Director, Study Data Services — Data Strategy & Automation

Merck; Upper Gwynedd Township (Montgomery County); Hybrid; USD 173,000 - 273,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck in Rahway, NJ is seeking a Director, Study Data Services (M-track) to lead programming and reporting strategy across therapeutic areas, driving automation, data integrity, and regulatory compliant outcomes in complex studies.

You will manage service provider partnerships, build high-performing teams through coaching and change leadership, and partner with DI&A and cross-functional leaders to scale data engineering, analytics, and data governance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree with 10+ years in clinical data programming or data engineering.
• 3 years of people management experience and strong leadership.
• Advanced degree with 8+ years in clinical data programming and 3 years management.
• Experience with SDLC/CSV, data privacy, and regulatory requirements.
• Ability to translate complex data work into strategic actions.

Responsibilities

• Define long-term programming and reporting strategy across therapeutic areas.
• Improve standards, frameworks, and operating models for scalability and audit readiness.
• Manage outsourced programming operations and global delivery partners.
• Lead recruiting, mentoring, and performance management of teams.
• Oversee data engineering capabilities and automation initiatives.

Skills

Python

R

SAS

SQL

Clinical data programming

Data engineering

Cloud computing

AI/ML

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Advanced Degree (Masters/Doctorate)

Tools

Azure Data Factory

AWS Glue

Databricks

Job description

Merck in Rahway, NJ is seeking a Director, Study Data Services (M-track) to lead programming and reporting strategy across therapeutic areas, driving automation, data integrity, and regulatory compliant outcomes in complex studies.

You will manage service provider partnerships, build high-performing teams through coaching and change leadership, and partner with DI&A and cross-functional leaders to scale data engineering, analytics, and data governance.