Field Applications Scientist - mRNA-LNP Optical Instrumentation
Marama Labs
Field Applications Scientist - mRNA-LNP Optical Instrumentation
About Us
Marama Labs is on a mission to accelerate life sciences therapeutics with our novel optical instrumentation platforms. Our breakthrough CloudSpec technology is revolutionising nanomedicine development by enabling rapid, accurate and precise characterisation of lipid nanoparticles, significantly reducing analysis time from hours to seconds.
CloudSpec, with its unprecedented capability to quantify mRNA and ligands in nanoparticle formulations, has seen rapid adoption since launch in 2025 by leading biopharma organisations developing cutting-edge RNA therapies for vaccines, personalised cancer treatments, and genetic diseases.
About the role
Marama Labs has established a strong initial base of lighthouse customers in the Boston RNA ecosystem after only a short period in the market. We anticipate significant growth in our US customer base throughout 2026.
The Field Applications Scientist (FAS) role — our first full-time hire in the United States — will be central to the success of Marama Labs’ US expansion. This is a foundational, early-stage role. You will be building processes, not inheriting them, and operating with a high degree of autonomy.
The FAS will be responsible for driving customer success and advocacy while providing deep technical expertise across pre- and post-sales activities. You will operate at the intersection of customers, sales, and product development, i.e. owning technical evaluations, influencing commercial outcomes, and acting as a critical conduit between the US market and Marama Labs’ global technical teams.
This is not a reactive support role. Success will require comfort with ambiguity, commercial urgency, incomplete information, and rapid iteration as both the product and US footprint scale.
This role is based in Boston. Travel across North America is expected (up to ~30% in the first 12 months, with variability depending on customer and commercial needs). The role reports to the North American Commercial Lead.
Responsibilities
Operate as the technical owner of customer engagements in the US, partnering closely with sales while independently driving technical strategy, execution, and outcomes.
Coordinate and execute field visits, on-site and virtual demonstrations, and technical discussions that directly support commercial decision-making.
Own the end-to-end process of product evaluations, including experimental planning, instrument installation, customer training, data analysis, interpretation, and reporting.
Translate technical results into clear, credible value propositions that support instrument acquisition decisions.
Provide high-quality scientific and technical support to customers through on-site and remote engagement, ensuring long-term success with Marama Labs products.
Build and maintain strong professional relationships with customers through proactive communication, rapid issue resolution, and trusted technical guidance.
Develop and maintain deep, up-to-date understanding of customer workflows and applications in RNA-LNP characterisation; communicate emerging use cases, challenges, and insights internally.
Act as the voice of the customer, relaying structured feedback to product and engineering teams to inform roadmap priorities and product improvements.
Own the creation, iteration, and field-validation of technical documentation including application notes, protocols, training materials, and presentations.
Participate in testing, validating, and promoting new software releases and product features in real customer environments.
Represent Marama Labs at conferences, trade shows, workshops, and webinars.
Define, implement, and continuously improve US-specific FAS workflows, recognising that many processes will initially be undefined.
Perform backend administrative tasks including customer communication, CRM updates and inventory management.
Qualifications
Must haves
Minimum MS (PhD preferred) with 3+ years of relevant industry experience, or BS/BA with 5+ years of experience in Physics, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Engineering, or a related field.
3+ years of hands-on experience in LNP formulation development or 3+ years as a Field Applications Scientist supporting analytical instrumentation in the RNA-LNP space.
Deep understanding of analytical instrumentation and nanoparticle characterisation techniques (e.g. UV-Vis, HPLC, LC-MS, DLS, CE).
Experience with analytical assay development, experimental design, and statistical analysis (e.g. precision, bias, linearity).
Strong understanding of end-to-end RNA-LNP therapeutic development workflows.
Proven ability to independently troubleshoot complex technical problems in customer environments.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to engage credibly with senior scientific and technical stakeholders.
Strong organisational skills and comfort managing multiple parallel customer engagements.
Experience analysing and presenting experimental data using tools such as Excel or GraphPad.
Comfort working without established SOPs and adapting quickly as tools, processes, and priorities evolve.
Preferred
Experience supporting spectroscopy and light-scattering instrumentation (e.g. DLS, UV-Vis, nanoparticle tracking).
Ability to analyse data using scripting or analytical languages (Python, R, MATLAB).
Experience with LNP characterisation assays (e.g. RiboGreen, ELISA, BCA, gel electrophoresis).
Existing professional network within the Boston RNA-LNP development ecosystem.
Really great
Experience operating instrumentation in GMP environments and familiarity with relevant regulatory requirements (e.g. 21 CFR Part 11).
The people that we seek at Marama
Are motivated by building new capabilities, not maintaining established ones
Thrive in environments with high ownership, ambiguity, and pace
Are deeply curious and scientifically rigorous
Take responsibility for outcomes, not just effort
Work effectively across disciplines and time zones as part of a shared mission
Bring an entrepreneurial mindset and bias toward action
Enjoy solving new problems where the solution is not obvious
Why join us
Play a direct role in scaling a genuinely world-leading technology with real impact on global health
Have outsized influence on the direction of Marama Labs’ US presence
Competitive salary and employee share options
Opportunity for travel and deep engagement with leading biopharma organisations
Work closely with globally recognised scientists and engineers
Experience the reality — both the challenge and the reward — of working in a fast-paced, high-quality deep-tech startup environment
Marama Labs is an equal employment opportunity employer in the United States.
This role is not for you if
You are most effective in highly structured environments with well-defined processes, extensive documentation, and clear functional boundaries.
You expect dedicated teams for training, escalation, applications writing, or product management, rather than owning those problems yourself.
You prefer reactive technical support over proactive, commercially driven customer engagement.
You are uncomfortable being accountable for outcomes that directly influence revenue and customer adoption.
You require close day-to-day management or detailed instructions to operate effectively.
You are frustrated by ambiguity, fast product iteration, or evolving priorities.
You are primarily motivated by role stability and predictability rather than impact and ownership.
- Locations
- Boston
- Remote status
- Hybrid
Boston
Field Applications Scientist - mRNA-LNP Optical Instrumentation
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