Applications Engineer - Pharma

About Varda

Low Earth orbit is open for business. Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure, from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules.

From life-saving pharmaceuticals to more powerful fiber optics, there is a world of products used on Earth today that can only be manufactured in space. Varda is accelerating innovation in the orbital economy by creating both the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth. Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind.

Our team is uniquely suited to accomplishing this goal, with leadership and staff comprised of veterans from Space

X, Blue Origin, major pharmaceutical companies and Silicon Valley. Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with significant backing from world class investors including Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, Caffeinated Capital, General Catalyst, and Also Capital.

Varda is headquartered in El Segundo, California, where we have offices and a production facility where our vehicles, equipment, and materials are built, integrated, and tested. Varda also has offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, AL.

Join Varda, and work to create a bustling in-space ecosystem.

About This Role

Varda is seeking a Pharma Applications Engineer to join our team. In this role, you will be responsible for leading efforts to develop, deploy, improve, and manage all Pharma applications. You will manage the implementation of these solutions through the entire product life cycle, from opportunity identification to support and sustainment. You will work cross-functionally with teams across Varda to lead initiatives to enhance company processes, execution insight, and infrastructure robustness.

Projects will include a wide range of desired outcomes, including cycle time reduction, cost reduction, improved decision making, risk reduction, and any other key operational efficiency. Your contributions will immediately impact functional operations and have an opportunity to contribute to Varda's overall growth and success. This role will report to the Director of Enterprise Applications.

This is a full-time, exempt position located in our El Segundo headquarters.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the embedded technology partner for the pharma business unit, supporting lab systems, spend tracking, and data automation.
• Administer and optimize the pharma platform stack (ERP, CRM, ELN, LIMS, QMS) to support current R&D and scale with the clinical pipeline.
• Build internal applications (low-code and custom-built) that automate repetitive data tasks across the pharma org.
• Design dashboards and solutions in Power BI, SQL, and Python to surface decisions for pharma leadership.
• Evaluate and support integrations between LIMS, ELN, instrument software, and downstream data processing.
• Uphold data integrity, audit logs, and user controls aligned with GxP and FDA 21 CFR Part 11.
• Build, pilot, and deploy AI-powered tools, including LLM-based agents and generative tooling - across pharma workflows.
• Lead training and enablement that drives adoption and reduces shadow IT across pharma.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Data Analytics, Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 3+ years of experience supporting or managing enterprise applications (ERP, CRM, QMS, or LIMS).
• Proficiency in SQL and at least one scripting/programming language (Python, JavaScript, or similar).
• Demonstrated experience building reports and dashboards in a BI platform (Power BI, Tableau, or equivalent).
• Comfortable gathering requirements directly from end users and iterating prototypes to production.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to produce system design documentation, SOPs, and training materials for non-technical pharma stakeholders.

Preferred Skills and Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience in a pharma-regulated or compliance-driven environment.
• Experience with GxP-validated systems and FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliance documentation.
• Familiarity with pharmaceutical industry operations, including regulatory submissions, drug lifecycle management, or commercial data flows.
• Hands-on experience with ETL tools (Alteryx, dbt, SSIS, or Informatica) and cloud data platforms (Snowflake, Databricks, AWS Redshift).
• Salesforce administration or development experience (Flows or Lightning).
• Track record of building workflow automation or custom tooling with quantifiable outcomes such as hours saved, error reduction, or user adoption metrics in a regulated environment.
• Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), Project Management Professional (PMP), or Lean Six Sigma certification.

Compensation

• Applications Engineer - Pharma: $120,000 - $160,000/per year
• Leveling and base salary are determined by job-related skills, education level, experience level, and job
• performance
• You will be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of stock…