Ensembl Comparative Genomics Project Leader

About the team/job

The Ensembl project seeks a talented and motivated Project Leader to manage its activities in the area of comparative genomics. 

Ensemblis a world-leading project that integrates and annotates genomes from thousands of species across the tree of life, and serves them in a number of dynamic ways to the global scientific community. The Ensembl Compara team forms a critical component of this mission, developing and deploying pipelines and tools for comparing genes and genomes, by way of evolutionary trees, orthology/paralogy, multiple alignments and synteny. As global efforts to sequence the genomes of all species on earth begin to gather pace, this position will give you a prominent role in shaping Ensembl’s response to this exciting challenge. 

Your role

You be responsible for operational leadership of comparative genomics activities in Ensembl. Under the immediate supervision of the Eukaryotic Annotation Team Leader, you will lead the expansion of Ensembl’s comparative genomics resources to tens-of-thousands of species, with focus on the development of scalable pipelines for (a) inference of orthology and paralogy relationships, and (b) whole-genome pairwise and multiple alignments.

You will also:

• Manage and mentor a team 4-5 bioinformaticians/developers
• Manage the team’s development and production work for Ensembl releases
• Engage with users and other Ensembl teams to develop effective displays and APIs for comparative genomics data
• Write reports and papers describing Ensembl comparative genomics resources
• Represent the project relevant international consortia (such as the Quest for Orthologs)
• Keep up-to-date with current research in comparative genomics tools and methods 

You have

• Broad knowledge of comparative genomics concepts and methods
• Experience with using relational databases for biological data
• Experience with designing and deploying complex analysis pipelines on an HPC cluster
• Proficiency in at least one programming language (e.g. Perl or Python)
• Expertise specifically in Perl, Python, NextFlow and MySQL

You will ideally hold a PhD or equivalent in Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics or related field with demonstrated experience in comparative genomics. Applicants with a MSc and appropriate experience will also be considered.

You will have excellent verbal and written communication skills to lead within a project where biologists and computer scientists work closely together. You will also be highly organised in order to meet the regular deadlines, reports and procedures across the wider Ensembl project. 

You might also have

Although not essential, the ideal applicant might also have:

• Experience with formal project management principles and techniques
• Experience with machine learning frameworks
• Experience with cloud compute
• Experience of working with the Ensembl platform
• Experience with working in large collaborative genomics projects 

Why join us

Do something meaningful

At EMBL-EBIyou can apply your talent and passion to accelerate science and tackle some of humankind's greatest challenges. EMBL-EBI, part of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, is a worldwide leader in the storage, analysis and dissemination of large biological datasets. We provide the global research community with access to publicly available databases and tools which are crucial for the advancement of healthcare, food security, and biodiversity.

Join a culture of innovation

We are located on theWellcome Genome Campus, alongside other prominent research and biotech organisations, and surrounded by beautiful Cambridgeshire countryside. This is a highly collaborative and inclusive community where our employees enjoy a relaxed atmosphere. We are committed to ensuring our employees feel valued, supported and empowered to reach their professional potential. 

Enjoy lots of benefits:

• Financial incentives: Monthly family, child and non-resident allowances, annual salary review, pension scheme, death benefit, long-term care, accident-at-work and unemployment insurances
• Flexible working arrangements
• Private medical insurance for you and your immediate family (including all prescriptions and generous dental & optical cover)
• Generous time off: 30 days annual leave per year, in addition to eight bank holidays
• Relocation package including installation grant (if required)
• Campus life: Free shuttle bus to and from work, on-site library, subsidised on-site gym and cafeteria, casual dress code, extensive sports and social club activities (on campus and remotely)
• Family benefits: On-site nursery, 10 days of child sick leave, generous parental leave, holiday clubs on campus and monthly family and child allowances
• Benefits for non-UK residents: Visa exemption, education grant for private schooling, financial support to travel back to your home country every second year and a monthly non-resident allowance.

For more details please see our employee benefits page. 

What else you need to know

• Contract duration: This position is a 3 year contract, renewable to a maximum of 9 years. 
• International applicants: We recruit internationally and successful candidates are offered visa exemptions. Read more on our page for international applicants. 
• Diversity and inclusion: At EMBL-EBI, we strongly believe that inclusive and diverse teams benefit from higher levels of innovation and creative thought. We encourage applications from women, LGBTQ+ and individuals from all nationalities. 
• EMBL is a signatory of DORA. Find out how we implement best practices in research assessment in our recruitment processes here.
• Job location: This role is based in Hinxton, near Cambridge, UK. You will be required to relocate if you are based overseas and you will receive a generous relocation package to support you.
• How to apply: To apply please submit a cover letter and a CV through our online system, by clicking the 'Apply' button.