Managing Director, Healthcare Transformation

American Institutes for Research

21d•Remote

About The Position

AIR’s Health Division is seeking an experienced Managing Director (MD) to lead and advance a portfolio of quality measurement initiatives, with a focus on strategic growth and innovation. The MD will provide executive leadership across multi-year projects involving the development, implementation, and monitoring of quality measures, while also identifying emerging measurement needs, shaping new approaches, and expanding AIR’s measurement portfolio in response to evolving federal policy priorities. In this role, the MD will set the technical and strategic direction for quality measurement work—overseeing measure development and maintenance, data and validation strategies, performance monitoring, and technical assistance (TA)—and will partner with senior leadership to pursue new opportunities and strengthen AIR’s position as a leader in federal quality measurement. This position has the flexibility to work remotely within the United States (U.S.) or from one of our U.S. office locations. This does not include U.S. territories. About AIR: Established in 1946, with headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, AIR is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit institution that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to solve some of the most urgent challenges in the U.S. and around the world. We generate evidence and apply data-driven solutions that expand opportunities and improve lives for all.

Requirements

PhD or MA in health economics, public health, public policy, or a related social science discipline.
10–15 years of leadership or management experience in health policy or federal health program work.
Successful experience serving as a Managing Director on complex contracts involving measure development, implementation, monitoring, TA, and/or evaluation.
Experience working with or for CMS or similar federal health agencies.
Demonstrated success leading federal proposal development and contributing to winning bids.
Expert knowledge of CMS program structures, policy priorities, and federal quality measurement expectations, including measure development, testing, maintenance, implementation, and reporting across Medicare, Medicaid, and state programs.
Deep technical expertise in quality measurement, including measure conceptualization and specification, data strategy and acquisition, testing and validation, risk adjustment, benchmarking, and performance assessment, with the ability to set methodological standards across a portfolio.
Ability to provide executive-level technical leadership, translating complex measurement methodologies into clear strategic guidance for federal and state clients, senior stakeholders, and internal leadership.
Experience overseeing large, complex contracts and portfolios, including fiscal stewardship, risk management, staffing strategies, and operational systems consistent with federal contracting requirements.
Proven record leading large-scale quality measurement or applied research initiatives, including authorship and review of technical deliverables and presentation of findings to policy and technical audiences.
Demonstrated success leading multidisciplinary, mission-driven teams, including staff, subcontractors, and consultants, and aligning technical work with broader program objectives.
Strategic, forward-looking thinker with the ability to identify emerging measurement needs, shape new approaches, and maintain a long-term view of portfolio growth and sustainability.
Strong organizational and leadership skills, with experience managing multiple workstreams and setting priorities across complex, interrelated measurement efforts.
Collaborative leadership style and commitment to mentorship and talent development, building depth, continuity, and excellence in quality measurement capabilities.

Responsibilities

Set the strategic direction for a portfolio of federal and state quality measurement initiatives, spanning measure development, implementation, and monitoring, and ensure alignment with evolving policy priorities and program goals.
Provide executive oversight across the full measurement lifecycle, guiding multidisciplinary teams on measure conceptualization, specification, testing, data strategy, validation, and performance reporting, while ensuring methodological rigor and consistency across projects.
Serve as a senior strategic advisor to federal and state clients, particularly CMS and state agencies, shaping approaches, anticipating emerging needs and risks, and strengthening long-term partnerships.
Working with AIR’s program area leadership and functional leadership to create business development strategy for established areas and specific new areas of growth identify new opportunities, including:
Coordinating pursuit plans and pipelines for federal opportunities.
Supporting bid/no‑bid decisions and ensuring alignment with AIR capabilities and priorities.
Leading or contributing to proposal pursuits: conceptualizing bid strategies, developing research and monitoring approaches, drafting proposal content, and conducting technical reviews.
Cultivating and maintaining relationships with potential partners, funders, and federal clients.
Monitoring ongoing projects to understand client expectations, anticipate needs, and identify opportunities and challenges across the portfolio.
Assessing staff capacity and helping align resources to support both project delivery and new business pursuits.
Supervise and mentor task leads, analysts, researchers, TA specialists, and operational staff to build strong, high‑performing project teams.
Foster cross‑functional collaboration across analytics, communications, data management, TA, and operations teams to ensure integrated, high-quality project delivery.
Provide coaching and support to rising project leaders in effective project management, quality assurance, client communication, and staff supervision.
Represent AIR in federal stakeholder meetings, technical discussions, and conferences.
Collaborate with AIR’s communications teams to translate implementation and monitoring insights into publications, briefs, and presentations.
Contribute to AIR’s visibility and reputation in federal health program implementation, monitoring, and TA.