Technical Specialist - Computational Biologist

Company Description

Syngenta is leading science-based agtech company; dedicated to bringing plant potential to life. Each of our 28,000 employees in more than 90 countries work together to solve one of humanity’s most pressing challenges: growing more food with fewer resources. A diverse workforce and an inclusive workplace environment are enablers of our ambition to be the most collaborative and trusted team in agriculture.

Our employees reflect the diversity of our customers, the markets where we operate and the communities which we serve. No matter what your position, you will have a vital role in safely feeding the world and taking care of our planet. Join us and help shape the future of agriculture

Job Description

Summary:

Syngenta’s Crop Protection Bioscience and Biology functions contribute to the innovation of safe crop protection agents and plant heath enhancers through a deep understanding of biology, mode of action, resistance mechanisms and ADME that is used to improve product performance and sustainability. In the Bioscience and Biology Digital teams, we use a combination data science, image processing and machine learning techniques to explore new ways of deriving knowledge from experimental endpoints and digital phenotypes that include multi-dimensional image, mass spectrometry, biochemical assay and genetic data. A large component of the work is the integration of multiple data into 'multi-omic' decision making tools.  If you are passionate about knowledge extraction from complex data sources and keen to deliver solutions that will help Syngenta to create products which can feed the world sustainably, we have the job for you.

 Description

Syngenta’s Crop Protection Bioscience and Biology functions are looking for Computational Biologists to deliver innovation in the analysis and integration of ‘omics data to advance discovery of products for crop protection and plant health improvement. You will collaborate with scientists across the Crop Protection business to build a vision of how to approach future challenges in crop health management using a biology-centric approach. You will use your experience in the analysis of ‘omic data (transcriptomic, proteomic, metabolomic) to generate new analysis approaches and models to derive insights and fundamental understanding to support advances in future biological screening platforms and experimental programs. You will help with experimental design, asses the quality of data generated, develop and apply analysis tools, and teach individual scientists how to use them. By exploiting your own broad external network and collaborating with academic research groups, you will support the innovation, science and technology required to deliver the Syngenta Crop Protection strategy

 Accountabilities

• Learn and understand the Biology and Bioscience data landscape, key data attributes and experimental capabilities to identify opportunities for enabling and enhancing our science through the deployment of multi-omic approaches
• Research and apply state of the art computational approaches to address Crop Protection challenges
• Evaluate new data analysis tools—validate findings using a trial and iterative approach and effectively communicate findings to technical and non-technical audiences
• Identify data needs and provide recommendations to scientists to ensure the quantity and verify the integrity of data used for analyses
• Work collaboratively as part of the Bioscience and Biology Digital teams and the wider data community to deliver and deploy new approaches, share learning, and drive innovation in digital and data science including technology foresight

Qualifications

Education & Experience: 

MSc/PhD (or equivalent experience) in natural sciences with focus on analysis of data and data integration, data science and/or machine learning and experience in Bioinformatics and the integration and analysis of ‘omic data. Postdoctoral experience in life sciences research or experience in an R&D environment would be a plus.

Required Skills:

• Enthusiasm for visual analytics and data science
• Dynamic personality with passion for innovation and problem-solving
• A good understanding of experimentally derived biological data, data types and appropriate analytical methods, including multivariate statistics
• Ability to work in multi-functional teams
• Thorough understanding and hands-on experience with omics data analysis and data visualization tools, such as, Panhunter, IPA, Knime, SIMCA, R, Spotfire etc.
• Familiarity with relational and non-relational data systems and understanding of good data management practices for scientific data
• Proficiency in both written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to manage and contribute to projects autonomously
• Experience with version control systems, notebooks and creating reproducible digital workflows

Additional Information

Syngenta will offer:

• Competitive benefits package including opportunities for flexible working.
• Up to 31.5 days annual holiday.
• Interaction with external researchers and opportunities to represent Syngenta in research networks, collaborations and conferences.
• Good onsite facilities including a staff restaurant, a gym and fitness classes.
• Campus environment based at Jealott’s Hill located in the Berkshire countryside between Bracknell and Maidenhead.
• Great opportunities for personal and career development.
• A modern, stimulating and dynamic working environment which promotes diversity and inclusion, scientific excellence and collaboration.
• A job and responsibilities with purpose at state-of-the-art facilities within a world class R&D campus site.

We embrace and encourage diversity, and this is what drives our innovation and lets us outperform the market. https://www.syngenta.com/careers/working-syngenta/diversity-and-inclusion

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