Director, Diagnostic Assay Development & Innovation

DIRECT SALES, US; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 162,000 - 288,000; Full time

Job summary

Hologic, Inc. in San Diego, CA is seeking a Director of Applied Research and Assay Development to lead a team advancing early-stage diagnostic assays and technologies.

You will shape strategy and guide feasibility and development, translating discoveries into scalable products used by clinicians worldwide. This onsite role requires deep molecular diagnostics expertise, strong leadership, and collaboration with cross-functional teams across product development, regulatory, and quality.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in assay development, applied research, or product development within diagnostics or life sciences
• Demonstrated leadership in IVD or molecular diagnostics
• Advanced degree strongly preferred in a related discipline
• Deep expertise in molecular diagnostics and nucleic acid-based technologies
• Proven ability to translate early research into product development programs
• Strong understanding of FDA, ISO, CE Mark regulatory considerations
• Excellent scientific communication and stakeholder engagement skills

Responsibilities

• Lead applied research and assay development initiatives transforming concepts into viable diagnostic technologies.
• Drive feasibility studies, proof-of-concept experiments, and assay development strategies for future pipelines.
• Build and lead a high-performing, collaborative team of scientists.
• Partner with Product Development, Operations, Quality, Regulatory, Marketing, and external collaborators.
• Evaluate emerging technologies to identify opportunities for differentiated diagnostics.
• Establish best practices for experimental design, data analysis, and documentation with regulatory compliance.
• Represent Hologic in scientific collaborations, conferences, and partnerships.

Skills

Assay development

Applied research

Product development

Leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Scientific communication

Education

PhD in Molecular Biology or related

Tools

Nucleic acid technologies

Molecular diagnostics platforms

Job description

Hologic, Inc. in San Diego, CA is seeking a Director of Applied Research and Assay Development to lead a team advancing early-stage diagnostic assays and technologies.

You will shape strategy and guide feasibility and development, translating discoveries into scalable products used by clinicians worldwide. This onsite role requires deep molecular diagnostics expertise, strong leadership, and collaboration with cross-functional teams across product development, regulatory, and quality.