Senior Director of Research & Innovation

Bring more to life. 

Are you ready to accelerate your potential and make a real difference within life sciences, diagnostics and biotechnology?  

At Abcam, one of Danaher’s 15+ operating companies, our work saves lives—and we’re all united by a shared commitment to innovate for tangible impact.   

You’ll thrive in a culture of belonging where you and your unique viewpoint matter. And by harnessing Danaher’s system of continuous improvement, you help turn ideas into impact – innovating at the speed of life. 

Progress happens together 

At Abcam, we believe the scientific community goes further, faster when we go there together.  That’s why we work with life scientists to provide biological reagents and solutions that enable faster breakthroughs in critical areas like cancer, neurological disorders, infectious diseases and metabolic disorders. Our talented team of over 1,400 colleagues worldwide is our greatest asset. By applying our expertise and pushing boundaries, together we strive to better serve our customers, strengthen our impact across our industry, and ultimately our positive impact on society. 

Learn about the Danaher Business System which makes everything possible.

Senior Director of Research & Innovation is responsible for responsible for leading teams of scientists who are scouting and evaluating new business ideas, doing PoC studies and process development, and establishing new business lines.This role is accountable for the creation and implementation of strategic developments in the scientific area and contributes to short and long term success of Abcam. Communicating and collaborating with business partners and ELT members in other areas and in other functions across the organisation. 

This position reports to the VP Innovation Leader & Interim R&D leader is part of the R&D team located in Waltham, US and will be an on-site role.   

In this role, you will have the opportunity to: 

• Manage a high-performing team of Directors and Group leaders across multiple disciplines.  Using their scientific background to establish new business lines, new products and capabilities in Abcam 
• Contribute to the success of R&D through a detailed understanding of the business and impact on the current strategy of Abcam.  

• Develop and manage interpersonal relationships with multiple stakeholders across Abcam to shape Abcam’s future and sustain success 

• Lead evaluation and decision making on new ideas (ideation process) as well as implementation of prioritised ideas into projects. Influence decisions of senior leaders within and outside the company  

• Provide the leadership necessary to maximize the research and innovation team’s performance & success, creating a team where people want to work. 

• Build Cross-Functional Collaboration: Foster a collaborative mindset within the organization through their own example and by guiding colleagues and subordinates to engage outside collaborators.    

• Drive innovation: Continuously offer solutions that have the potential to generate revenue, including creating new revenue stream. Facilitate connection between working groups to share information and generate more robust solutions. Work to create environment where initiative, risk-taking and creativity are rewarded more richly than safe behaviors 

The essential requirements of the job include:  

• Ph.D. in a relevant scientific field, cell biology, biochemistry, biology, or other Life Sciences. 

• An established track record in a similar role with 15 years + experience in an industrial environment  

• Recognized leader in scientific specialty as evidenced by publications, participation in international conference, membership on journal editorial boards, etc. 

• Experience of setting strategy and monitoring delivery 

• Experience of leading global teams, working with leaders to set goals and standards to effect delivery against strategy 

• A team player, able to work cross-functionally 

• Ability to distil complex scientific problems to end-to-end solutions, enabling cross-functional communications and understanding with both scientific and non-scientific stakeholders 

Travel, Motor Vehicle Record & Physical/Environment Requirements:  

• Ability to travel up to 20%, domestically and internationally  

It would be a plus if you also possess previous experience in: 

• Relevant advanced degree, e.g., Ph.D. in life science, MD, MBA 

• Desired experience in leading large international teams. 

• A track record of delivering successful innovation projects and products as well as ownership and passion for creative ideas, including advocating for others' ideas in order to drive change. 

Abcam, a Danaher operating company, offers a broad array of comprehensive, competitive benefit programs that add value to our lives. Whether it’s a health care program or paid time off, our programs contribute to life beyond the job. Check out our benefits at Danaher Benefits Info.

The annual salary range for this role is from USD163,500 to 286,000. This is the range that we in good faith believe is the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting. This range may be modified in the future.

This job is also eligible for bonus.

We offer comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law.

Join our winning team today. Together, we’ll accelerate the real-life impact of tomorrow’s science and technology. We partner with customers across the globe to help them solve their most complex challenges, architecting solutions that bring the power of science to life.

For more information, visit www.danaher.com.

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