Lab Operations Specialist

Your Impact at LILA

Lab Operations is the operational backbone that lets science move quickly. As a Lab Operations Specialist, you’ll own the equipment, spaces, materials, and logistics that keep our labs running, and make them better as you go.

You’ll manage multiple workstreams with limited oversight, from equipment lifecycle and installs to inventory programs, shipping and receiving, and vendor relationships. You’ll help improve lab operations processes, onboard scientists to lab tools and workflows, and mentor newer team members as the team scales.

Your work keeps instruments serviced and tracked, helps stand up new lab spaces, and ensures Lila’s experimental teams can move quickly across sites.

What You'll Be Building

• Own equipment lifecycle, including preventive maintenance, calibration, troubleshooting, asset tagging, and CMMS tracking.
• Coordinate equipment installs, setup, moves, relocations, decommissions, and specialized or heavy-lift installs.
• Manage consumables, PPE, gas, dry ice, cold-storage programs, and inventory systems.
• Coordinate shipping, receiving, courier, warehouse, sample, and equipment logistics.
• Partner with Design and Facilities on new lab spaces, layouts, bench allocation, and room conversions.
• Manage vendor relationships, service scheduling, installation logistics, and the Lab Ops support-ticket queue.
• Respond to equipment and cold-storage alarms, and support EH&S and Procurement on compliance needs.
• Lead lab-efficiency improvements, mentor Lab Operations Associates, and onboard scientists to lab operations workflows.

What You'll Need to Succeed

• 3+ years of experience in lab operations or lab management, preferably in a physical sciences environment.
• Experience managing and troubleshooting scientific equipment, including PMs, calibration, installs, and moves.
• Strong technical and functional skills, with the ability to manage priorities across multiple projects.
• Experience with lab inventory, asset, or work-order systems such as CMMS, ChemInventory, Jira, or Notion.
• Experience coordinating vendors for service, installs, moves, and logistics.
• Excellent communication, organization, and problem-solving skills.
• Working understanding of lab safety practices and comfort partnering with EH&S on waste streams and compliance.
• Ability to lift up to 40 lbs, work hands-on, and move around the lab for extended periods.

Bonus Points For

• 5S, Six Sigma, or other process-improvement training.
• Chemical safety background, biohazard waste handling certification, or OSHA/HazMat certification.
• Experience with equipment install or relocation projects, CMMS administration, or vendor management.
• Experience supporting lab automation, robotics, or high-throughput environments.
• Background in chemistry, biology, materials science, or a related field.