Project Manager - Diffuse na Astera Institute

About Astera:

Astera is a private foundation on a mission to steer science and technology toward an abundant future for all. We believe the coming years will bring an era of unprecedented scientific and technological advancement as exponential progress in AI converges with central advances in other fields to dramatically accelerate innovation. This inflection point provides an unparalleled opportunity to fundamentally rethink the institutions, systems, and tools that drive scientific progress. We are searching for visionary leaders who are compelled by the challenge of driving transformative change in the way science is funded, conducted, and communicated. You can read more about our mission, vision, and programming here.

About the Diffuse Project:

The Diffuse Project is dedicated to advancing our understanding of protein motion by developing methods and datasets that can be used to train predictive models for molecular dynamics. We are currently exploring the use of diffuse scattering – a signal in X-ray crystallography that is currently under-utilized or ignored, that will unlock our ability to measure protein dynamics. We are bringing together a diverse team of researchers, software developers, and beamline scientists to accomplish our mission. We are committed to Open Science principles of making all of our work, software, and data open and FAIR all along the way. You can read more about The Diffuse Project here.

Position Summary:

The Diffuse Project is looking for a Project Manager to coordinate efforts across our multidisciplinary team including members from Astera, national labs, and multiple academic institutions. You will be part of the central hub to oversee and coordinate progress and data publishing of The Diffuse Project across contributions from its many distributed members. You will coordinate with the leaders across the project to ensure progress towards our key goals is sustained and that communication across the project is organized and visible throughout the organization.

Key Responsibilities:

• Serve as the central project manager for The Diffuse Project, coordinating the scientific efforts and ensuring the strategic alignment and communication of teams, academic leaders and members across the project.

• Design, implement, and maintain comprehensive project management frameworks, including detailed project plans, timelines, milestones, and resource allocation strategies to ensure on-time delivery of project goals..

• Champion and manage the transparent dissemination of project data, research findings, and progress reports in strict adherence to Open Science principles and open data initiatives.

• Act as the central communication hub for The Diffuse Project, establishing clear communication channels, proactively identifying and mitigating project risks and issues, and ensuring timely and comprehensive updates to all stakeholders, including remote team members and external partners.

• Cultivate a highly collaborative, inclusive, and productive team environment that motivates a distributed, multidisciplinary team to achieve peak performance and foster strong cross-functional relationships.

Qualifications:

• PhD or MS degree in Data Science, Computer Science, Bioinformatics, Biophysics, Computational Chemistry, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology or related scientific discipline; PMP or equivalent project management certification a bonus.

• Minimum of 3-5 years of progressive experience in project management, ideally within a scientific research, biotech, or technology environment.

• Proven experience in successfully managing complex, multidisciplinary projects from initiation to closure, ensuring adherence to scope, schedule, and budget.

• Demonstrated proficiency in project management methodologies and tools (e.g., Gantt charts, agile frameworks, project management software).

• Exceptional communication, interpersonal, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to effectively coordinate and build consensus among diverse teams including scientists, software developers, and academic partners, especially in a remote setting.

• Strong organizational skills with an emphasis on attention to detail, proactive problem-solving, and risk mitigation.

• Ability to collaborate with operations team for budget tracking and resource monitoring towards project execution.

• Familiarity with Open Science principles and open data initiatives is a plus.

• Demonstrated ability to thrive and effectively manage projects within a remote and distributed team environment.

Location:

Hybrid role, with at least 50% in person at our office in Emeryville, CA. Some travel may be required from time-to-time for in-person collaboration and work.

Compensation:

The posted salary range is based on location in the Bay Area. The successful candidate will receive a competitive compensation package, commensurate with their experience and location.