Chemist - Analytical Research (Nutrients) - Nutrition - Columbus, OH

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals, and branded generic medicines. Our 109,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

Chemist - Analytical Research (Nutrients) - Global Analytical and Food Safety, Nutrients & Bioanalytical

Our nutrition business develops science-based nutritional products for people of all ages, from helping babies and children grow, to keeping adult bodies strong and active. Millions of people around the world count on our leading brands - including Similac®, PediaSure®, Pedialyte®, Ensure®, Glucerna® and ZonePerfect® - to help get the nutrients they need to live their healthiest lives.

Our location in Columbus, OH currently has an opportunity for a Chemist - Analytical Research(Nutrients) with experience in analytical test methods for amino acids or similar nutrients in foods/food products. In Research & Development, our ambition is providing innovative high-quality products, creating sustainable value, delivering superior user experience and enhancing health outcomes at all stages of life.

Primary Job Function:

Serves as subject matter expert for amino acids chemistry and analytical determination of amino acids and other nutrients (e.g. nucleotides/nucleosides; carbohydrates) in nutritional products and ingredients. Responsible for developing, validating, transferring, and maintaining analytical test methods to drive innovation and new product development, support routine quality assurance, and investigate out-of-specification events. Also, responsible for setup, validation, operation, maintenance, and troubleshooting of analytical instruments and associated software/firmware. May act as a lead scientist on one project and contributor to other projects. Works closely with Product Development to support basic scientific research and new ingredient technologies and product formulations with minimal guidance from manager/supervisor. Supports routine nutrient testing, research projects, and method validation to assure product quality as well as play a key role in global projects. Also, supports Quality Assurance with investigating and resolving out-of-specification results at Abbott plant labs and third-party labs around the world.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Strategy: Contributes to the definition and timely achievement of overall project goals. Defines milestones for sub-projects and assures activities are on critical path. Receives general direction and exercises considerable discretion as to work details.

• Quality of Work: Responsible for documentation and accuracy, quality, and timeliness of experimental results.
• Quality of Work: Reads, understands, and complies with all applicable Division, area, and group-specific safety and employee health procedures. Complies with all applicable quality procedures.
• Work Performance: Successfully summarizes data and analyzes results; formulates conclusions and reviews progress with supervisor. Completes documentation of experiments in laboratory notebook. Primary contribution to project reports that summarize results, conclusions, and recommendations as appropriate.
• Work Performance: Actively participates in routine maintenance, lab safety, ISO 17025, GMP implementation as appropriate; may assume roles of responsibility, such as training or document control.

Core Job Responsibilities:

• Acts as lead analytical scientist, subject matter expert, project leader, or project contributor for amino acids and other related nutrients.
• Develops, validates, transfers, and troubleshoots analytical test methods for amino acids and other nutrients in nutritional products and ingredients.
• Sets up, operates, maintains, and troubleshoots analytical instruments and software. Validates instrument and software/firmware installations and operational qualifications.
• Maintains lab space and ensures compliance with standard operating procedures and safety requirements.
• Conceives, plans, designs, conducts and applies advanced research/scientific direction/scientific leadership in increasing complexity with minimal guidance from supervisor or manager.
• Designs and analyzes results from multiple experiments, formulates conclusions, and designs future experiments with minimal guidance.
• Provides scientific/technical consultation to other scientists and business units internally, including method and testing support to global plant and R&D analytical labs; Product Development; Quality Assurance; and Regulatory Affairs.
• Provides scientific/technical support and consultation to external third-party labs and manufacturers.

• Writes technical reports, method documents, and other controlled documents.
• Regularly communicates project status to management and provides managers with periodic reports summarizing activities and progress within area of responsibility.

Minimum Education/Professional Experience:

Required:

• MS or BS in chemistry, analytical chemistry, or related field with 3+ years of experience in research or industry laboratory.

Preferred:

Skills/Competencies:

• Understanding of amino acids chemistry and hands-on experience with analytical test methods for amino acids or other nutrients.
• Strong understanding of separation science, including normal-, reverse-phase, and ion-exchange chromatography.
• Ability to setup, validate, operate, maintain, and troubleshoot analytical instruments, including but not limited to high-performance and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography; ion chromatography; and UV/Vis, fluorescence, and electrochemical detectors.
• Practical experience with sample preparation techniques; experience with milk-based systems and liquid and spray dried formulations preferred.
• Ability to develop and validate analytical test methods from beginning to end, including designing and executing experiments and interpreting outcomes; designing and executing validation protocols; leading single- and multi-lab validations; validating and leading method transfers to other lab facilities.
• Ability to summarize data and analyze results; formulate conclusions and review progress with supervisor/manager.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience writing technical reports and test method documents.
• Ability to apply descriptive and differential statistics to interpreting analytical test results.
• Good understanding of relationship between product specifications and test method accuracy and precision preferred.
• Ability to troubleshoot and resolve problems, particularly out-of-specification results.
• Familiarity with AOAC International, ISO, and USP standards preferred.

WHAT WE OFFER

• At Abbott, you can have a good job that can grow into a great career. We offer:
• A fast-paced work environment where your safety is our priority
• Production areas that are clean, well-lit and temperature-controlled
• Training and career development, with onboarding programs for new employees and tuition assistance
• Financial security through competitive compensation, incentives and retirement plans
• Health care and well-being programs including medical, dental, vision, wellness and occupational health programs
• Paid time off
• 401(k) retirement savings with a generous company match
• The stability of a company with a record of strong financial performance and history of being actively involved in local communities

Learn more about our benefits that add real value to your life to help you live fully: www.abbottbenefits.com

Follow your career aspirations to Abbott for diverse opportunities with a company that provides the growth and strength to build your future. Abbott is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to employee diversity. Connect with us at www.abbott.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Abbott and on Twitter @AbbottNews and @AbbottGlobal.