Laboratory Manager, ECE Administration

The Lab Manager serves as the operational backbone of the DAMP Lab, a cutting-edge academic cloud lab at Boston University that integrates biotechnology, software, and automation. This fully in-person role is responsible for overseeing day-to-day wet lab operations, maintaining a highly organized BSL2/CLIA-compliant environment, and managing institutional procurement, inventory, and vendor relationships via SAP/Ariba. Serving as a critical liaison between software engineers, automation teams, and external stakeholders, the Lab Manager ensures the physical facility seamlessly and reliably translates digital software commands into high-throughput biological workflows while supporting sponsor engagement and laboratory outreach.

Essential Functions:

• Daily Wet Lab Operations & Compliance Management: The primary focus of this function is ensuring the physical laboratory space operates smoothly, safely, and predictably to support the cloud lab's automated workflows. This involves maintaining a highly organized, operationally efficient environment that strictly adheres to BSL2 and CLIA safety regulations. Key responsibilities include overseeing daily compliance, managing non-hazardous laboratory supplies, establishing standard operating procedures, and coordinating laboratory onboarding and safety training for all researchers and personnel.
• Procurement, Inventory Control & Asset Tracking: This function centers on managing the laboratory's end-to-end supply chain to prevent operational downtime and support a rapidly changing workflow. The manager is responsible for tracking all physical assets within the university ecosystem and maintaining tight control over facility inventory. Key tasks include monitoring and reordering consumables, anticipating the material needs of the wet lab environment, and ensuring that all necessary reagents and tools are consistently available as operations scale.

• Institutional Financial & Purchasing System Management: The core focus of this role is navigating Boston University's administrative and financial infrastructure to keep the lab funded and supplied. This requires managing all procurement activities directly through institutional purchasing platforms such as SAP and Ariba. Key tasks include processing orders efficiently, tracking expenditures against grants and service-level agreements, and ensuring all financial transactions strictly align with university business protocols.
• Equipment Maintenance & Vendor Relations: This function is dedicated to maximizing the uptime and reliability of the lab's cutting-edge automation and biotechnology hardware. The manager focuses on cultivating strong vendor relationships to obtain competitive quotes for researchers and grants while coordinating with BU purchasing to negotiate service agreements and contracts. Key tasks include overseeing strict equipment maintenance schedules, scheduling preventive maintenance (PM), and managing immediate logistics for emergency repairs and technician service visits.
• Cross-Functional Liaison & Internal Communication: The primary focus here is acting as the central operational bridge within the complex cloud-lab ecosystem to ensure seamless communication. The manager serves as the vital point of contact connecting scientists, automation engineers, software engineers, and project managers. Key tasks include facilitating interdepartmental alignment, translating physical laboratory constraints to software teams, and ensuring that day-to-day operations seamlessly support the lab's digital workflow demands.
• Stakeholder Engagement, Logistics & Outreach: This function supports the lab's robust industrial membership program, federal sponsors, and public-facing initiatives. The focus is on executing flawless logistics for external visitors and promotional events to maintain strong collaborator relationships. Key tasks include coordinating high-profile laboratory tours, managing meeting logistics, assisting with outreach events, and helping create high-quality presentations and promotional materials to highlight the lab's mission.

Required Skills

We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, natural or protective hairstyle, religion, sex, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, military service, pregnancy or pregnancy-related condition, or because of marital, parental, or veteran status. We are a VEVRAA Federal Contractor.