Brought experience and perspective to bear on a challenging automation method development and deployment project: an all-in-one workcell to handle sample preparation from blood/saliva/FFPE specimens to enriched sequencing libraries for analysis of germline, circulating DNA, and tumor genetic variation; to support a clinical trial matching product for late-stage cancer patients.

• Key member of a startup team that launched a low-cost next-generation sequencing (NGS)clinical diagnostic assay product. After acquisition for its team and product, and a successfulpublic offering, the company is now on a bid to revolutionize clinical genetic testing.• Implemented all automation and many wet lab processes for the first two major clinical assayversions, and contributed with a process engineering group to the subsequent three versions.• Contributed to innovative clinical assay methods and development strategies, which wereessential to meeting cost and scale objectives.• Collaborated with software development team on laboratory information managementsystem (LIMS) architecture and protocols.• Led the outfitting, moving, and restart of R&D and CLIA labs from shared startup space intolarger, dedicated facilities, to support thousand-fold growth in testing capacity, andaccreditation by the College of American Pathologists (CAP).• Responsibilities also included production operations on-call support, process characterizationand troubleshooting, automation for R&D, facilities management and planning, CLIA and CAPcompliance, and bioinformatic review and analysis of clinical reports.

In one short year we built a new genomics core lab facility to serve the new Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program and the larger MSKCC community.Lab capabilities include a high-throughput system generating PCR products for sequencing and Sequenom genotyping, an automated mutation calling and reporting informatics pipeline, and informatic support for our oligo and DNA sample libraries.We also offer automated nucleic acid extraction from blood, frozen tissue, and notably, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections to enable retrospective studies from MSKCC's extensive repositories of slides.

Coordinated molecular genetics lab operations and analysis in a NY State-licensed clinical laboratory, genotyping Fanconi anemia clinical and human research subjects for family genetic counseling, cancer risk studies, and investigating the fundamental biology of the FA pathway.

Conducted experiments supporting genome sequencing operations. New process development and improvement and characterization of existing processes were primary goals. Worked either independently or in interdisciplinary teams; communicated results and made recommendations to working groups and senior staff.The Whitehead Institute Center for Genome Research became the nucleus of the new Broad Institute in 2003.Over six years, I held several positions there:Lab Assistant / Technical Assistant / Process Development Technician / Molecular Biologist