Senior Scientist – Enzyme Engineering

Location: Denver, CO (on-site)

Type: Full-time

Job Description:

Cascade Biocatalysts is seeking a dynamic and hands-on Senior Scientist – Enzyme Engineering to join and lead our enzyme team. This role is both technical and strategic: you will serve as the technical expert for enzyme development and immobilization, and as the manager of a small, high-performing team. You will work closely with cross-functional scientists and engineers to develop and scale enzyme solutions that enable cost-effective, sustainable biomanufacturing.

We are seeking a candidate who embodies our core values: an active curiosity, constant communication, and an assumption of goodwill in their interactions with others.

• Enzyme selection, engineering, and production: Lead the discovery, design, expression, purification, activity screening, and stability testing of enzymes used across our product platform.
• Immobilization R&D: Collaborate with the materials team to optimize enzyme–resin performance, including enzyme stability and activity under diverse industrial conditions.
• Team leadership: Manage, mentor, and grow a small team of enzyme-focused research associates.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Work closely with polymer chemists, analytical scientists, and commercial team members to translate customer needs into actionable enzyme development goals.
• Process improvement: Develop, document, and refine SOPs for enzyme expression, purification, and QC workflows.
• Data analysis and documentation: Analyze biochemical data rigorously and communicate findings in internal reports, customer updates, and technical meetings.
  

• M.S. or B.S. in Chemical Engineering, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, or a related field.
• 5 years of hands-on experience or a Ph.D. with enzyme engineering both at the bench and in silico.
• Proficiency with heterologous expression systems (e.g., E. coli, yeast) and enzyme stability and activity assays. 
• Experience in leading and mentoring researchers.
• Strong organization, scientific rigor, detail oriented, and ability to thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative startup environment.
• Bonus: Familiarity with enzyme immobilization, enzyme–polymer interaction, or bioconjugation. 

• A pivotal role in a venture-backed startup working to reshape chemical manufacturing through biocatalysis.
• Meaningful equity and competitive salary in a mission-driven company.
• A collaborative and interdisciplinary team working across enzyme engineering, material science, and biomanufacturing.
• Hands-on impact – your work will directly shape our product pipeline and customer success.

At Cascade Biocatalysts, we are commercializing our Body Armor for Enzymes™ – a polymer science innovation that makes enzymes rugged and reliable for cost-effective biomanufacturing. Our platform unlocks the power of enzymes to replace traditional, unsustainable chemical processes and supports the buildout of a resilient and clean chemical industry.

We are a small and growing team, passionate about bridging biology and chemistry to build the future of manufacturing. If you're excited to bring enzymes out of the lab and into the world — we’d love to meet you.