The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) is seeking a Director and Principal Investigator (PI) in Genome Informatics to lead and undertake world-class computational genomics research in cancer. We seek to strengthen and complement our existing expertise with big data research and software development. We welcome applications from computational biologists of all types, but a career focus on cancer research is critical going forward.
As the Director of Genome Informatics you will provide leadership for the team of bioinformaticians, curators, software developers and systems engineers who together develop algorithms, software products and production systems for OICR’s “big data” projects. These projects include Overture.bio (overture.bio), the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) Data Coordinating Centre and portal (dcc.icgc.org), the International HundredK+ Cohorts Consortium (atlas.ihccglobal.org), the Cancer Genome Collaboratory (cancercollaboratory.org), the Human Cancer Models Initiative Searchable Catalog portal (hcmi-searchable-catalog.nci.nih.gov), the computational infrastructure for the ICGC ARGO project (platform.icgc-argo.org), the Pan-Canadian SARS-CoV-2 VirusSeq portal (virusseq-dataportal.ca), and the information infrastructure for the Ontario Hereditary Cancer Research Network.
As part of your PI responsibilities you will conduct independent research in cancer and will be expected to mentor trainees, and to build collaborations both within and outside the OICR community. In addition to base funds provided by the Institute to support salary and personnel, you will be expected to raise additional research funds from external competitive granting agencies. OICR will assist you in obtaining faculty appointments at the University of Toronto or another affiliated academic institution.
OICR is a multi-disciplinary, team-science-driven translational research institute. It has research programs in Diagnostic Development, Drug Discovery, Genomics, Imaging and Informatics. OICR is home to rich cancer datasets including multiple international projects (e.g. Pan-cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes, Reactome), two ICGC projects (PanCuRx and CPC-GENE), and the Ontario Health Study as well as numerous other large-scale studies. A ~10,000-core institutional cluster is available to support analysis and development by its research body. Please visit oicr.on.ca/research-portfolio/ for details on our research portfolio.
To find out more about what's happening in Genome Informatics, visit OICR News oicr.on.ca/news/
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Provides strategic vision for the development of highly functional and performant systems for managing and analyzing multi-dimensional genomic and clinical data;
- Supervises the adoption and/or development of portable and scalable standards-based technologies on which these systems will be built;
- Oversees operations of the OICR Software development team;
- Leads the design of compelling user interfaces and command-line tools for using these systems;
- Creates, distributes and supports open source software libraries, applications and tools for use by the cancer informatics and computational biology communities;
- Effectively manages the allocation of human and hardware resources to meet Genome Informatics goals;
- Works collaboratively with members of the OICR Adaptive Oncology initiative to identify and solve informatics challenges that may arise over time;
- Proactively identifies unmet needs in the cancer informatics space, and develop strategies for addressing these challenges;
- Liaises with external investigators and other stakeholders to develop and execute multi-institutional collaborations.
- PhD in computational biology and/or computer science;
- A record of independent internationally recognized research, a strong publication record of relevance, proven leadership and management experience including the building of strong research teams, as well as a strong record of grant-funding and mentorship;
- Have a minimum of ten years experience working in the area of cancer genomics/bioinformatics;
- Have a minimum of three years experience managing integrated teams of software developers, bioinformaticians and computational biologists;
- Experience in large-scale efforts of data-harmonization and analysis pipeline management; and
- Experience coordinating large software releases for integrated software platforms
For more information about OICR, please visit the website at www.oicr.on.ca.
Resume Format: If you elect to apply, you will need a text or HTML version of your resume so that you can cut and paste it into the application box provided. Before you submit the completed application, you will be asked to attach one or two files to your application. Please attach your resume as a .pdf or .doc file.
OICR is an inclusive employer dedicated to building a diverse workforce. We encourage applications from all qualified candidates and will accommodate applicants’ needs throughout all stages of the recruitment and selection process. Please advise the Recruiter to ensure your accessibility needs are accommodated throughout this process. Information received relating to accommodation will be addressed confidentially.
The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research thanks all applicants. However, only those under consideration will be contacted.