Harton is seeking a highly motivated Senior Scientist - Stem Cell Process Development to lead biological process-development for stem and stem-derived cell manufacturing. You will be responsible for developing robust and reproducible iPSC expansion processes and refining the process architecture required to support automated stem and stem-derived cell manufacturing on Harton’s novel bioprocessing platform. The ideal candidate will bring strong technical depth in pluripotent stem cell culture, differentiation, cellular analysis, and experimental design, along with a passion for translating cutting-edge biotechnology into stem-cell products that accelerate biomedical research and cell-based therapies for patients.
The role requires deep practical knowledge of iPSC culture and a strong process-development mindset. A successful candidate will be comfortable systematically determining what is required to make stem cell expansion and developmental programming reliable, reproducible, and scalable on Harton’s automated bioprocessing platform. Immediate work will focus on questions such as starting cell state, seeding and perfusion culture strategy, 3D culture matrix environment, analytical and QA/QC requirements, cell recovery and passage, and passage-to-passage reproducibility.
This is an on-site role within a small multidisciplinary science and engineering team. The Senior Scientist will lead scientific research for Harton’s stem cell manufacturing program, execute experiments, and mentor and supervise additional research staff as the team grows.
Responsibilities
Lead development and optimization of robust, reproducible iPSC expansion processes on Harton’s automated 3D perfusion bioprocessing platform.
Design and execute systematic studies to define the fundamental process architecture for iPSC expansion, including starting cell state, seeding strategy, perfusion culture conditions, cell density and spatial organization, 3D culture matrix environment, passage strategy, and recovery/harvest.
Establish appropriate input specifications, process parameters, acceptance criteria, and output measures for reproducible stem-cell expansion.
Develop, establish, and interpret analytical methods required to characterize iPSC identity, pluripotency, viability, growth, differentiation state, and overall process performance using imaging, cytometry, molecular assays, and other appropriate techniques.
Establish robust approaches for cell-line handling, cryopreservation, recovery, banking, passage history, and long-term maintenance of cell quality.
Define the biological and process requirements for Harton’s instrumentation, automation, consumables, and software.
Work closely with external scientific collaborators and internal engineering teams to translate established protocols into reproducible automated workflows.
Support translation of established directed-differentiation workflows onto the platform, including stem-cell-derived cell types relevant to regenerative medicine and advanced cell manufacturing.
Help establish the scientific basis for new workflows, applications, and cell products enabled by Harton’s platform.
Build experimental practices and documentation that support reproducibility, process transfer, future productization, and manufacturing use.
Mentor and provide day-to-day scientific direction to research associates and other team members as the program grows.
Required Qualifications
PhD in stem cell biology, cell biology, bioengineering, developmental biology, or a related discipline with relevant experience; or BS/MS with 3+ years of equivalent industry or pharma experience developing human stem-cell processes.
Extensive hands-on experience culturing and expanding human iPSCs, with a strong practical understanding of maintenance, passage, morphology, culture quality, and common failure modes.
Strong experimental-design and process-development skills, including the ability to systematically investigate sources of biological and…