engage, and establish internal and external technical collaborations with customers, industry peers, and academic partners to bring emerging methods into the company.

• Ph.D. in Molecular Biology, Genetics, Microbiology, or a related technical biological field.

• For Senior Manager: Ph.D. with 5–9 years of industrial biotechnology experience, including a minimum of 2–3 years of direct people management and project leadership.

• For Director: Ph.D. with 10+ years of industrial or academic research experience in fungal strain engineering, with a demonstrated, proven track record of building, scaling, and leading technical teams.

• Commercial Track Record: A previous track record of successfully developing recombinant microbial strains used to produce commercialized product(s) is highly preferable.

• Fungal Expertise: Expert knowledge of scientific principles regarding the culture, biology, and genetic manipulation of fungal species (experience with filamentous fungi platforms like Aspergillus, Trichoderma, or Fusarium is highly preferred).

• Molecular Toolbench: Absolute expertise in modern cloning techniques, DNA assembly methods, and advanced gene editing (CRISPR/Cas systems).

• Modern Systems Biology: In-depth knowledge of genomics/molecular biology software platforms, LIMS and ELN infrastructure, and analytical frameworks for processing NGS data.

• Statistical Rigor: Expert familiarity with statistical methods applied to Design of Experiments (DOE) and high-throughput data analysis.

• Startup Agility: Comfortable navigating the fluid, fast-paced environment of a scaling startup.

• Communication Power: Strong written and verbal communication skills, with an ability to deliver accurate, clear, and concise technical reports and present scientific outcomes clearly to diverse stakeholders.

• Mindset: An innovative mindset, a robust "can-do" attitude, and an unyielding enthusiasm for engineering filamentous fungi for protein production.