GIMM - Job Opportunity - Head of Artificial Intelligence

iMM is recruiting a Head of Artificial Intelligence under an Employment Contract Reference IMM/CT/56-2024

The iMM – Instituto de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes is a leading Portuguese private non-profit research institute that offers a vibrant scientific environment, aiming to nurture innovative ideas in basic, clinical and translational Biomedical Research. Created in 2002, iMM has established itself as a leading national and internationally competitive biomedical institute. Its strategy has been defined by promotion of excellence, leveraged by high-quality human resources, increasing expenditure in infrastructures and knowledge transfer to the society. 

What iMM seeks: At this moment, iMM is looking for a dynamic and visionary Head of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to coordinate a new facility focused on AI initiatives, integration of cutting-edge artificial intelligence solutions into our biomedical research and drug discovery efforts and to increase the efficiency of administrative operations within the institute, under the research project entitled “IMM-Care- Boosting Clinical Research for the Benefit of Society” (Teaming for Excellence – HORIZON-WIDERA-2022- ACCESS-01-01-two-stage – GA 101060102) funded by European Commission, to execute the following activities, under the supervision of the Board of Directors and the CARE Management Team:

• Establishment of the AI Facility;
• Establishment of internal workflows to systematically identify needs related with the application of AI methods and techniques, in articulation with research groups, key facilities and research and clinical infrastructures (e.g.: biobank, flow cytometry, bioimaging, omics, animal houses, and the clinical research platform);
• Development and establishment of new algorithms, AI methods and techniques (e.g. data libraries and pipelines, pre- and post-processing of data, automated ML, multimodal ML, natural language processing and understanding) to open up new possibilities in the discovery of biomarkers, therapeutic targets and drugs, in prevention and precision medicine (including early diagnostics);
• Integration in major national and international initiatives on AI;
• Establishment of partnerships with AI research and technology providers, leading AI companies and other relevant stakeholders in AI;
• Raise funding for AI projects and initiatives at a national and international level.

Profile of Candidate

• University degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Bioinformatics or a related field;
• Extensive experience in AI and its applications in biomedical sciences and ideally in drug discovery;
• Proven track record of leadership in managing AI projects and teams;
• Strong background in machine learning, data analysis and algorithm development;
• Demonstrated ability to secure research funding and manage budgets; 
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with ability to collaborate effectively with researchers and other staff from diverse scientific and technical backgrounds;
• Commitment to advancing biomedical research through innovative AI solutions;
• Familiarity with regulatory and ethical considerations in biomedical AI applications;
• Experience with big data analytics, high-performance computing and cloud-based AI platforms;
• Deep understanding of emerging AI trends and applications in biomedical research and/or drug discovery and/or clinical diagnostics;

• Experience in applying AI to enhance research activities and outcomes, administrative efficiency and operational processes;
• Fluency in English language.

What iMM offers: iMM will offer outstanding working conditions in this area in Portugal, including a full-time contract, starting predictably in October 2024, and the possibility to work at the interface of research and research support facilities. 

Working Conditions: Permanent employment contract with a trial period of 240 days; Gross monthly remuneration will be defined taking into consideration the background and experience of the candidate, in accordance with the f with the project budget and iMM Career By-Law, plus meal allowance for each working day in the daily amount of 6€. Also, to the candidate will be paid Holidays and Christmas allowances. The indicated amounts will be subject to the mandatory taxes accordingly to Portuguese Labor Law.

How to apply: Please submit your Motivation Letter in English, Detailed CV, University Degree certificate(s) and contacts of 2 references in PDF format through Email address for the Human Resources email imm-hr@medicina.ulisboa.pt , for the job ad, from 23^rd of July until 15^th of September 2024. Note: Candidates who incorrectly formalize their application or do not submit the documents proving the compliance with the requirements indicated in the call will be excluded. The jury has the right to ask any candidate, in case of doubt, to present documents proving their statements.

Non-discrimination and equal access policy: iMM undertakes to ensure compliance with the principles of non-discrimination and equality and to that extent, provides that no candidate can be privileged, benefited, harmed or deprived of any right or exempted from any duty due in particular ancestry, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, economic status, education, social origin or condition, genetic heritage, reduced working  capacity, disability, chronic disease, nationality, ethnic origin or race, place of origin, language, religion, political or ideological convictions and trade union membership.

International environment and experience: Diversity is a fundamental aspect of the essence of iMM, where researchers and non-researchers of different nationalities, backgrounds and areas of study work together, promoting the exchange of experiences and interactions, contributing to the personal and professional development of each person and to the existence of an international, inclusive and stimulating environment. 

Pursuant to Decree-Law nr 29/2001 of 3^rd February, disabled candidates shall be preferred in a situation of equal classification, and said preference supersedes any legal preferences. Candidates must declare, on their honour, their respective disability degree, type of disability and communication / expression means to be used during selection period on their application form, under the regulations above.

Evaluation Criteria: Applications will be evaluated by Maria Mota (President of the Jury), Moises Mallo and Pedro Silva in accordance with the following method:

First phase: Analysis of CV (35%) and Motivation Letter (15%)

Second phase: Interview (50%): Based on first phase scoring, the jury will invite to interview the 5 candidates who obtained the highest ranking, with a minimum of 40%. In the event of a tie, the decision will be the responsibility of the chairperson of the jury. 

Results: Both admitted and excluded candidates list and final classification list shall be posted at GiMM website and all admitted candidates will be notified by email.  

Preliminary Hearing and Final Decision Deadline: After notification, all candidates have 10 working days to respond. The panel’s final decisions are announced within a period of 90 days from the application deadline.

The present call is exclusively aimed at filling the indicated vacancy and may be terminated until the homologation of the final candidates’ ranking list and expires with the respective occupation of the position on offer.

Please note that the job opportunity announced here is under the entity of Instituto de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes and will result in a contractual relationship with the new entity, Fundação GIMM – Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine.

For more information about GIMM and the merger between IGC and iMM, please visit: https://gimm.pt/. If you have any questions, please contact us at people@gimm.pt.

Lisbon, 22^nd of July 2024

Download Job Opportunity in pdf