Chief Research Enablement Officer (CREO)

Harvard University • Cambridge, MA

8d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Chief Research Enablement Officer (CREO) provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for the full research enterprise at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS). Reporting to the Executive Dean, the CREO oversees the core services and functions that support research enablement for HKS faculty, students, and fellows. These core functions include research administration (sponsored awards and compliance), research computing and data services, and library collections, services and programs. The position is responsible for aligning these units into a cohesive ecosystem that supports the entire research lifecycle, from discovery and data acquisition to analysis, dissemination, and long-term stewardship. This role, along with its direct reports, supports the teaching, learning, and research mission of the School through collaboration with key areas of the Academic Deans’ Office (ADO). The CREO and their direct reports provide strategic leadership for HKS’ research enterprise and help shape School and University policies and services for research enablement, including library collections, digital scholarship, open science initiatives, data governance, secure computing environments, externally sponsored funding, and research compliance. Together, they ensure that HKS maintains a robust research infrastructure, strong internal controls, and a culture of accountability that supports, rather than impedes, research innovation. As a senior leader, the CREO partners closely with faculty, center directors, and University-wide offices to identify emerging research needs, scale infrastructure, and position the School competitively for large, complex, and interdisciplinary funding opportunities. The role also represents the School in external forums related to research policy, compliance, and infrastructure, particularly in areas such as data security, privacy, and the responsible use of AI in research. The CREO also supports their direct reports in partnering with faculty, research teams, center directors, core departments, and with related University units (i.e., Harvard Library, Office of the Vice Provost for Research, Harvard University Information Technology, Office of Sponsored Programs, Office of the General Counsel). The ideal candidate brings deep experience driving institutional strategy in complex organizations operating under policy and/or regulatory requirements. They also bring a demonstrated ability to integrate diverse operational units into a unified, service-oriented research enterprise. The successful candidate will be a strategic and collaborative leader with the ability to lead organizational transformation, build high-performing teams, and advance research excellence while ensuring effective stewardship of institutional resources and regulatory obligations.

Requirements

• Advanced degree required.
• Minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in research operations, enablement, or support.
• Experience managing complex organizations, programs, or administrative functions, including direct supervision of managers and professional staff.
• Demonstrated experience leading change and growth in a highly decentralized, matrixed organization.
• Demonstrated experience implementing and managing compliance functions.

Nice To Haves

• Experience integrating multiple operational units into a unified, service-oriented organization with shared goals, processes, and performance measures.
• Design thinking mindset with demonstrated success leading large-scale organizational change, process improvement, or service transformation initiatives with a focus on the end-user.
• Demonstrated commitment to service excellence and creating researcher-centered support environments that balance innovation, compliance, and operational effectiveness.
• Experience serving as a senior advisor to executive leadership on research strategy, compliance, organizational design, or institutional risk management.
• Experience leading organizational units responsible for research enablement functions such as research computing, data services, library services, compliance, externally sponsored funding, and/or related areas.
• Demonstrated experience developing and implementing policies, procedures, or operational frameworks in environments subject to regulatory, legal, or sponsor requirements.
• Experience collaborating with senior leaders, faculty, researchers, or other subject matter experts in a complex organizational environment.
• Deep knowledge of the evolving research landscape, including federal funding requirements, research security, data governance, open science initiatives, and responsible use of artificial intelligence in research.
• Experience supporting interdisciplinary research programs and large, complex funding opportunities involving multiple stakeholders.
• Strong understanding of research integrity frameworks and compliance requirements, including human subjects research, export controls, research and data security, privacy regulations, and sponsor requirements.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and relationship-management skills, with the ability to influence and build consensus among stakeholders with differing priorities.

Responsibilities

• Provide executive leadership for HKS research and library services, developing and executing strategic plans that align data and research efforts between the School and University across interdisciplinary and integrated teams.
• Lead efforts that streamline and strengthen the research ecosystem, further enabling our faculty and their research teams to conduct research.
• Champion an integrated research enterprise in which faculty, research teams, and research enablement functions work as trusted partners to understand research objectives, proactively address challenges, and develop practical, compliant solutions that support the School's research mission.
• Serve as a strategic leader and principal advisor to the Executive Dean, Academic Deans, and HKS leadership on data and research computing strategy, analytics, research integrity and compliance, and research priorities.
• Integrate, build, and strengthen services to support current and future public policy and social science research, teaching, and learning needs.
• Lead efforts to streamline research compliance and research resource access to ensure timely reviews and approvals, allowing researchers to advance their work as quickly as possible.
• Deepen the partnership with Harvard Library to more fully leverage their services to meet the research, teaching, and learning needs of HKS students, faculty, fellows, and students.
• Oversee the development and maintenance of shared data warehousing infrastructure, ensuring security, scalability, and efficiency.
• Facilitate problem-solving with faculty, research teams, and students to ensure academic work can move forward in compliance with FERPA, HIPAA, federal data security regulations such as FISMA, international data privacy laws, and other privacy regulations.
• Facilitate management of data use and sharing agreements, metadata standards, and protocols for data access, transfer, and release.
• Facilitate partnerships with researchers to troubleshoot and problem-solve issues, developing practical solutions that support research objectives.
• Provide executive leadership and strategic oversight for HKS’ research compliance and sponsored award functions.
• Ensure research compliance and sponsored award functions are aligned with School and University priorities, integrated across the HKS and Harvard research ecosystem and supported by effective governance, strong internal controls, and collaborative partnerships with Research Computing & Data Services and Library Services as well as with the Office of Financial Services, Academic Deans’ Office, and University compliance functions.
• Serve as the Research Integrity Officer (RIO) for HKS, partnering closely with faculty and School and University leadership.
• Lead and coordinate efforts across the School with the Academic Deans’ Office and Degree Programs and Student Affairs to ensure continuity in course support and academic integrity, including leading teams that provide co-curricular and embedded course-delivered content, workshops, and resources that support the pedagogy and learning outcomes of HKS students.
• Ensure community-oriented and student-focused services are delivered through the HKS Library across physical and digital spaces.
• Coordinate staffing, budgeting, and resource allocation across portfolio units.
• Facilitate shared software and data licensing and procurement to reduce costs and improve access to data and analytic tools.
• Oversee project timelines, deliverables, and quality assurance across all data and research functions.
• Facilitate cultivation of partnerships with HKS research centers, departments, and diverse constituencies across students, faculty, staff, and fellows.
• Ensure the department’s strategic vision is driven by community needs and informed by assessment.
• Represent HKS across the University in committees focused on research enablement and compliance.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Generous paid time off including parental leave
• Medical, dental, and vision health insurance coverage starting on day one
• Retirement plans with university contributions
• Wellbeing and mental health resources
• Support for families and caregivers
• Professional development opportunities including tuition assistance and reimbursement
• Commuter benefits, discounts and campus perks

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive