As Project Leader, you will lead the Genebuild team in developing accurate and scalable pipelines for annotating eukaryotic genomes with transcript structures and other genic features. Your responsibilities will include:

- Pipeline and workflow development for large-scale genome annotation

- Software development and automation

- Integration of machine learning and big data approaches

- Community engagement to support large collaborative projects

- Strategic development of the next generation of Ensembl’s world-class data services

As part of this role, you will also join the Ensembl management team, working closely with leadership to shape the future of genome annotation.

We are looking for an individual with:

- Strong expertise in genome annotation, bioinformatics, or computational biology

- Experience in pipeline development, high-performance computing, or machine learning

- Leadership experience in managing projects, teams, or large-scale collaborations

- Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills

Ensembl Genebuild is part of the Eukaryotic Annotation Team, led by Fergal Martin. This team operates within a broader cluster of Ensembl resources, overseen by Rob Finn. You will report directly to Leanne Haggerty, Coordinator for Eukaryotic Annotation Data Flow.

As Project Leader, you will be responsible for the operational leadership of high-throughput gene annotation activities within Ensembl. Under the supervision of the Coordinator for Eukaryotic Annotation Data Flow, you will drive the expansion of Ensembl’s gene annotation resources to thousands of genomes, focusing on the development of modernised pipelines for eukaryotic gene annotation using the state-of-art methods.

Your key responsibilities will include:

- Team Leadership: Manage and mentor a team of 6–7 bioinformaticians and developers.

- Pipeline & Production Management: Oversee the team’s development and production workflows for Ensembl releases.

- Community & Cross-Team Collaboration: Work with scientific communities and other Ensembl teams to develop APIs and effective data displays for gene annotation data.

- Scientific Communication: Write reports and publications on Ensembl gene annotation resources.

- Research & Innovation: Stay up to date with the latest research, primary data sources, gene-finding tools, and methodologies in genome annotation.

You have

- A PhD or equivalent in Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related field, with demonstrated experience in gene annotation.

- Applicants with an MSc and significant relevant experience will also be considered.

- Broad knowledge of gene annotation concepts and methods.

- Experience with relational databases for handling biological data.

- Familiarity with sequence alignment algorithms.

- Experience in designing and deploying complex analysis pipelines on HPC clusters.

- Proficiency in at least one programming language (e.g., Python).

- Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to lead cross-disciplinary teams of biologists and computational scientists.

- Excellent organisational skills, ensuring deadlines, reports, and procedures are met across the Ensembl project.

You may also have

- Formal project management principles and techniques.

- Working within a release cycle for software or data.

- Hands-on experience with the Ensembl platform.

- Expertise specifically in Perl and MySQL.

- Previous involvement in large-scale collaborative genomics projects.

Apply now! Benefits and Contract Information

- Financial incentives: depending on circumstances, monthly family/marriage allowance of £272 monthly child allowance of £328 per child. Non resident allowance up to £556 per month. Annual salary review, pension scheme, death benefit, long-term care, accident-at-work and unemployment insurances

- Hybrid 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 (as applicable)

- 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, child sick leave, generous parental leave, holiday clubs on campus and monthly family and child allowances

- Contract duration: This position is a 3 year grant based contract

- Salary: Monthly salary starting at £4,111 after tax but excl. pension & insurances) + benefits (Total package will be dependent on family circumstances)

- 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.

- 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.