Policy Research Associate Duke Margolis Institute for Health Policy (Washington DC or Durham NC)

Duke Careers•Durham, NC

5d•$93,478 - $151,059•Hybrid

About The Position

The Robert J. Margolis, MD, Institute for Health Policy at Duke University (Duke-Margolis) seeks to address critical health policy challenges and improve health, health equity, and the value of health care through practical, innovative, and evidence-based policy solutions. The interdisciplinary nature of Duke-Margolis brings together policy experts, researchers, health care professionals, and students from across Duke’s schools of medicine, nursing, law, public policy, business, and engineering, and fosters extensive relationships with stakeholders both internal and external. These relationships span foundations, private sector organizations, state and federal governments, and global entities. The Institute fosters excellence, leadership, and scholarship at every level.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in a field related to the position (e.g., policy, public health, public administration, economics, science, engineering, law, or field directly related to the position).
Minimum of six years of progressive experience in policy/research/data analysis at the international, federal, regional, and/or state level.
Or an equivalent combination of relevant education and/or experience.
Familiarity with rural health systems, rural communities, or regional health care delivery, including current trends and regulations.
Experience with stakeholder convening, facilitation, or learning collaboratives.
Experience with mixed-methods or implementation-focused policy research.
Proficiency or familiarity with data analysis tools (e.g., Excel, R, Stata, SAS, or Python) to clean, analyze, and visualize data.
Excellent research and writing skills.
Proven competence in leading research projects.
Excellent organizational, project management, and communication skills, including the ability to transform complicated information into materials that are easy to understand.
Demonstrated proficiency in policy research, including the ability to synthesize content from a broad range of sources.
Proven ability to plan and organize content with creativity and attention to detail, crafting an argument for specific audiences and appropriately translating scientific or technical details.
Ability to interact professionally and foster positive collaborative relationships with senior-level individuals (e.g., local, state, and national policymakers), stakeholders, and organizations.
Ability to exercise good judgement and initiative.
Must be able to function independently and collaborate effectively with others.
Ability to coordinate a variety of activities simultaneously, complete work with limited oversight and supervision, and manage a project team effectively.
Must be comfortable working in a fast-paced environment with varied responsibilities, and able to assess the impact of and respond flexibly to changing conditions.
Knowledge of Microsoft Office and relevant research and analytic software.

Nice To Haves

Master's or higher advanced degree preferred.
Training or experience in the fields of health policy, public policy, public health, data science, or patient safety is preferred.

Responsibilities

Manages the day-to-day execution of and provides significant subject matter expertise for complex Duke-Margolis research and policy projects within the Institute’s Health Care Transformation portfolio.
Primarily engages in research and policy work relevant to North Carolina’s health care transformation, rural health policy, and community-centered health care transformation approaches, supporting large-scale cross-state learning initiatives through regional and statewide convening, generating and translating evidence into actionable strategies, and elevating community and regional perspectives.
Produces high-quality work products independently, demonstrates technical leadership and collaboration with other team members, and delegates project activities while consistently meeting internal and contractual deadlines.
Manages complex research and policy activities to achieve project objectives.
Researches and analyzes complex health policy-focused topics, including conducting background research.
Drafts written products including summary documents, blog posts, peer-reviewed publications, and policy briefs.
Effectively engages policymakers and other external stakeholders.
Manages Institute events and convenings.
Contributes significant subject matter expertise in specialized areas of health policy to the development of project design and approaches to achieve research goals.
Outlines and conceptualizes the content and structure of project deliverables.
Individually contributes to and manages the efforts of other project team members in drafting research and policy deliverables including white papers, issue briefs, blogs, and peer-reviewed publications.
Produces high-quality written work products and deliverables.
Evaluates and selects appropriate sources of quantitative and/or qualitative data to achieve project objectives.
Synthesizes and translates complex information from a wide range of inputs into clear and accessible written material for a range of audiences.
Reviews and provides editorial comments for project materials and documents drafted by other team members.
Prepares and edits a range of written materials and reports for principal investigators, senior researchers, executive staff, and external partners to support project development, provide recommendations and/or conclusions, and disseminate findings.
Monitors and analyzes developments in specialized content areas.
Identifies developments with the potential to affect the work of colleagues in other areas across the Institute and shares pertinent information across teams.
Provides in-depth analysis of impacts to the health care system and/or health policy landscape to inform implications for current projects and/or future research direction.
Oversees day-to-day management of complex projects in areas of health policy expertise in collaboration with principal investigators and/or senior researchers.
Coordinates and oversees internal project team activities to ensure research activities and deliverables are completed in accordance with the project plan, contractual requirements, Duke policies, and deadlines.
Manages complex external sponsor and partner engagement.
Collaborates with Institute executive leadership, faculty, principal investigators, and other senior staff to develop and implement work plans, deliverable content, research agendas, and timelines; coordinates execution of work by project teams.
Contributes to content development through topic-focused policy research, preparatory analysis, and writing to craft clear and concise materials for stakeholder and expert review and response.
Tracks and manages progress to achieve project milestones, deliverables, and timeline goals through collaboration with colleagues, subcontractors/vendors, and external stakeholders.
Coordinates internal and external communication as needed for team projects.
Works with principal investigators and/or senior researchers, executive leadership, and financial staff to ensure project activities are conducted within budget parameters.
Fosters collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders, industry representatives, and policy professionals to support project execution, data collection, dissemination of findings, and develop opportunities for funding.
Assists in the development of project concepts and preparation of funding proposals.
Mentors junior employees in management of work activities and development of content expertise.
Oversees design and implementation of a varied range of project convening events (e.g., expert roundtables, workshops, conference panels, seminars, large-scale public events).
Collaborates with senior researchers, executive leaders, and external partners on agenda development, identification and selection of panel participants, and content development.
Works collaboratively with events and communication teams to direct communication strategies and event management and planning.
Manages event execution and preparation including participant outreach, panel prep calls, pre-event materials, and follow-up.
Supports senior and executive staff and collaborates with communications and events staff in disseminating project deliverables through the Duke-Margolis website, popular and trade press, peer-reviewed publications, and other venues.
Interacts and coordinates communications with a broad range of external stakeholder groups and organizations.