Job Title:Research Associate

Reporting to:Manager, Controlled Environment

Location:Durham, North Carolina

About Pairwise:

Pairwise is a mission driven AgriFoodTech company pioneering the application of CRISPR technology in food and agriculture. Founded in 2017 by leading scientists in the gene editing and biotechnology fields, Pairwise holds licenses from Harvard and Massachusetts General Hospital to base editing and high-fidelity enzymes – in addition to our own proprietary, company-developed suite of novel tools.

Anchored by our Fulcrum™ platform and deep technical and agronomic expertise in more than 60 crops, we’re accelerating innovation in plant genetics, food and agricultural products, supply chains, and production systems. Our expert team delivers commercially viable products that benefit the planet, consumers, growers, and our business partners.

After successfully delivering 27 novel traits to Bayer’s pipeline during our first collaboration for corn, soy, wheat, and canola, our second collaboration currently underway is focused on developing climate-friendly short-stature corn – with more partnerships on the horizon. Our consumer-facing pipeline includes seedless blackberries and pitless cherries.

Named one of America’s Top GreenTech Companies, Pairwise is based in the start-up friendly Research Triangle Park area of North Carolina.

About This Role:

Pairwise is hiring a motivated Research Associate to join our Controlled Environment team. The ideal candidate will have a bachelor’s or master’s level training and the ability to work both independently and collaboratively. Your contribution will be critical to help Pairwise achieve ambitious goals and foster a culture of innovation while having fun doing science.

We are seeking an individual who is passionate about horticulture and enjoys growing diverse plants from seed to seed. The role is centered on growing plants in controlled environments with responsibilities including plant growth, data collection, documenting findings and sharing results with internal stakeholders. The successful team member will have an appetite for learning new skills and provide support across projects as needed. Attention to detail, flexibility, collaboration and clear communication are essential for success in this role.

Essential Functions:

Experience growing corn in a greenhouse environment is required. Experience growing corn in a growth chamber and for embryo extraction are a plus.

Plant, maintain, and harvest physical plant inventory for the company’s projects. Activities involved include:

- Seed preparation, priming, and sowing.
- Plantlet transplanting, sampling, acclimation, and tracking.
- Plant handling, watering, growing, scouting, pollination, and harvesting.
- Workspace sanitation.

Attention to detail and traceability of plant inventory during the growing cycle.
Tracking pipeline advancement decisions, actively communicating plant status to internal stakeholders and documenting data & decisions in the appropriate data systems.
Collaborate across multifunctional teams on diverse crops to find new insights, propose and improve processes when applicable.

Follow instructions from team members and SOPs to deliver high quality results. Draft new SOPs or improve existing SOPs based on new insights.
Develop skill sets and onboard new techniques and methodologies.
Coordinate and manage workload to accomplish daily tasks (individual and/or team).

Required Education & Experience:

Bachelor or Master’s degree in a relevant field, such as horticulture, plant science, agronomy, biology, botany, ecology, or any biological discipline requiring plant husbandry skills.
Previous greenhouse work experience. This includes work with greenhouse control systems (Argus), fertigation systems, and pest management. Demonstrated horticultural skills in a professional setting or research in faculty labs is required.
Knowledge and experience keeping accurate scientific records via LIMs and laboratory notebooks.
Experience and knowledge in laboratory safety or greenhouse safety practices, including use of PPE, SDSs, and proper handling and disposal of laboratory waste.
Ability to work collaboratively in a large research setting.
Ability to work independently on individual experiments.

Offerings:

Comprehensive Benefits Plan, including Medical, Dental, Vision, HSA/FSA, 401k, Life Insurance, Short-Term & Long-Term Disability, and more!
Flexible PTO (use what you need, when you need it), in addition to company holidays.
Casual work environment.
Mission-driven organization focused on creating healthier fruits and veggies.
A cutting-edge, driven community looking to lead the industry in innovation and nutrition.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

EEO Statement:
We're an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Pairwise we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

No Recruiters please.

Pairwise

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Research Associate, Controlled Environment