Associate Director, Distributed Research

Whoop•Boston, MA

2d•$140,000 - $180,000

About The Position

WHOOP is hiring an Associate Director of Distributed Research to own the strategy and implementation of large-scale decentralized data collections that support research and innovation across the company. The role oversees a cross-functional team of researchers and operations specialists, scaling WHOOP’s distributed research programs and infrastructure to generate trusted, actionable data for scientific discovery, product innovation, and member impact. The Associate Director defines the distributed research strategy and roadmap, leads and develops researchers, and partners with program management, Research Platform, and Research Enablement teams. The role also advances distributed research methods and survey science across WHOOP, while using operational and team performance insights to improve scalability, participant experience, data quality, and regulatory approvals.

Requirements

At least 5 years of experience in remote study management, beta or product testing, research operations, or a related field.
At least 3 years of direct experience managing and developing individual contributors.
Demonstrated success leading and developing high-performing teams through organizational growth and ambiguity.
Experience partnering closely with program management, product, engineering, scientific, or research platform teams to deliver complex cross-functional work.
Strong understanding of distributed research methodologies and ability to communicate the importance of study design and other study considerations to diverse audiences.
Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and organizational leadership skills.
Strong commitment to embracing and leveraging AI tools in day-to-day tasks, ensuring AI-assisted work meets the same high-quality standards as personal contributions.

Responsibilities

Define the distributed research strategy and evolve and scale product development and outcome-generation research capabilities.
Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders to build a roadmap for large-scale sensor data collections, product testing and betas, and mixed-methods research.
Own the technical strategy supporting the distributed research roadmap and partner with the Research Platform team to build needed infrastructure.
Partner with the Distributed Research Program Manager to prioritize initiatives, allocate resources, balance team capacity, and deliver organizational priorities.
Lead, coach, and develop researchers across multiple career levels, fostering technical excellence, career growth, and a high-performing team culture.
Partner with the Research Enablement team to optimize standard operating procedures using user feedback, operational insights, and evolving business needs, improving scalability, participant experience, data quality, and regulatory approvals.
Monitor operational and team performance metrics and use insights to optimize processes and inform strategic decisions across the Distributed Research function.
Advocate for distributed research methodologies and survey science, educate cross-functional stakeholders on best practices, and help scale these capabilities across WHOOP.