Associate Director of Bioinformatics

Overview

We are seeking an Associate Director of Bioinformatics, Diagnostics to lead and manage a team of bioinformatics software engineers building the clinical pipelines and tooling that power Tempus's diagnostics platform. This is a primarily management role at the intersection of science and engineering: you will not be writing production code day-to-day, but will be deeply engaged in technical design, architectural decisions, and code review.

You will report to the Senior Director of Diagnostics Technology and own the day‑to‑day operations of a team of 4-6 engineers, driving execution, unblocking the team, and serving as the primary technical and organizational point of contact across product, engineering, and scientific stakeholders.

• Team Leadership & Management
  • Lead and manage a team of 4-6 bioinformatics software engineers, including workload planning, mentorship, and career development.
  • Run daily standups and own the team’s sprint planning; write, refine, and prioritize tickets in close collaboration with product and scientific stakeholders.
  • Conduct regular 1:1s and performance conversations; foster a team culture of technical rigor, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Technical Oversight
  • Lead software design and architecture discussions; author and review technical design documents.
  • Provide thorough and constructive PR reviews across the team’s codebase.
  • Drive adoption of engineering best practices across the team, including workflow standards, testing, and documentation.
  • Serve as a technical escalation point; capable of contributing directly to code or design when the team needs it.
• Cross‑Functional Collaboration
  • Act as the primary day‑to‑day liaison between the bioinformatics engineering team and product, software engineering, and clinical science partners.
  • Translate scientific requirements into actionable engineering work and translate engineering constraints back to scientific and product stakeholders clearly and proactively.
  • Represent the team in planning, roadmap, and prioritization discussions with leadership.
• Clinical Pipeline Development
  • Oversee the design, development, and maintenance of bioinformatics pipelines operating in a clinical production environment.
  • Ensure high‑quality, validated software through rigorous testing, QA processes, and documentation practices appropriate for a regulated clinical setting.

• 5+ years of experience in bioinformatics software engineering or a closely related field, including at least 2 years in a team lead, tech lead, or people management capacity.
• Strong Python engineering skills — not just scripting, but production‑quality software development.
• Experience with next‑generation sequencing data and clinical or research genomics pipelines.
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical design and provide meaningful code review, even when not the primary implementer.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; comfortable working across scientific and engineering audiences.

• Experience with Nextflow or similar workflow orchestration frameworks.
• Experience with Google Cloud Platform or other cloud environments.
• Experience developing software in a GxP, CLIA, or other regulated clinical setting.
• Familiarity with SQL and relational data systems.
• Exposure to FDA regulatory processes or clinical diagnostics development.
• Experience with Type Script/React or other frontend tooling (a plus, not a requirement).
• Background in cancer genomics, molecular biology, or immunology.

$150,000‑$220,000. The expected salary range above is applicable if the role is performed from Illinois and may vary for other locations (California, Colorado, New York). Actual salary may vary based on qualifications and experience.

Tempus offers a full range of benefits, which may include incentive compensation, restricted stock units, medical and other benefits depending on the position.

We are an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.