Director, Environment Health & Safety

The mission of the Allen Institute is to unlock the complexities of bioscience and advance our knowledge to improve human health. Using an open science, multi-scale, team-oriented approach, the Allen Institute focuses on accelerating foundational research, developing standards and models, and cultivating new ideas to make a broad, transformational impact on science.

The mission of the Allen Institute administration team is to provide support and structure to the scientific divisions. Coinciding with the team science approach, Administration helps facilitate team learning and the overall mission of the institute.

This director-level position leads the Environment Health & Safety (EHS) team within the Scientific Support Services (S3) department. This position will work with the Sr. Director, Scientific Support, to provide strategic planning, systems, operational goals and timelines, policies, guidelines, and training to support environmental compliance and occupational safety, and to keep pace with our scientific research goals. The Scientific Support Services department provides services and support critical to our Team Science, Big Science, and Open Science approach by providing a foundation of safety, quality, service, and compliance. The ideal candidate will work collaboratively with research teams from each scientific unit to proactively understand their safety compliance needs and will translate these to develop and implement effective safety policies and guidelines to ensure a safe workplace for research. This is an opportunity to lead change by proactively growing the EHS team, systems, guidance, and services in support of the Allen Institute’s mission and growth.

At the Allen Institute, we believe that science is for everyone – and should be open to everyone. We are dedicated to combating biases and reducing barriers to STEM careers more broadly. We also believe that science is better when it includes different perspectives and voices. We strive to make the Allen Institute a place where everyone feels like they belong and are empowered to do their best work in a supportive environment.

We are an equal-opportunity employer and strongly encourage people from all backgrounds to apply for our open positions.

Essential Functions

• Direct strategic planning and operational implementation for the EHS team responsible for employee safety training, occupational health, chemical hygiene, lab safety, emergency response, employee exposure assessment, radiation and laser safety, biosafety, required regulatory reporting, workers’ compensation claims, accident prevention and investigation, hazardous material disposal and inventory, ergonomics, Safety Committee, Laser Safety Committee, and more
• Assess and verify compliance with environmental and occupational safety regulations for the use of chemicals, biological agents, research animals, radioactive materials, class IV lasers, etc.
• Verify laboratories and associated operations meet the Institute's safety standards and policies
• Lead the Allen Institute EHS team, including on-call responsibilities
• Lead and direct the team to develop, prioritize, and plan for annual goal setting, and determine timelines, budgets, and resources to support successful execution
• Recruit, build, mentor, train, develop, and support growth for EHS staff
• Support and sometimes develop initiatives related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in alignment with Allen Institute core principles
• Partner with scientific research teams to enhance and implement a durable service environment that can accommodate growth efficiently
• Work with research teams to understand their use of hazardous materials; identify risk and propose risk management approaches, assist in implementing best practices, safe handling requirements, proper storage, and compliant disposal focused on protecting the environment
• Manage quality assurance for written programs, processes, training content, chemical inventory, and web-based content
• Manage records retention and timely disposal as determined in policy, including personal occupational health information, exposure records, and chemical inventories
• Responsible for strategic planning and decisions for the EHS team that are in line with Institute goals and objectives
• Collaborate with the EHS and Scientific Support Services teams to plan the scope and schedule of significant projects such as software implementation, safety audits, training development or improvement, contracted services, guidelines, or program development
• Manage and maintain vendor relationships and service delivery expectations
• Provide leadership and subject expert support for the Allen Institute Safety Committee, Institutional Biosafety Committee, Laser Safety Committee and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
• Develop strategy to scale services to meet organizational objectives, growth, and budgets
• Develop and implement safety inspection process for laboratory and non-laboratory spaces
• Support emergency response and disaster recovery planning and development effort

Note : Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. This description reflects management’s assignment of essential functions; it does not proscribe or restrict the tasks that may be assigned.

Required Education and Experience

Preferred Education and Experience

Work Environment

Physical Demands

Position Type / Expected Hours of Work

Travel