Conservation X Labs Inc Managing Director, NABIT Washington, DC · Seattle, WA · Full time Company website

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Who We Are: 

Conservation X Labs (CXL) is a technology and innovation company that creates and incentivizes innovative solutions to end the Sixth Mass Extinction. We create new products in our labs, lead open innovation competitions to harness planetary genius, and empower talented innovators across disciplines and continents, to address the underlying drivers of biodiversity loss, explicitly including those at the intersection of human, ecological, and planetary health. We are an optimistic, passionate, entrepreneurial, fun, and mission-oriented organization working to radically improve the way we find and support solutions for conservation’s most wicked challenges.

The Nucleic Acid Barcode Identification tool (NABIT) team at CXL is an interdisciplinary team of molecular biologists and engineers developing transformative new tools that provide anyone, anywhere with the power of genetic diagnostics to protect our planet and its inhabitants. The NABIT team has developed two key products that deliver incredible coverage for the detection of species, pests, and pathogens anywhere in the world: The NABIT is a low-cost, handheld, field-ready molecular diagnostic device that can rapidly determine the presence or absence of any species with an available genetic sequence – anywhere in the world, without specialized training, equipment, reagents, or continuous power. The Molecular Development Kit (MDK) is a powerful tool that enables others to quickly develop new diagnostic assays for the NABIT platform, thereby populating a molecular diagnostic “app store” with a huge variety of new tests. By providing genetic testing on the front lines, the NABIT and MDK can address the underlying drivers of extinction to protect biodiversity on our planet as well as address key needs in planetary health such as zoonotic disease emergence and pandemic prevention. 

Conservation X Labs is searching for a leader with the vision, technical background, experience, and passion to lead the NABIT team through the next stage of its commercialization journey, to ultimately provide this transformational tool to people on the frontlines of extinction and planetary health around the world.

The Managing Director is responsible for leading the NABIT team’s strategy and execution, partnerships and external engagement, fundraising/revenue generation, and performance management of the team and the products they produce.

Who You Are: 

• You are excited about the audacious challenge of leading the commercialization and scale of a game-changing molecular technology that can protect the health of the planet and its people, help develop new financial mechanisms to finance conservation and prevent the Sixth Mass Extinction.
• You have exceptional leadership skills to inspire and manage a high-performing team, to solve problems in new ways, to make hard decisions, and to find new solutions, and new ways of disrupting the field.
• You have expertise in running a hardware startup, preferably in molecular science, and understand the process of moving from proof-of-concept to prototype, to manufacturing.
• You have experience in raising money, including from foundations and family offices, governments and multilateral institutions, and strategic and venture investments. 
• You have the ability to create and manage an adaptive, performance-based culture, promoting accountability and professional growth. You disdain inefficiency.
• You have strong public speaking and communication skills to represent the organization.
• You are fearless, iconoclastic, bold, creative, exceptional, entrepreneurial, and visionary.

About Your Role:

Strategic Leadership

• Develop and execute the NABIT strategic plan and vision for rapidly scaling the NABIT in collaboration with CXL’s executive leadership and the NABIT Team, including leading commercialization, sequencing markets, and identifying and triaging opportunities to achieve impact and financial sustainability at scale.
• Rethink assumptions, make hard decisions, create strategic plans and execute them, to ensure the development of the NABIT hardware, software, molecular science, are meeting the speed and scale of the problems we solve.
• Serve the ambassador of the program to external stakeholders, including US and international government agencies, multilateral institutions, regulators, universities, industry, nonprofit partners, and communities, providing vision and inspiration.

Operational Management

• Manage day-to-day NABIT program operations, ensuring efficiency and effectiveness.
• Monitor performance metrics, assess program impact, and make improvements as needed in approach and strategy.
• Oversee current and future team members and assess performance.
• Assess program impact, conduct evaluations, and make recommendations for improvement.
• Oversee the marketing, press, and branding of the NABIT to advance sales and support fundraising.
• Commercialization, Partnerships, and Funding
• Serve as the “Chief Commercial Officer” of the NABIT by driving the development and execution of sales and service contracts for the NABIT and assays.
• Identify new revenue streams and innovative funding opportunities to support organizational growth, including sales and service contracts, philanthropic funding, government contracts.
• Work with CXL Leadership to develop a pathway for spinout of the company through investment, strategic partnership, or revenue.
• Create strategic partnerships with governments, universities, corporations, and NGOs, to advance the organization’s mission and broaden its impact.

Compliance & Risk Management

• Ensure adherence to organizational policies, legal requirements, and industry standards.
• Manage risk by implementing policies that protect the organization and its assets.
• Address any compliance issues promptly and efficiently.

REQUIRED SKILLS

• Education: M.S. in molecular engineering and science, engineering, conservation, epidemiology, one health, veterinary science, or global health, or Masters of Business Administration.
• Experience in the successful commercialization of a deep-tech hardware product that has taken the product to scale, including demonstrated record of sales, and raising investment.
• 10 Years of management experience in conservation science, planetary health, one health, and/or international development, as well as founding, working, and scaling startups.
• Proven track record of managing complex projects, and team members across multiple disciplines.
• Demonstrated ability to provide vision, inspire the planet, create networks, and execute.

LOCATION

CXL is a hybrid institution, but this position would require regular travel to Seattle Washington, with a preference for those willing to relocate.

PREFERRED 

Ph.D., M.D, or DVM in biomedical engineering, molecular science, global health, or a related field, and/or MBA with extensive start up experience as a serial entrepreneur.

SALARY RANGE & BENEFITS

135k - 185k per annum, commensurate with experience and includes retirement, health, dental, vision, as well as liberal vacation, health, family, and telework policies. Opportunities for performance-based bonuses, future equity, and other incentive-based pay.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Please click to apply to our position and include a cover letter that explains why you share our excitement about this role, along with your resume. 

ABOUT CONSERVATION X LABS AND OUR CULTURE

Conservation X Labs applies technology, entrepreneurship, and open innovation to source, develop, and scale critical solutions to the underlying drivers of human-induced extinction, whether in conservation or other fields. Conservation X Labs takes an approach to conservation that is technology- and innovation-focused, market- and scale-driven, and interdisciplinary. We believe this approach – one that addresses the underlying drivers of extinction rather than its symptoms, and one that takes a revolutionary over evolutionary approach – is the future of conservation, what we call Conservation 3.0. We source, develop, and scale new solutions through open innovation, directed engineering and technology development, product acceleration, and building the diverse community of solvers that will transform the field. Conservation X Labs operates as both a 501c3 non-profit organization and a related B-corporation. 

We are seeking to build an organization of problem solvers, who are personable and highly motivated, hungry, and enthusiastic, and are passionate about conservation and our mission. We want people who want to disrupt conservation in order to radically improve it. We are looking for those who have dared mighty things by trying a path that others have not chosen. We are looking for those who have failed but have learned from failure and risk. We are looking for those who like to experiment, to make things, to hack things, to test things, and to break things (particularly dogmatic approaches to conservation or technology). Finally, we are looking for kind, hardworking people who will enthusiastically devote their intellectual and creative energy to advance our mission, enjoy working on a team, are deeply entrepreneurial and self-motivated, and are driven by their passion.

CXL is committed to creating and cultivating a diverse workforce and inclusive environment where every employee and contractor has the right to work in surroundings that are free from all forms of unlawful or intentional discrimination. It is our policy to hire, promote, transfer, terminate, and make all employment related decisions without regard to race, creed, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex, gender, or sexual orientation. To learn more about our programs and mission, please visit our website: www.conservationxlabs.com.