Lila Sciences, Inc. | Cambridge, MA Senior Director, Facilities

Flagship Pioneering; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative firm is seeking a Facility Director/Senior Director to lead the planning and operations of their expanding sites. This strategic role involves overseeing the buildout of a new facility in Boston while supporting future developments in London and San Francisco. The ideal candidate will thrive in a dynamic startup environment, managing vendor relationships and ensuring compliance with safety standards. Join a mission-driven team dedicated to transforming scientific methods through AI and automation, and play a pivotal role in shaping the future of life sciences.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in facilities management, ideally in biotech or life sciences.
• Experience with office and lab buildouts, including large-scale moves.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and buildout of new facilities in Boston and San Francisco.
• Ensure compliance and safety in laboratory environments.
• Manage day-to-day operations of facilities.

Skills

Facilities Management

Project Management

Vendor Negotiation

Budgeting

EHS Knowledge

Communication Skills

Collaboration Abilities

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Master's Degree

Job description

Lila Sciences is a privately held, early-stage technology company pioneering the application of artificial intelligence to transform every aspect of the scientific method. Lila is backed by Flagship Pioneering, which brings the courage, long-term vision, and resources needed to realize unreasonable results. Join our mission-driven team and contribute to the future of science.

Our Life Sciences effort is leveraging AI and high-throughput automation for valuable therapeutic discovery and development across biological modalities.

At Lila, we are uniquely cross-functional and collaborative. We are actively reimagining the way teams work together and communicate. Therefore, we seek individuals with an inclusive mindset and a diversity of thought. Our teams thrive in unstructured and creative environments. All voices are heard because we know that experience comes in many forms, skills are transferable, and passion goes a long way.

If this sounds like an environment you’d love to work in, even if you only have some of the experience listed below, please apply.

Position Overview:
Lila Sciences is seeking a Facility Director/Senior Director to oversee the planning, buildout and ongoing operations of our Boston sites and support future space development in London and San Francisco. As we expand our footprint, this role will be critical in creating efficient, safe, and scalable environments across both office and lab settings. It’s a hands-on, strategic opportunity for someone who thrives in a fast-paced, startup environment.

Key Responsibilities:

Facility Buildout

• Lead and manage the design, buildout, and strategic move to a new 100,000 sq ft facility of Lila’s Boston location.
• Support the development and setup of additional facilities in London and San Francisco.
• Coordinate office and lab space planning to support evolving team and research needs.
• Oversee day-to-day operations of the Boston facilities, including security, grounds, maintenance, and hardware controls.
• Manage vendor relationships for construction, maintenance, security, cleaning, and utilities.
• Develop and implement scalable systems and processes to manage multi-site operations as the company grows.
• Manage facilities budgets, forecasts, and capital improvement plans.

Compliance, Safety & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Ensure all facilities meet compliance, safety, and regulatory requirements, particularly for laboratory environments.
• Partner with leadership, operations, IT, and scientific teams to align with company goals and ensure seamless facility support.
• Support occupancy planning, employee experience, and office services.

Leadership

• Lead and manage a team comprised of the Project Manager, EHS, and our Lab Ops Manager.

Qualifications:

• 10+ years of experience in facilities management, ideally within a biotech, pharmaceutical, or life sciences environment.
• Proven experience managing office and lab buildouts, including large-scale moves.
• Experience managing multiple facilities with international exposure, particularly in the UK.
• Strong vendor negotiation, budgeting, and project management skills.
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities.
• Ability to operate strategically and hands-on in a dynamic startup setting.
• Knowledge of EHS and regulatory standards a plus.

Location:
This role is based in Boston and requires regular on-site presence. Some travel to future sites (e.g., London, San Francisco) may be required.

More About Flagship Pioneering

Flagship Pioneering is a biotechnology company that invents and builds platform companies, each with the potential for multiple products that transform human health or sustainability. Since its launch in 2000, Flagship has originated and fostered more than 100 scientific ventures, resulting in more than $90 billion in aggregate value. Many of the companies Flagship has founded have addressed humanity’s most urgent challenges: vaccinating billions of people against COVID-19, curing intractable diseases, improving human health, preempting illness, and feeding the world by improving the resiliency and sustainability of agriculture. Flagship has been recognized twice on FORTUNE’s “Change the World” list, an annual ranking of companies that have made a positive social and environmental impact through activities that are part of their core business strategies, and has been twice named to Fast Company’s annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Learn more about Flagship at www.flagshippioneering.com .

Flagship Pioneering and our ecosystem companies arecommitted to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

At Flagship, we recognize there is no perfect candidate. If you have some of the experience listed above but not all, please apply anyway. Experience comes in many forms, skills are transferable, and passion goes a long way. We are dedicated to building diverse and inclusive teams and look forward to learning more about your unique background.

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Flagship Pioneering and its affiliated Flagship Lab companies (collectively, “FSP”) do not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to FSP or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by Flagship Pioneering’s internal Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of FSP, and FSP will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

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