Phoenix Bioinformatics seeks an entrepreneurial leader to serve as its next Executive Director. If you are energized by the prospect of scaling a nonprofit organization that provides innovative sustainability solutions for digital research tools to the academic research community, we encourage you to apply here!
Many critical digital research resources developed using grants attract a large user base. However, when grant funding ends, the future of these resources is often put in jeopardy. Phoenix Bioinformatics was founded in 2013 to address just this problem by providing technology and business solutions for digital research infrastructure developed by and for the academic community. Today, Phoenix manages the flagship TAIR database as well as supporting the sustainability models of a number of other resources, including BioCyc, CIPRES, Repbase, and MorphoBank.
The ideal candidate for this position will bring leadership experience in science or information technology, preferably in — or in collaboration with — academia, academic publishing or a nonprofit research institute. Phoenix’s end users are researchers, so understanding their workflow needs will be helpful. They will also have organizational leadership experience and be invested in Phoenix’s sustainability mission. Many resource subscribers are libraries, so some familiarity with their digital collections strategies would be helpful. Experience with grant writing would be a plus, since a quarter of Phoenix’s revenue still comes from grants for special projects, development of new products, and onboarding new partners.
The new ED will lead a diverse and skilled professional team that cares deeply for the Phoenix mission and for each other. There are currently 13 staff largely based in the San Francisco California Bay Area, including experts in science, technology, strategy and administration. Applicants must be eligible for employment in the United States. It would be helpful for the Executive Director to be located in the California Bay Area or in a nearby time zone. However, since the organization is virtual, this is not an absolute requirement.
For full consideration, we ask to receive applications by August 15. The position will remain open until filled.
