Senior Quantitative Researcher - CMMI Evaluations

Join AIR as a
Senior Quantitative Researcher - CMS Innovation Center (CMMI) Evaluations
with our Healthcare Innovations team. Our team works collaboratively to unravel the intertwined challenges of health care quality, costs, and access. Our team of experts - nurses, physicians, psychologists, economists, sociologists, data scientists, and public health experts - advance evidence and save lives by leading rigorous research and evaluation; results-driven technical assistance and training; and leading-edge data science and technology tools.

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.

Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not‑for‑profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to address some of the most pressing challenges in the United States and globally. We generate evidence and apply data‑driven solutions that expand opportunities and improve lives for all.

• Supports business development activities for CMS and CMMI, including capture planning, client engagement, opportunity shaping, proposal development, and strategic growth initiatives.
• Serves in leadership roles (e.g. task or workstream lead, deputy project director) for complex evaluations of Medicare payment and service delivery models, ensuring task execution, quality of task deliverables, staffing, and client relationships.
• Provides technical leadership for evaluations of CMMI models and demonstrations, including technical expertise with quasi‑experimental designs, mixed‑methods research, Medicare and/or Medicaid claims analyses, analysis of EHR data, beneficiary and provider outcomes, and sub‑group analyses.
• Effectively coaches and manages others to promote their development; sets developmental goals and measurements for staff.
• Fosters an environment that values a wide range of perspectives, experiences, backgrounds, and individual strengths.

• Ph.D. in Economics, Health Services Research, Quantitative Psychology, or a related field with 3+ years of relevant experience or Master's degree with 7+ years of relevant experience.
• Minimum of 2 years experience managing task or work streams within a larger project.
• Served in a project leadership role (e.g., Deputy Project Director, Task Lead, or similar) on one or more CMMI model evaluation contracts.
• Demonstrated success leading or contributing to winning proposals for CMS, AHRQ, or other HHS agencies.
• Extensive knowledge of Medicare payment policy, Medicare Advantage, and/or Medicaid.
• Knowledge of Medicare claims, provider claims, survey data, EHR data, and publicly available datasets.

• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with federal clients and partners.
• Ability to communicate complex evaluation findings to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Must possess strong leadership, organizational, and interpersonal skills at a senior level.
• Ability to lead teams, especially for business development activities as part of pre‑RFP planning and design, and through proposal response.
• Extensive success in writing, conceptualizing, analyzing, and consulting on large‑scale federally funded projects.
• Attention to detail and commitment to accuracy when writing.
• Command of appropriate protections and handling of data sets containing PHI/PII

Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the U.S. on a full‑time basis. Employment‑based visa sponsorship (including H‑1B sponsorship) is not available for this position. Depending on project work,…