About us
Vow is a food company - a very different one. We’re creating real meat products from animal cells instead of the animal itself.
We’re bringing together cutting-edge innovations in science, engineering, culinary and design to make sustainable food that’s both irresistible and available to billions of people worldwide.
The role
Vow is looking for a passionate Technician to join our Manufacturing team, which is responsible for production and factory operations. This role would suit someone in their early stage career or fresh from University and is an incredible opportunity to learn and apply the latest techniques in cultured meat manufacturing as we move from research to application. You are diligent in getting it done and thrive amongst the details as you work to produce high quality products. The nature of the work necessitates patient, careful and considered attention towards sensitive processing systems and strict quality control.
Making sustainable, abundant and irresistible food requires the brain power of a diverse group of people. In this role you will have the opportunity to work alongside incredible scientists, engineers, operators, and designers who are relentlessly passionate about food and creating a better future for our planet.
There has never been a better opportunity to join Vow and help shape the future of what process development and manufacturing mean for our future food systems.
The experience you will bring:
- A relevant degree with some prior work experience, which can include, internship relevant industry experience or others such as retail or hospitality
- Experience with or Knowledge of HACCP plans, Quality Management Systems (ISO9001, ISO13485 or similar) or GMP standards, ideal but not a must
- Experience with cell culture (adherent or suspension), ideal but not a must
- High degree of technical competence and scientific awareness
- Flexibility to carry out shift work/weekend work when required
- Ability to work within a high functioning team environment
A ‘hacker mentality’, or a non-traditional pathway into science is a big plus for us. We are looking for candidates who can work autonomously and always feel empowered to find better ways to do things. If you love the mission and have evidence that you can make a strong contribution towards it, we want to speak to you.
You will;
- Be responsible for the manufacturing process, from thawing cells, to large-scale cell culture, to maturation and final harvest
- Conduct routine monitoring to ensure batch meets quality control and food safety standards
- Operate bioreactors and other large scale processing equipment
- Adhere to Vow’s quality management system and actively improve Vow's standard operating procedures
- Document and maintain compliance of manufacturing processes for quality assurance and reproducibility
- Record deviations from SOPs and maintain batch metric tracking to assist in establishing quality control parameters
- General lab upkeep, cleaning and maintenance tasks as required
- Work closely with the manufacturing team to ensure new process changes are implemented correctly
What success looks like in this role:
- In your first month you will have successfully integrated yourself into Vow’s Manufacturing Team. By the end of the first month you will have learnt all technical skills to run all routine manufacturing processes autonomously.
- After 3 months you will have the entire manufacturing process up to 2000L bioreactor scale running continuously and smoothly. You will be able to make necessary changes/deviations to the process as required pending on culture conditions.
- By the end of your first year at Vow you will have played a key role in transforming our pilot plant into a well oiled machine and assisted in producing large amounts of product for sale
Vow, more than just a job.
Who we are and why join:
- We are building a diverse, mission-led dream team of “Vowzers.” Our mission is to make food products for everyone. To do that well we need a workforce that’s representative of the people we serve. We celebrate multiple approaches and points of view - so we’re building a culture to match. Be yourself and come as you are.
- Work on cutting-edge technology. We’re bringing together cutting-edge innovations in science, engineering, and food, to recreate the world’s most tantalising and unique culinary experiences. All without compromising on ethics or our planet along the way. Since our inception in 2019, we have held the title of being the first startup to cultivate meat from the cells of an undomesticated animal, and have served up our exotic meats ranging from kangaroo dumplings to alpaca sliders in tastings with world-renowned chefs.
- Work with and learn from the best. Our team includes some of the world’s top scientists, innovators, operators, and creatives with decades of industry experience. Despite our experiences though, we all strive to build, break, learn, and repeat. We see the impossible as temporary and strive to learn and support our company and fellow Vowzers' growth as much as possible.
- We’re fully funded and ready to go. We are a growing Aussie biotech start-up backed by Blackbird Ventures, Square Peg Capital, Grok Ventures, Tenacious Ventures, P7 Ventures, Toyota Ventures, and PeakBridge VC.
Vow perks and benefits:
- Everyone is an owner. In addition to competitive base salaries, each and every ‘Vowzer’ owns equity in the company so we can all benefit from our hard work and future success.
- Generous paid parental leave. We offer 8 weeks of paid caregiver leave and an additional 8 weeks paid leave for the birth giver.
- Generous relocation budget & support. Support for interstate or overseas team members and their families (including pets!)
- Flexible working hours and location. We value work-life balance. While we’re mostly back in the office, you’re free to choose the best way for you to work.
- Unlimited personal leave. At Vow we recognise that sometimes you need time off to recuperate, look after your mental health, or simply deal with an emergency. We put unlimited personal leave in place to empower you to truly bring your best self to work every single day and you are always paid for days taken off as personal leave.
- Heaps of tasty samples from our culinary centre. Our fantastic "food inventors" on the Vow team are always cooking up new product prototypes, and all Vowzers are given the opportunity to taste, give feedback, and learn from their culinary prowess.
- An awesome converted warehouse “campus” in Alexandria. Complete with a glass-walled lab, manufacturing line, free snacks, a culinary centre, and professional-grade coffee machine in our cafe, as well as a DIY workshop for all hands-on projects.
- Human and dog friendly office! An inclusive community and culture, in a welcoming office, complete with friendly “Vowzer” dogs!
- A variety of social clubs. We encourage all our Vowzers to build the culture with us and share what you love by creating social clubs across the business. From book clubs to hiking groups, we’re always looking for ways to learn and engage with our team.
