Director of Program Strategy & Client Enablement - Essex Management

The EMMES Corporation•Rockville, MD

2d•Remote

About The Position

Director of Program Strategy & Client Enablement - Essex Management Location: Remote (USA) This position supports "Essex, an Emmes Company". Essex is a biomedical informatics and health information technology-focused consultancy founded in 2009 and headquartered in Rockville, MD. The Essex team comprises experts with extensive experience in strategically developing and managing complex health and biomedical information programs for clients in the Federal Government, research academia, and private sectors. Emmes Group: Building a better future for us all. Emmes Group is transforming the future of clinical research, bringing the promise of new medical discovery closer within reach for patients. Emmes Group was founded as Emmes more than 47 years ago, becoming one of the primary clinical research providers to the US government before expanding into public-private partnerships and commercial biopharma. Emmes has built industry leading capabilities in cell and gene therapy, vaccines and infectious diseases, ophthalmology, rare diseases, and neuroscience. We believe the work we do will have a direct impact on patients’ lives and act accordingly. We strive to build a collaborative culture at the intersection of being a performance and people driven company. We’re looking for talented professionals eager to help advance clinical research as we work to embed innovation into the fabric of our company. If you share our motivations and passion in research, come join us! Primary Purpose We are seeking a high-impact, strategic, and execution-oriented Director of Program Strategy & Client Enablement to lead and mature the organization’s program strategy, delivery excellence, and client enablement capabilities. This role is responsible for defining, operationalizing, and continuously evolving enterprise program management and client engagement frameworks that enable consistent, compliant, and high-value delivery across life sciences and federal health IT portfolios. This position serves as a senior strategic leader and trusted advisor, accountable for aligning program strategy with client mission outcomes, contract performance and compliance, and organizational growth objectives. The Director will shape how programs are planned, governed, staffed, measured, and communicated —ensuring delivery rigor while enabling flexibility and innovation across diverse client environments. The Director works in close partnership with portfolio, engineering, bioinformatics & data science, and business development leadership to ensure integrated delivery, effective resource utilization, proactive risk management, and exceptional client experience. In addition to overseeing delivery strategy, this role plays a critical role in business development, solution design, and long-term account growth. The ideal candidate is a decisive people leader and systems thinker who thrives in complex and evolving environments, balances strategy with execution, and brings a strong client-first mindset. Success requires the ability to influence at the executive level, mature organizational capabilities, and build high-performing, accountable teams.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree in a scientific, health, or program management discipline preferred. PMP or equivalent certification desired.
Minimum of 10 years in senior program strategy and delivery leadership roles across federal, academic, and private-sector environments.
Advanced expertise in program, portfolio, and PMO leadership, including framework design, governance models, and delivery maturity assessments (e.g., PMI, PMO, Agile/Hybrid environments).
Strong command of program operations, including financial management, forecasting, risk and issue management, resource optimization, and executive reporting.
Demonstrated experience leading complex life sciences and health IT programs supporting clinical research, bioinformatics, public health, biomedical informatics, and regulated data environments.
Exceptional communication and executive presence, with the ability to influence senior leaders, advise clients, and align cross-functional teams around shared outcomes.
Proven problem-solving and systems-thinking capabilities, with a track record of driving process improvement, operational scalability, and organizational maturity.
Ability to rapidly assess priorities, adapt to evolving client environments, and translate strategy into executable roadmaps.
Strong regulatory and compliance knowledge, including clinical research regulations, healthcare privacy, and federal IT compliance standards (e.g., FDA, 21 CFR Part 11, HIPAA, FISMA, FedRAMP, CMMI, ISO).
Experience operating in federal health environments (e.g., HHS, NIH, NCI), with familiarity across consulting delivery models, contract vehicles, and business development lifecycle.
Extensive experience in portfolio and program management, PMO leadership, governance, financial management, and large-scale delivery enablement.
Strong background in life sciences, clinical research, bioinformatics, health informatics, and public health.
Proven ability to lead distributed teams, manage complex stakeholder environments, and influence at the executive level.
Demonstrated success supporting client growth, solution design, and consulting delivery models.
Experience supporting HHS, NIH, NCI, or similar agencies strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Own and evolve client-facing program and project roadmaps, ensuring alignment with mission goals, regulatory requirements, funding constraints, and delivery capacity
Contribute to standardized BD-to-Delivery transition processes, ensuring early engagement, clarity of scope, staffing, budgets, timelines, and accountability prior to execution.
Ensure consistent contract execution through disciplined tracking of deliverables, milestones, financials, and performance metrics, including CPAR inputs and self-assessments.
Design, maintain, and continuously improve enterprise delivery dashboards, providing visibility into: Program and project health summary Resource utilization and capacity Budget performance and forecasting Risk and issue trends Key milestones and outcomes Contract performance and quality metrics
Establish and enforce a structured reporting cadence to support proactive leadership engagement and timely decision-making: Weekly: Project and program status Monthly: Portfolio performance and financial reviews Quarterly: Strategic outlook, risk posture, and growth alignment
Serve as a senior client relationship leader, cultivating trusted partnerships and proactively identifying opportunities to enhance delivery value and expand engagements.
Partner with leadership teams to define, manage, and optimize portfolio, program, and project-level budgets.
Develop and maintain a comprehensive resource capability matrix capturing skills, certifications, experience, performance insights, and availability.
Optimize workforce utilization by aligning staffing decisions with delivery needs, staff development goals, and long-term organizational strategy.
Lead and support staff transitions, onboarding, promotions, and role changes with minimal delivery disruption.
Drive training and capability development strategies aligned to SOPs, industry standards, and evolving client needs.
Act as a senior liaison between executive leadership, program teams, and client stakeholders.
Strengthen client partnerships through structured feedback mechanisms, contract / project performance reviews, and strategic planning engagements to support change agility and account growth.
Enable cross-division collaboration to ensure integrated delivery and shared accountability.
Communicate performance, risks, and opportunities through clear dashboards, briefings, and executive presentations.
Provide strategic advisory services to internal and external stakeholders navigating complex program and project and delivery challenges.
Translate technical, business domain, and operational concepts into actionable strategies that enable informed decision-making.
Serve as a trusted advisor supporting both delivery excellence and organizational growth.
Lead solution consultation efforts with clients, articulating how tailored program strategy and delivery approaches drive mission outcomes.
Partner with sales and marketing to shape go-to-market strategies for program management, portfolio management, and client enablement services.
Support business development efforts through proposal contributions, staffing strategies, past performance inputs, and solution reviews.
Maintain deep expertise in life sciences, clinical informatics, biomedical research, and health IT program delivery.
Anticipate emerging trends in genomics, precision medicine, clinical data standards, and modern engineering to position the organization for future growth.