Core Director III: Cellular Imaging- School of Medicine, Core Labs

Emory University•Atlanta, GA

4h•Onsite

About The Position

The Core Director is responsible for the overall day-to-day operation and management of the imaging core, ensuring efficient, reliable, and high-quality services for the research community. This includes oversight of core staff, daily core activities, instrumentation availability, user access, scheduling, and operational workflows to support a diverse range of imaging applications. The Core Director develops and manages the core’s operating budget, including monitoring expenditures, forecasting future needs, and ensuring financial sustainability. In collaboration with institutional leadership, the Director establishes and reviews recharge rates for microscopes and image analysis workstations, balancing cost recovery with accessibility for investigators. Working closely with the Scientific Director, the Core Director contributes to strategic planning and long-term vision for the imaging core. This includes aligning core services with institutional research priorities, evaluating emerging imaging technologies, and planning for future instrumentation, staffing, and space needs to ensure the continued growth and competitiveness of the core.

Requirements

PhD or MD and four years of professional level experience in a technical or research lab. A master's degree and six years of professional level experience or a bachelor's degree and eight years of professional level experience may also be considered, OR a high school diploma/trade school certificate with twelve years of professional level experience in a technical or research lab.
Detailed knowledge of the laboratory technique or equipment required to support core services.
Internship experience or experience prior to attaining the qualifying degree is not considered eligible work experience for this job classification.

Nice To Haves

Minimum of five (5) years of hands-on microscopy experience, including operation and support of advanced light microscopy systems.
Demonstrated experience with image acquisition and image analysis, including quantitative analysis and data management.
Management or supervisory experience, including oversight of personnel, workflows, or shared research resources.
Experience working with budgets, including financial planning, cost recovery, rate setting, or monitoring expenditures.

Responsibilities

In collaboration with the Scientific Director, develops the overall strategic scientific vision for the operations of a specific core with many users and high billings.
Provides operational oversight for the core.
Hires and supervises staff to ensure that scientific services provided by the core are of high quality and are delivered efficiently.
Oversees the review and improvement of operational performance, including analyzing the facility operating metrics as well as policy development.
Reports to the advisory committee on the activities of the core, including use, publications and grants, finances, and future needs (including equipment and staffing requests).
Is accountable to key institutional leaders for the efficient and effective operations of the core.
Developing an overall business plan for the core.
Participates in the strategic planning of both services and equipment for the core facility. Creates, reviews, and updates short term and long-range plans, ensuring coordination between individual core plans and the core's scientific mission, as well as ensuring a match between core capabilities and Winship's strategic plan, where applicable.
Develops a budget and conducts a resource analysis with assistance from the SOM Office of Research Administration team, SOM Business and Finance, Human Resources, and Winship administration.
Develops a space planning process as it relates to the implementation of the overall plan in consultation with SOM Space and Facilities.
Conducts benchmarking against peer institutions and corporate competitors, including comparing the core to peer institutions' resources through benchmarking studies and reviewing outsourcing opportunities, presenting recommendations and implementing decisions.
Actively seeks opportunities for scientific advancement of the core. Identifies external funding opportunities and assists faculty members in obtaining external support for research infrastructure.
Maintains an awareness of cutting-edge technologies, assesses the impact of developing technologies on current facility operations and present recommendations.
Maintains informed of the use of the facility and is available to assist with planning experiments.
Helps identify and select members of the Major User Group with input from the Core Oversight Committee.
Proactively markets the core to the scientific community within and outside Emory. Performs related responsibilities as required.
Provide overall leadership and day-to-day management of the imaging core to ensure reliable operation, high-quality services, and responsiveness to investigator needs. Establish and oversee policies, workflows, and best practices to maintain efficiency, safety, and compliance across all core activities.
Recruit, supervise, mentor, and evaluate core staff, including imaging scientists and technical personnel. Define roles and responsibilities, set performance expectations, and foster a collaborative, service-oriented environment. Support ongoing professional development through training, skill-building, and career advancement opportunities.
Oversee and contribute to the training of users in microscopy techniques, experimental design, and data acquisition best practices. Ensure consistent, high-quality instruction and consultation to promote effective and reproducible imaging experiments.
Lead strategic planning for the imaging core, including evaluation of emerging technologies, expansion of services, and alignment with institutional research priorities. Develop long-term plans for instrumentation acquisition, upgrades, and space utilization to ensure the core remains scientifically competitive and sustainable.
Develop, manage, and monitor the core’s operating budget, including cost recovery, recharge rates, invoicing, and financial forecasting, prepare institutional and NIH reports on core usage. Ensure responsible stewardship of resources and long-term fiscal sustainability of the core.
Negotiate, manage, and oversee service and maintenance contracts for imaging instrumentation. Serve as the primary liaison with vendors to coordinate preventative maintenance, repairs, and upgrades, ensuring optimal instrument performance and minimal downtime.
Maintain and regularly update the imaging core website with accurate and current information regarding instrumentation, services, pricing, policies, training materials, and user resources.
Develop and distribute a regular newsletter to communicate core updates, new technologies, training opportunities, policy changes, and user achievements. Promote core services through outreach activities, including courses and seminars, to strengthen engagement with the institutional research community.