Associate Director, Community Impact & Program Coordination

Merck; Boise (ID); On-site; USD 129,000 - 203,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck is seeking an Associate Director, Community Impact, to drive execution of the community engagement strategy across priority U.S. communities.

You will coordinate with the GIIG pillar and manage multiple Community Impact Liaisons to ensure compliant, aligned, and non-duplicative activities that advance health goals. The role emphasizes influence and program management without direct reports, focusing on governance, grant processes, and cross-functional collaboration within a global health

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in public health, Health Policy, Business, Life Sciences, Social Sciences, Public Administration, or related field.
• Minimum of 7 years of relevant experience in program operations, program management, public health, community health, social impact, philanthropy, health systems strengthening, community engagement, or a related field.
• Experience leading work through influence in a matrixed environment without direct reporting authority.

Responsibilities

• Lead execution and implementation of key initiatives, projects, and directives identified by the Head of Global Community Impact and Engagement.
• Serve as the primary program coordination led to drive follow-through, track progress, and support timely execution across the CIL model.
• Coordinate day-to-day program operations, including planning, milestone tracking, issue identification, escalation, and follow-up on key deliverables.
• Support ongoing learning related to emerging trends, evolving community needs, and local insights across priority U.S. communities.
• Partner with the Community Impact Liaisons and other internal stakeholders to ensure work remains relevant, coordinated, compliant, non-duplicative, and aligned with broader company access to health goals.
• Support compliant coordination across internal stakeholders, including Patient Insights & Engagement, Policy, Legal, Compliance, Communications, Finance, and other relevant departments.
• Lead the establishment and operational management of a grant review committee to support structured and consistent review of grant applications.
• Recommend and implement an appropriate, efficient cadence and process for grant application review in alignment with governance requirements.
• Serve as a member of the grant review committee and coordinate review materials, meeting logistics, decision tracking, and follow-up actions.
• Support grantmaking processes, including application intake, proposal review coordination, internal approvals, contracting, and reporting.
• Track program milestones, outputs, implementation risks, budget-related status, and key decisions to support effective execution and leadership visibility.
• Develop clear updates, materials, and recommendations based on program activity, community insights, and portfolio progress.
• Support monitoring, evaluation, and learning activities to strengthen program effectiveness and continuous improvement.
• Partner with our Communications department and other relevant stakeholders to identify and support compliant opportunities to elevate and share highlights of the CIL model and program impact.

Skills

Project management

Influence without authority

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication

Analytical skills

Program operations

Governance & compliance

Stakeholder engagement

Execution and follow-through

Education

Bachelor’s degree in public health, Health Policy, Business, Life Sciences, Social Sciences, Public Administration, or related field

Advanced degree in Public Health, Health Policy, Business Administration, Public Administration, Social Work, or related field

Job description

Merck is seeking an Associate Director, Community Impact, to drive execution of the community engagement strategy across priority U.S. communities.

You will coordinate with the GIIG pillar and manage multiple Community Impact Liaisons to ensure compliant, aligned, and non-duplicative activities that advance health goals. The role emphasizes influence and program management without direct reports, focusing on governance, grant processes, and cross-functional collaboration within a global health