Director, R&D Operations

Who We Are At Osmo

Osmo is a digital olfaction company, on a mission to give computers a sense of smell to improve the health and wellbeing of human life. Why? Our sense of smell both enriches and saves lives, and has a deep and direct connection to our emotions and memory.

Olfactory Intelligence has applications across industries including fragrance, manufacturing, security, medicine, and more. We believe in the power of automation and thoughtfully applied AI/ML to solve problems beyond the reach of human intuition alone. Osmo is headquartered in New York, NY, with a new facility in New Jersey, and offices in Somerville, MA.

The Opportunity

Osmo is digitizing the chemical world to improve our lives and the health of our planet. We built the first AI platform capable of predicting olfactory perception from molecular structure, and we are now scaling into a new type of fragrance house. Our bottleneck is no longer just the "Digital Brain" — it is the physical throughput of our laboratory and the breadth of applications we can deliver into.

Reporting directly to the COO, you will be the architect of our Scientific Operations. You own the "Atoms-to-Bits" pipeline at a strategic level, and you own the applications layer that turns molecules into real products — fine fragrance, laundry, candles, personal care, and the next category we take on. Your mission is to apply first-principles thinking to R&D, transforming a bespoke laboratory into a high-velocity data factory that can deliver across application bases at scale — including the 100k+ vial sample throughput required to keep pace with our model training pipeline. You set the 1–2 year roadmap for liquid handling, sample prep, lab automation, and applications development. You partner with the COO & CTO and cross-functional leadership to drive technical requirements into software, automation, and manufacturing. You build the standards, the budget, and the team. If there is a physical sample in the building — in any base — you own the system that moves it.

Ownership Outcomes: The First 12 Months

Role

Success in this role is defined by volume, velocity, applications breadth, operational uptime, and the strength of the org you build:

* Set the Scientific Ops Roadmap: Define the 1–2 year strategic plan for R&D operations, including capex priorities, automation investments, applications expansion, and headcount. Own the operating budget end-to-end.

* Own the Applications Portfolio: Set the strategy for which application bases Osmo invests in and when. Build the operational capability to deliver fragrance into EtOH, laundry, candles, and the next set of categories on the roadmap — including key customer programs — at the quality bar a fragrance house demands.

* Scale the Data Factory: Establish the operational systems required to generate, track, and deliver 100k+ vial samples per year for model training, with full data capture compliance.

* Industrialize Sample Prep: Set the standards for transforming sample preparation from a manual bench process into a high-throughput operation across solvents and application bases.

* Bridge R&D to Production: Partner with the manufacturing team to ensure seamless transition of discoveries from lab to factory across all application formats. Establish the quality manufacturing protocols and industrial best practices that synchronize lab-scale breakthroughs with factory-scale output.

* Deploy Next-Gen Lab Automation: Own the roadmap for liquid handling and robotics, including the automation needed to scale applications work. Make the build/buy/partner calls on the hardware stack that will define the next level of scale.

* Establish Operational Excellence: Build the "Osmo Way" for scientific R&D. Set the standards for lab logistics, safety (EHS), data capture compliance, and resource allocation to ensure 100% reliability in our data pipeline.

* Build an Elite Ops Org: Recruit, lead, and develop a lean team of Lab Managers, Applications specialists, and Technicians. Drive a culture where "shipped data," "applications delivered," and "operational uptime" are the primary metrics.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic R&D Operations

* Roadmap & Capex: Own the multi-year capital plan for lab infrastructure, automation, equipment, and applications capability. Build the capex plans for liquid handling and robotic equipment. Make the prioritization calls on where Osmo invests next.

* Standards & Governance: Define the operating standards for the lab — SOP frameworks, applications protocols, quality manufacturing protocols, data capture compliance, safety, and quality. The Manager and team execute against the standards you set.

* Budget Ownership: Own the R&D Operations budget end-to-end, including consumables forecasting, capex planning, and headcount.

Applications Strategy

* Applications Portfolio: Set the strategy for the application bases Osmo operates in. Collaborate on when and how we bring up new categories (e.g., personal care, fabric care, home care).

