Research Associate I, Formulations

Indigo is a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet. With a vision of creating a world where farming is an economically desirable and accessible profession, Indigo works alongside its growers to apply natural approaches, conserve resources for future generations, and grow healthy food for all. Indigo’s Biological Products, Marketplace, and Carbon offerings improve grower profitability, environmental sustainability, and consumer health. Indigo Marketplace is a platform connecting growers with a network of buyers to secure optimal prices for their crops and offers hands-on control of a grower’s business through a range of pricing tools, real-time national bid discovery, and automated grain sales. Indigo Carbon, is a platform paying growers for increases in soil carbon content and decreases in greenhouse gas emissions. It helps growers realize additional revenue, healthier soils, and a more resilient farm by participation in a market of high-quality carbon credits – supported by rigorous quantification standards. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA, with additional offices in Memphis, TN, Research Triangle Park, NC, Basel, Switzerland, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and São Paulo, Brazil.

Indigo’s Biological Products organization develops products based upon our deep understanding of the plant microbiome. The company has commercialized such products for cotton, wheat, barley, corn, soybeans, and rice in North America, Latin America, and Europe under the biotrinsic™ brand. Our R&D and product development teams are working to continue to develop products that address the growing number of abiotic and biotic stresses that crops experience worldwide

The Research Associate I – Formulations is a laboratory based position and will conduct experiments and bench top laboratory work with the guidance of other scientists.  This candidate will be expected to conduct work independently as well as work with other members of various R&D groups at Indigo.  The candidate will perform work that is in line with the development of commercially scalable and cost effective formulations that can be effectively transferred from lab to commercial use.

The ideal candidate for the Research Associate I – Formulations will be knowledgeable and has practical expertise in the following areas:

• Basic microbiology and aseptic technique
• Wet chemistry skills including preparation of complex mixtures or formulations
• Stabilization and preservation of bacterial and fungal species
• Mechanical aptitude and comfortable operating lab scale equipment
• Agricultural seed treatment processes and characterization of seed coatings and formulations is a plus

Key Competencies:

• Keen interest and understanding complex biological and chemical systems
• Comfortable learning diverse new skills and being able to execute lab protocols confidently with minimal oversight
• Strong organization skills and a commitment to documentation and record keeping
• Possesses a strong willingness to work hard to get the job done. Has a track record of delivering on ambitious goals.
• Demonstrates flexibility and adaptability: copes effectively with change and is comfortable with ambiguity
• Proactive: acts without being told what to do and brings new ideas to the company.
• Appropriate balance of confidence and humility. Ability to accept constructive feedback and possesses a desire to continuously improve.
• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Ability to perform laboratory work in a clean and safe manner

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree with 2+ years of experience in the area of microbiology, biology, biochemistry, chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science or related field
• Previous practical, hands-on experience with basic microbiological and chemical laboratory techniques and methodologies
• Experience with developing & evaluating seed treatment formulations using laboratory scale seed treatment equipment
• Bonus points(!) for having prior experience with industrial seed treatment equipment

We’re building the technology to feed the world and fight climate change. We believe that through teamwork we can achieve more to benefit all of agriculture: from farmers to consumers to the planet. Game changers don't fit in a box. The requirements listed above are examples of what we think enables success in this role, but we recognize the impossibility of fully capturing a singularly perfect description, and we believe in the power of diversified and creative displays of skills and qualifications. We embrace unconventional. We embrace creativity. We embrace a challenge to the status quo. If the specifications in the list below aren’t an exact match... great! Apply, be you, and be proud that you aren’t ordinary (we certainly aren’t!).

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status