Program Manager Research Operations Jobs in Massachusetts

Site: The General Hospital Corporation

Mass General Brigham relies on a wide range of professionals, including doctors, nurses, business people, tech experts, researchers, and systems analysts to advance our mission. As a not-for-profit, we support patient care, research, teaching, and community service, striving to provide exceptional care. We believe that high-performing teams drive groundbreaking medical discoveries and invite all applicants to join us and experience what it means to be part of Mass General Brigham.

Job Summary

The Division of Neuropsychiatry and Interventional Psychiatry at Mass General Brigham and Harvard Medical School integrates research, innovation, clinical care, and training across a large and dynamic clinical neuroscience portfolio.
Reporting to the Division Chief, the Program Manager for Research Operations will lead the execution and operational infrastructure of the Division's research portfolio, ensuring that studies, grants, and scientific outputs progress reliably from initiation through completion.
This role serves as the operational backbone for research activities, building systems, enforcing timelines, and overseeing day-to-day research operations. The Program Manager partners closely with research staff, faculty, and institutional teams, ensuring high-quality, compliant, and efficient study execution within a structured and scalable operational framework.

. Human Research Operations & Team Leadership

• Oversee study execution across the full research lifecycle, including:
  • protocol development and study start-up
  • active study operations
  • participant enrollment and study visits
  • study closeout and reporting
• Directly supervise a team of research assistants and junior staff, including hiring, onboarding, supervision, task allocation, performance management, and professional development.
• Ensure appropriate staffing, coverage, and workload allocation across studies.
• Provide ongoing coaching and guidance to research staff to support high-quality study execution and day-to-day operational reliability across studies.
• Serve as the primary operational point of contact for study teams, resolving day-to-day issues and ensuring smooth coordination across projects
• Support preparation and coordination of administrative and regulatory components of grant applications, working with investigators and pre-/post-award teams to ensure completeness, alignment with study operations, and timely submission

2. Research Execution Systems & Infrastructure

• Develop and maintain systems to support research operations, including:
  • project and portfolio tracking tools
  • dashboards and reporting frameworks
  • SOPs and standardized workflows
• Define and implement metrics to monitor study launch, progress, recruitment, and performance
• Maintain structured dashboards and trackers that identify project status, upcoming milestones, risks, and dependencies, and ensure this information is current and actionable
• Build scalable infrastructure that can be adopted across the division

3. Project & Portfolio Execution

• Translate research priorities into structured work plans with:
  • timelines
  • ownership
  • deliverables
• Track progress across projects and ensure adherence to milestones and deadlines
• Identify delays, bottlenecks, and risks early and implement corrective actions
• Work closely with investigators and study teams to ensure alignment and execution
• Actively enforce follow-through and accountability across research workstreams

4. Regulatory Compliance, Governance, & Quality Oversight

• Oversee regulatory and compliance processes, including:
  • IRB submissions, amendments, and renewals
  • protocol deviations and reportable events
  • maintenance of required regulatory documentation
  • adherence to Good Clinical Practice (GCP) standards
• Implement and maintain quality and compliance systems across studies, including regulatory oversight, data quality assurance, and protocol adherence across studies
• Ensure compliance with institutional, NIH, and sponsor requirements
• Coordinate with institutional compliance and research administration offices
• Ensure research staff maintain required certifications and are appropriately trained in and adhere to Good Clinical Practice (GCP) standards and institutional compliance requirements; monitor compliance and address gaps as needed

5. Administrative Systems & Operational Support

• Delegate execution of administrative tasks to research assistants or administrative staff and ensure appropriate oversight and completion
• Build and maintain systems for:
  • onboarding and training workflows
  • equipment and inventory tracking
  • operational logs and reporting
• Ensure reliability, completeness, and efficiency of operational processes

6. Cross-Functional Coordination (Research Interface)

• Ensure research operations are executed in accordance with divisional priorities, coordinating with division leadership and relevant functional leads as needed
• Coordinate dependencies between research operations and related functions (innovation teams, data/analysis, grants/finance, and executive operations), ensuring timelines and deliverables remain aligned
• Ensure research timelines are coordinated with grant submission cycles, data availability, and other operational dependencies
• Facilitate communication across teams to resolve operational issues and maintain momentum on shared workstreams

Qualifications

Required

• Degree in life sciences, public health, healthcare administration, or related field
• 5+ years of experience in human research operations, clinical trials, or research program management
• Demonstrated expertise in regulatory compliance and GCP standards
• Experience with study management systems (e.g., REDCap, OnCore)
• Experience building operational systems (dashboards, workflows, SOPs)
• Strong project management, organizational, and leadership skills

Preferred

• Project Management Professional (PMP) or equivalent certification.
• Certified Research Administrator (CRA), or equivalent certification
• Experience in academic medical centers or large research organizations
• Familiarity with NIH funding mechanisms and research administration processes

Core Competencies

• Execution discipline: drives projects forward reliably and on time
• Systems thinking: builds scalable operational infrastructure
• Accountability: enforces ownership, timelines, and deliverables
• Problem-solving: identifies and resolves bottlenecks proactively
• Leadership: develops and manages research staff effectively

Why Join Us

• Opportunity to lead research operations for a large and innovative clinical neuroscience division
• Build infrastructure and systems with division-wide impact
• Collaborate with leading faculty and researchers at Mass General Brigham and Harvard Medical School
• Strong institutional support, including pre- and post-award research management teams
• Competitive compensation and benefits

Hybrid

149 Thirteenth Street Building 149

40

Regular

Day (United States of America)

Pay Range

$79,560.00 - $115,720.80/Annual

Grade

7

At Mass General Brigham, we believe in recognizing and rewarding the unique value each team member brings to our organization. Our approach to determining base pay is comprehensive, and any offer extended will take into account your skills, relevant experience if applicable, education, certifications and other essential factors. The base pay information provided offers an estimate based on the minimum job qualifications; however, it does not encompass all elements contributing to your total compensation package. In addition to competitive base pay, we offer comprehensive benefits, career advancement opportunities, differentials, premiums and bonuses as applicable and recognition programs designed to celebrate your contributions and support your professional growth. We invite you to apply, and our Talent Acquisition team will provide an overview of your potential compensation and benefits package.

1200 The General Hospital Corporation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, age, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, military service, genetic information, and/or other status protected under law. We will ensure that all individuals with a disability are provided a reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. To ensure reasonable accommodation for individuals protected by Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Vietnam Veteran's Readjustment Act of 1974, and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, applicants who require accommodation in the job application process may contact Human Resources at (857)-282-7642.

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