Associate Director, Administration & Strategy

Associate Director, Administration & Strategy

The Associate Director, Administration & Strategy serves as the lead administrative and operational professional for the Office of Clinical Trials (OCT), a collaborative initiative jointly supported by the School of Medicine Office of Research, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR), and UCHealth. The Office of Clinical Trials was established to advance and support the clinical research enterprise through strategic coordination, operational excellence, stakeholder engagement, and continuous process improvement.

Reporting to the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Clinical Trials and Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Research, the Associate Director is responsible for coordinating and overseeing the day-to-day administrative, operational, and organizational functions of the Office of Clinical Trials. The Associate Director serves as the primary operational partner to Office leadership and is responsible for ensuring strategic priorities, initiatives, and organizational objectives are effectively planned, coordinated, implemented, and monitored.

The Associate Director works collaboratively with stakeholders across the School of Medicine, OVCR, UCHealth, CU Medicine, departments, centers, institutes, and research programs to facilitate communication, align priorities, support decision-making, and ensure timely completion of organizational goals and deliverables. This position exercises independent judgment in managing operations, coordinating complex initiatives, resolving administrative issues, and recommending process improvements that enhance organizational effectiveness and support the growth and success of the clinical trials enterprise.

Supervision Received:
Reports directly to the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Clinical Trials/Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Research.

Supervision Exercised:
Provides direct supervision to professional and administrative staff within the Office of Clinical Trials and may oversee additional staff, trainees, student employees, or project teams as assigned. Responsibilities include recruitment, onboarding, performance management, coaching, professional development, and workforce planning.

Responsibilities include:

• Administrative and Operational Leadership (40%)
• Lead and coordinate the day-to-day administrative and operational activities of the Office of Clinical Trials.
• Develop, implement, and continuously improve operational workflows, policies, procedures, and business processes.
• Establish systems to organize, prioritize, monitor, and track projects, deliverables, strategic initiatives, and organizational goals.
• Coordinate activities across the School of Medicine Office of Research, OVCR, UCHealth, and other institutional partners to ensure alignment and timely execution of priorities.
• Support implementation of strategic initiatives and operational plans established by Office leadership.
• Facilitate meetings, committees, working groups, and cross-functional teams.
• Develop and maintain operational dashboards, reports, metrics, and project tracking tools.
• Identify barriers to progress and implement solutions to improve efficiency, effectiveness, communication, and service delivery.
• Develop and maintain standard operating procedures and administrative guidance documents.
• Coordinate office operations, planning activities, reporting processes, and administrative functions.
• Strategic Planning and Program Administration (20%)
• Partner with the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Clinical Trials and Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Research to implement strategic priorities and organizational objectives.
• Coordinate and manage special projects and strategic initiatives on behalf of Office leadership.
• Develop project plans, timelines, implementation strategies, and accountability mechanisms for major initiatives.
• Monitor progress toward organizational goals and prepare recommendations for leadership.
• Facilitate collaboration among research administration, clinical operations, faculty, and institutional leadership.
• Assist in the development of new programs, services, and initiatives that strengthen the clinical research ecosystem.
• Analyze operational data and prepare reports to support planning and decision-making.
• Support governance, committee management, and leadership planning activities.
• Financial and Business Operations (10%)
• Collaborate with finance and administrative leadership to support budget planning, financial monitoring, and resource allocation activities.
• Assist with development and monitoring of annual operating budgets.
• Monitor expenditures and support financial reporting, forecasting, and budget analyses.
• Coordinate administrative business functions including procurement, contracts, service agreements, and resource management.
• Support development of business plans, operational analyses, and sustainability models for Office initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with University, School of Medicine, OVCR, and UCHealth policies and procedures.
• Promote…