Assistant Vice President Head of Clinical Research Operations

Hospital for Special Surgery•New York, NY

10d•$198,500 - $268,000

About The Position

Hospital for Special Surgery is seeking an Assistant Vice President Head of Clinical Research Operations to provide enterprise-wide operational leadership for clinical research across service lines. The role supports development and execution of the operational vision and strategic plan, establishes standards and practices for quality, efficiency, consistency, and compliance, and aligns research operations with institutional and service-line priorities. It also oversees clinical trials, registries, biorepositories, research workforce strategy, quality programs, infrastructure, performance measurement, and financial and resource stewardship. The position directly leads Service Line Research Administrative Directors and other assigned research operations leaders, and provides indirect strategic oversight for research managers, coordinators, assistants, and other operations staff. It works in dyadic partnership with the SVP of Service Lines and collaborates with physician Research Directors, department and service leaders, Research Leadership, Research Finance, the HSS Data team, and the Director of Research Quality & Compliance. The role reports to the Chief Research Officer. The position requires a master's degree in a relevant field or 12 or more years of leadership experience, at least 10 years of progressively responsible experience in clinical research or research operations, and at least five years of leadership experience. A doctoral degree is preferred. This is a regular full-time, day-shift position. The stated base pay range is $198,500 to $268,000, with additional benefits consistent with the role.

Requirements

Master's degree in Public Health, Clinical Research, Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, Epidemiology, Nursing, Health Services Research, or a related field, or 12 or more years of leadership experience.
At least 10 years of progressively responsible experience in clinical research, research administration, or research operations.
At least five years of leadership experience overseeing research programs, personnel, or institutional initiatives.
Demonstrated success leading large-scale research operations and multidisciplinary teams.
Experience in an academic medical center, health system, or research-intensive organization.
Experience overseeing clinical trials, registries, quality programs, and research infrastructure initiatives.
Advanced knowledge of clinical research regulations, Good Clinical Practice (GCP), FDA regulations, human subjects protections, and research compliance requirements.
Strong strategic planning, organizational leadership, and workforce development capabilities.
Experience leading organizational change and process improvement initiatives.
Strong financial, operational, and analytical skills.
Demonstrated ability to build partnerships across complex stakeholder groups.
Excellent communication and executive leadership abilities.
Experience with clinical trial management system (CTMS) platforms, electronic regulatory systems, research databases, registries, and enterprise reporting solutions.

Nice To Haves

Doctoral degree.

Responsibilities

Support development and execution of the operational vision and strategic plan for clinical research activities across all service lines.
Establish enterprise-wide standards, policies, procedures, and best practices to support clinical research quality, efficiency, consistency, and compliance.
Align clinical research operations with institutional strategic priorities and service-line goals.
Lead initiatives to improve investigator support, operational performance, and research depth; promote collaboration, accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
Identify opportunities to expand and strengthen research infrastructure and shared services.
Oversee registry submissions to ensure data integrity, regulatory and submission compliance, and timely completion.
Support and oversee the clinical research workforce strategy, including workforce planning, recruitment, onboarding, training, mentorship, and leadership development.
Partner with Research Leadership on standardized job families, career ladders, competency models, and professional development pathways.
Provide administrative leadership, mentorship, and support to Service Line Administrative Research Directors; establish their goals, expectations, and performance metrics.
Align operational practices across service lines while accounting for specialty-specific needs; support staffing strategy, budget planning, portfolio management, problem solving, and program development.
Collaborate with the SVP of Service Lines, physician Research Directors, Department Chairs, and Service Chiefs on service-line research strategies and growth plans.
Advise on research operations, staffing models, infrastructure, and portfolio development, and align resources with research opportunities and institutional priorities.
Ensure clinical trials, registries, and biorepositories are aligned with organizational goals, appropriately governed, and adequately staffed.
Promote responsible stewardship, sustainability, and data integrity, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, ethical standards, and institutional policies.
Partner with the Director of Research Quality & Compliance on enterprise research quality management and compliance programs; oversee audit readiness and quality improvement.
Establish risk mitigation and corrective action frameworks and promote research integrity, participant safety, and accountability.
Partner with Research Leadership and the HSS Data team to enhance research infrastructure and support adoption of clinical trial management systems, electronic regulatory systems, registries, and reporting tools.
Drive process improvements that increase transparency, efficiency, and user experience.
Monitor performance in study startup, enrollment, workforce utilization, quality, compliance, and operational effectiveness; establish service-line-specific key performance indicators with research and service-line leaders.
Report operational performance to executive leadership and governance committees.
Partner with Research Finance on financial reporting, budget development and management, and long-term workforce planning.
Support service-line grant and external funding opportunities, monitor research resource use and investments, and identify ways to improve efficiency and returns on infrastructure investments.
Partner with Research Administration to optimize budget development for sponsored clinical research projects and support sustainable growth and shared-services models.