* Customer Program Delivery: Own the operational capability behind key customer programs ensuring Osmo delivers on commitments at quality and at scale.

* Quality Standards: Define what "good" looks like across each application format — the operational and technical bar Osmo is delivering against.

* Category Bringup: Lead the operational and capability planning for new applications, from feasibility through scaled delivery.

Automation Architecture & Technical Requirements

* Hardware Strategy: Act as the executive stakeholder for lab robotics and liquid handling systems. Ensure our hardware stack is future-proofed for the next level of scale across applications.

* Drive Technical Requirements: Partner with software, ML, and hardware engineering to drive the technical requirements for the systems that operate the lab — automation platforms, data capture, and manufacturing process tooling.

* Build/Buy Decisions: Lead the evaluation and selection of automation platforms, vendors, and integration partners.

Atoms and Bits Integration

* The Physical Feedback Loop: Partner with the CTO, ML, and Software teams to ensure the physical lab's output is perfectly structured for digital ingestion. You own the "throughput" part of the AI feedback loop.

* Cross-Functional Leadership: Represent R&D Operations in executive forums, capex reviews, and strategic planning. Operate as a partnership-level peer to the CTO and other functional heads.

Org Building

* Team Leadership: Build and lead the R&D Operations org, currently including a Manager, Lab Managers, Applications specialists, Technicians, and the olfactive team.

* Talent Development: Coach and develop direct reports — particularly the Manager, R&D Operations — into the next generation of operational leaders at Osmo.

Who You Are

* The Hard-Tech Leader: 12+ years of experience in lab operations, advanced manufacturing, fragrance/flavor, or biotech scaling, including time leading and managing teams. You have built high-throughput systems where software meets the physical world.

* The Applications Operator: You have direct experience delivering across multiple application bases — fine fragrance, laundry, candles, personal care, or comparable categories. You understand what it takes to move a fragrance from a lab bench into a finished product format at quality, on customer timelines.

* The Automation Visionary: You are bored by manual pipetting. You have a deep understanding of liquid handling, robotics, and the software that drives them — and you can make the strategic calls on what to build, buy, or defer.

* First-Principles Thinker: You don't do things "the way they've always been done in fragrance." You look at the goal and architect the most efficient system to get there.

* Technical Peer: You can hold your own with ML PhDs and Hardware Engineers. You are comfortable with Python and SQL — not at expert level, but enough to pull data, run analysis, and drive technical requirements into engineering teams. You pick up new software independently and have no patience for tech-averse cultures.

* The 1 to 10 Scaler: You have a track record of taking a "v1" lab and turning it into a "v10" industrial engine. You know how to build repeatable processes, manage operating budgets, and lead a high-stakes team through rapid scale.

* The Builder of Builders: You've hired, developed, and retained operational and applications talent. You see the Manager role under you as a growth seat, not a delivery channel.

* Hands on — not afraid to get your hands dirty when needed — leading by example.

Salary: 114k-146k

If this role inspires you we’d encourage you to apply. We are committed to recruiting, developing, and retaining an incredible team optimized for a diversity of thought, background, and approaches.

For all Full-Time Employees, compensation is just one component of Osmo’s total rewards approach, which is designed to support the well-being, growth, and long-term success of our team members. Depending on the role, this may include base salary or contract-based pay, along with access to health, dental, and vision coverage; a 401(k) retirement savings plan with company match; flexible paid time off and company holidays; and equity or incentive compensation for eligible roles. Actual compensation will vary based on factors such as experience, skills, location, internal equity, and other relevant business considerations. Osmo regularly reviews pay ranges and compensation structures to ensure they remain competitive, equitable, and aligned with current market data.

All employment decisions and responsibilities are determined based on current ability and your ability to grow, without regard to race, color, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, religion, age, marital status, physical, mental, or sensory disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Recruitment & Staffing Agencies: Osmo does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than candidates. The submission of unsolicited resumes by recruitment or staffing agencies to Osmo or its employees is strictly prohibited unless contacted directly by the Osmo Talent Acquisition team. Any resume submitted by an agency in the absence of a signed agreement will automatically become the property of Osmo and Osmo will not owe any referral or other fees with respect thereto.

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire