Director Strategy and Delivery Real World Late Phase

Syneos Health•Tennessee, OH

About The Position

The Director, Strategy & Delivery, Real World Late Phase (RWLP), independently leads customer engagements from pre-award strategy through study delivery. The role combines ownership of study strategy, proposal development and bid defenses with operational and financial oversight of assigned studies, programs and portfolios. The Director partners with Business Development and Medical Strategy to secure new business, support account growth and ensure proposal commitments translate into achievable delivery plans. The Director develops practical delivery solutions for non-interventional and interventional late-phase research, including prospective and retrospective observational studies, registries, postmarketing safety and effectiveness studies, pragmatic studies and long-term follow-up. Working with Business Development, Medical, Epidemiology, Biostatistics and other functional leaders, the Director translates evidence needs into feasible study plans, budgets and delivery commitments. The role is accountable for customer satisfaction, study and portfolio performance, and development of assigned teams.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in life sciences, nursing, public health, epidemiology or a related discipline, or equivalent education and related experience.
Extensive relevant research experience within a CRO, pharmaceutical, biotechnology or comparable research organization, including demonstrated leadership of RWLP programs.
Direct experience delivering both non-interventional and interventional late-phase studies.
Demonstrated understanding of observational and interventional study designs, routine-care research, primary and secondary data collection, and their operational implications.
Working knowledge of GPP, GCP and applicable global and local requirements for late-phase and non-interventional research, with the ability to apply the appropriate framework with specialist support.
Proven experience leading proposals, bid defenses and senior customer discussions, and translating evidence objectives into feasible, appropriately costed delivery plans.
Demonstrated portfolio or multi-study oversight, operational problem-solving, financial forecasting, resource planning and scope management.
Experience developing staff and leading cross-functional teams; direct people-management experience is required where the role includes line-management accountability.
Ability to work effectively with Medical, Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Regulatory, Safety, Data Management and technology partners; sufficient therapeutic-area knowledge to lead credible customer discussions and identify when specialist input is needed.
Strong communication, presentation, negotiation and decision-making skills, with ability to manage competing priorities and resolve issues with senior stakeholders.
Proficiency in core business and project-management tools.
Fluency in English.
Willingness to travel approximately 25%, consistent with business needs.
At least eight years of relevant research experience, including at least seven years managing studies, with demonstrated experience leading RWLP programs across interventional and non-interventional research.

Nice To Haves

An advanced relevant degree.

Responsibilities

Lead strategy for assigned RWLP opportunities, aligning customer evidence needs with study design, data availability, country requirements, operational feasibility and budget.
Lead proposal development and writing and bid defense preparation, including delivery models, country and site strategy, staffing, assumptions, timelines, budgets and risk mitigation; coach team members to present their expertise and proposed solutions clearly.
Partner with Business Development and account leaders to develop customer relationships, identify follow-on opportunities and demonstrate RWLP capabilities through credible delivery commitments.
Ensure an effective transition from proposal to delivery, with clear ownership of commitments, assumptions, scope, resources and customer expectations.
Apply working knowledge of interventional and non-interventional study designs, including cohort, case-control and cross-sectional studies; prospective and retrospective registries; chart reviews; pragmatic trials; postmarketing studies; and extension or long-term follow-up programs.
Partner with Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Medical to assess whether proposed populations, endpoints, follow-up schedules and data sources can answer study objectives, translating scientific recommendations into operational plans.
Assess delivery options using primary data collection, secondary data sources or both, including electronic health records, claims and existing registries; identify data access, completeness, linkage, consent and site-workflow requirements with relevant specialists.
Oversee feasibility, country and site selection, startup, recruitment, retention, monitoring, data collection and closeout; adapt delivery to routine care and site capabilities while meeting protocol and applicable quality requirements.
Ensure monitoring and oversight are proportionate to study design, data risks and applicable requirements; coordinate safety reporting, vendor oversight and event adjudication where required by the protocol.
Oversee assigned studies and portfolios against scope, timeline, quality and financial commitments; review performance trends, resolve escalations and lead recovery plans with clear owners and deadlines.
Lead portfolio reviews and governance discussions; identify recurring delivery issues, capacity constraints and opportunities to improve execution across studies.
Partner with functional and resource leaders to forecast demand, allocate staff and balance workload, skills, continuity and cost across the assigned portfolio.
Provide line management for designated employees where assigned, including recruitment, onboarding, objective setting, coaching, performance reviews, development planning and succession planning.
Assess employee readiness for assigned responsibilities, identify training needs and oversee project handovers and role transitions; address performance concerns with HR and appropriate functional leaders.
Develop project leaders and cross-functional teams, clarify accountability and promote consistent delivery practices; maintain defined decision rights with the ODL and functional leadership under the approved operating model.
Own financial oversight for assigned studies and programs, including budget review, forecasting, resource utilization, profitability, scope management and timely change orders; resolve variances with project teams and Finance.
Apply Good Pharmacoepidemiology Practices (GPP), Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and applicable local requirements according to study classification and activities; work with Regulatory and Quality to confirm the appropriate framework.
Ensure compliance with company procedures, contractual commitments and applicable customer requirements; coordinate ethics review, informed consent or approved waivers, privacy and data governance requirements with responsible functions.
Maintain oversight of quality risks, deviations and corrective and preventive actions; support audit and inspection readiness and timely resolution of findings.
Use delivery metrics, customer feedback and lessons learned to improve RWLP processes, proposal assumptions, budget models and execution.