ELIXIR Senior Science Officer - Research Environments & Software

About the team/job

ELIXIR, the European Research Infrastructure for life science data, will be participating in two significant Horizon Europe projects - EVERSE, A European Virtual Institute for Research Software Excellence and EOSC-ENTRUST, A European Network for Trusted Research Environments. To support our leadership roles in these projects, we are looking for a technical specialist with experience or significant research interests in the fields of research software and analysis of sensitive datasets applied to biological and biomedical problems. Based at the ELIXIR Hub in Cambridgeshire, UK, you will work as part of international multidisciplinary teams from ELIXIR’s European Nodes and project partners.

Ensuring necessary connections and knowledge exchange between the two projects and connecting their activities to ELIXIR's core services and other projects is key for the role, and you will help shape ELIXIR's long term strategy in research software and computational infrastructure. This post is funded for three years.

Your role

Activities will include:

• Representing ELIXIR in international projects, contributing to Work Package tasks.
• Overseeing, reporting on and participating in the design, prototyping, building, monitoring or maintenance of software, databases, metadata and computational resources.
• Contributing to the production and delivery of project reports and journal publications.
• Building and maintaining relationships with ELIXIR members and collaborators internationally and identifying expertise and requirements relevant to ELIXIR activities.
• Participating in a wide range of virtual and face-to-face events including presenting, co-chairing, active minute taking and organising.

Exceptional candidates will be considered for the role of Senior Science Officer (Grade 6) with additional responsibilities. At a Senior level you would additionally be expected to:

• Take responsibility for the delivery of project tasks as lead on international teams of researchers.
• Independently research developments in the science & technology and propose their adoption.
• Mentor & train more junior members of the team and the ELIXIR network.

You have

You must have a university degree in the field of life science, computer science, or another scientific, technical or engineering discipline with solid interest in and experience of bioinformatics research. You should have advanced degree or equivalent experience in one of these fields with significant experience in data-centric biological or biomedical research.

You should have some postgraduate experience in the practice of data-centric research in the life sciences and the following specialist skills:

• Scientific software development, particularly the use of widely used life science software tools and languages, deployment technologies, and workflow definition languages.
• Computer systems including authentication technologies, databases, data management and significant experience working in a Cloud or HPC environment.

As a Senior Science Officer (Grade 6), you should in addition have several years of practical experience in application of these skills.

Skills in the following areas would also be welcome:

• Biological data management and use including the development of databases and the sharing & interpretation of complex data sets.
• Metadata, ontologies and the use of Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable (FAIR) resources to link disparate data sets.

The ideal candidate will be adaptable, self-motivated, and with an ability to work in multiskilled multidisciplinary teams and should have these characteristics:

• Ability to set objectives and plan work independently based on agreed outcomes.
• Able to meet deadlines and manage priorities in a complex environment with competing demands.
• Works to a high level of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Willingness to occasionally work outside normal European office hours and often travel to project meetings and ELIXIR Nodes (usually in European countries) as required.

You might also have

• Ability to communicate to a professional level in additional European languages is highly desirable.

Why join us

Do something meaningful ELIXIR unites Europe’s leading life science organisations in managing and safeguarding the increasing volume of data being generated by publicly funded research. It coordinates, integrates and sustains bioinformatics resources across its member states and enables users in academia and industry to access services that are vital for their research.

Our values
The ELIXIR Hub has a strong organisational culture which is defined by our core values. To ensure a good fit with our team, we look to recruit candidates who share our five values:

1. We work to benefit everyone
2. We are trusted
3. We work with a spirit of openness
4. We strive for excellence
5. We work in an environment of respect

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-fixed term contract (project-based).
• International applicants: We recruit internationally and successful candidates are offered visa exemptions. Read more on our page for international applicants.
• Diversity and inclusion: At ELIXIR, 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.
• 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. We aim to provide a response within two weeks after the closing date: 30th November 2024. Interviews are expected to take place via Zoom, w/c 16th December 2024.