Director of Operations

The Mindspan Institute is a new non-profit research institute in Cambridge, MA, aimed at building novel tools to analyze the human brain, and scaling them to study its molecules and wiring. We interpret how they contribute to brain functions and dysfunctions, and share our tools and discoveries as freely as possible, to advance human health.

This is a founding operations role. You will build the financial, legal, HR, procurement, and compliance scaffolding of Mindspan, from close to nothing, amidst a fast-paced scientific operation working in almost every discipline of science and engineering, and keep it running cleanly as we scale. You will coordinate and oversee these functions, working initially with external partners and key internal personnel;

as Mindspan grows, you will help with hiring and strategy to bring key functions internally to Mindspan.

Be clear-eyed about what that means day to day. A lot of it may seem unglamorous, but is essential to the mission: setting up the monthly close, getting people onboarded and paid, matching invoices, keeping contracts moving, and making sure we stay compliant as a public charity. As needed, you’ll need to work with external contractors, and in-house staff, to make these things happen, so people skills and leadership skills are also important.

None of it is optional, and all of it determines whether the science team can move fast. If you would rather build the machine than be the face of it, and you get satisfaction from turning early-stage chaos into systems that just work, this could be a good fit.

You will report directly to the co-CEOs of Mindspan. You will own the operational scaffolding end to end, and you will initially partner with outside contractors, and eventually hire and manage a small team to help run things, as we scale.

Finance and vendors. You are the internal owner of our outsourced accounting and CFO partner, running clean weekly and monthly close cycles and giving the board reporting they can act on. You manage our lab procurement platform and purchasing service to keep the supply chain and accounts payable moving, and own budget-versus-actuals. You oversee ordering, payments, and credit, and serve as the point of contact for outside vendors and contractors.

People. You manage our PEO for payroll, benefits, and onboarding, and our spend-management tooling for expenses and AP. As we hire employees you make sure onboarding is fast and that everyone completes appropriate paperwork. You help with compensation benchmarking so our offers are fair and competitive. You initially work with external contractors to achieve these goals, but over time hire and supervise a human resources officer to perform and execute these tasks.

Governance and compliance. You partner with the board and outside counsel to help keep us to the highest standards of ethical, conflict-of-interest, whistle blower, and document-retention policies, consistent with the public-charity rules that protect our tax status. You manage multi-party research contracts and material transfer agreements, as well as grants and gifts to external partners.

Safety, equipment, and ethics. You oversee our biosafety, chemical safety, animal use, and human subjects protocols, from all angles: writing, approvals, training, and inspections. You oversee equipment acquiring, maintenance, repairs, and replacement. You oversee chemical and material acquisition, storage, and disposal. You devise workflows, training of personnel, and enforcement of compliance. You initially work with external contractors as well as key internal personnel to achieve these goals, but over time hire and supervise a lab manager to perform and execute these tasks.

Documentation, publication, and IP. You oversee documentation of internal practices and data, for preservation as well as teaching of new employees. You oversee publication and patenting processes, including a brief pre-publication review which allows for the securing of IP as best benefits the world.

The disorders of the brain affect over 1, people around the world:
Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, stroke, and other…