Senior Director, Clinical Operations Strategy

Viridian Therapeutics; Waltham (MA); Hybrid; USD 237,000 - 290,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive pay and stock options for

Job summary

Viridian Therapeutics is seeking a Senior Director of Clinical Operations Strategy to drive operational excellence and strategic execution across Clinical Operations. You will partner with the VP to shape workforce planning, governance, and cross-functional alignment from our Waltham, MA base or remotely with travel as needed.

The role includes leading budget, headcount planning, and organizational design, while mentoring leaders and driving scalable processes to support clinical development

Qualifications

• BA/BS in Health or Life Sciences required; advanced degree preferred.
• 15+ years in Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, Medical Device, and/or CRO industries.
• Clinical Operations experience with understanding of clinical development processes.
• Experience leading organizational initiatives, workforce planning, and strategic planning.
• Experience implementing organizational processes, metrics, KPIs, and performance management systems.
• Experience partnering with senior leaders on organizational planning and change management.
• Ability to travel up to 25%.
• The salary range for this position is commensurate with experience.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the VP, Clinical Operations to set priorities and strategic objectives.
• Lead workforce planning, organizational design, and capacity management.
• Develop and maintain Clinical Operations metrics, dashboards, KPIs, and reporting.
• Establish mechanisms to monitor progress against goals and deliverables.
• Identify risks, resource constraints, and operational challenges and develop mitigation plans.
• Lead annual planning activities including budget and headcount planning.
• Partner with Leadership to optimize structure, responsibilities, and operating models.
• Drive hiring strategy and workforce development initiatives.
• Collaborate with People Operations on recruiting, onboarding, and talent management.
• Develop succession planning and leadership programs.
• Lead process improvement and operational excellence initiatives.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Cross-functional leadership

Operational excellence

Workforce planning

Change management

Education

BA/BS in Health or Life Sciences

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Microsoft Office Suite

Smartsheet

Data visualization tools

Project planning software

Job description

• Location 221 CRESCENT ST STE 103A,Waltham, MA, 02453-3425,United States
• Base Pay $237,000.00 - $290,000.00 / Year
• Job Category Clinical Operations
• Employee Type FT Exempt
• Required Degree 4 Year Degree
• Travel 25%

At Viridian, we work with a sense of urgency for patients, creating unity with our team, the industry, and the community. We are committed to using proven science and engineering to improve the lives of people living with serious and rare diseases, and we are getting closer to achieving this goal every day.

Reporting to the Vice President, Clinical Operations, the Senior Director, Clinical Operations Strategy is a critical member of the project team responsible for driving operational excellence, organizational effectiveness, and strategic execution across the Clinical Operations organization. This role serves as a strategic partner to the Vice President of Clinical Operations and provides leadership across workforce planning, organizational development, resource management, department operations, and cross-functional alignment.

The Senior Director will work across programs and functions to ensure Clinical Operations maintains the infrastructure, processes, capabilities, talent, and operational discipline necessary to successfully execute the company's clinical development objectives. This role reflects the knowledge, experience, skill level, and capacity to lead complex organizational initiatives, drive operational excellence, influence enterprise decision-making, and support the continued growth and evolution of the Clinical Operations organization.

This role may be based in our Waltham, MA headquarters, which would be a hybrid role, or it can also be fully remote. Our office-based employees are required to work in the office three (3) days a week. If remote, travel to headquarters for meetings would be required at the discretion of management.

Responsibilities (including, but not limited to):

• Partner closely with the Vice President, Clinical Operations to establish department priorities, strategic objectives, and operational plans
• Lead workforce planning, organizational design, and capacity management activities to ensure Clinical Operations is appropriately structured and resourced to support current and future portfolio needs
• Develop and maintain Clinical Operations metrics, dashboards, KPIs, and operational reporting to measure organizational effectiveness and performance
• Establish mechanisms to monitor progress against departmental goals, objectives, and key deliverables
• Identify organizational risks, resource constraints, capability gaps, and operational challenges and develop mitigation plans and recommendations
• Lead annual planning activities, including organizational planning, budget planning, headcount planning, and departmental goal setting
• Partner with Clinical Operations leadership to optimize organizational structure, responsibilities, and operating models
• Drive hiring strategy and workforce development initiatives across the Clinical Operations organization
• Partner with People Operations to support recruiting, onboarding, talent management, employee engagement, retention, and performance management activities
• Develop and maintain succession planning and leadership development programs to strengthen organizational capability
• Lead process improvement and operational excellence initiatives that improve scalability, accountability, efficiency, and execution
• Establish and oversee departmental governance, communication, business operations, and planning processes
• Serve as a key liaison between Clinical Operations and cross-functional functions including Clinical Development, Biometrics, Regulatory, Quality, Program Management, Finance, and People Operations
• Drive accountability for departmental objectives, key performance indicators, and organizational deliverables
• Lead strategic initiatives and special projects on behalf of the Vice President, Clinical Operations.
• Develop scalable infrastructure, tools, systems, and operational processes to support organizational growth
• Mentor and develop Clinical Operations personnel and emerging leaders
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, continuous improvement, and operational excellence
• Support inspection readiness, quality initiatives, and organizational compliance activities
• Ensure activities are conducted in accordance with company policies, applicable regulations, and ICH-GCP guidelines

Requirements

• BA/BS degree in Health or Life Sciences required; advanced degree preferred
• A minimum of 15+ years of experience within the Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, Medical Device, and/or CRO industry
• Significant Clinical Operations experience with demonstrated understanding of clinical development processes and operational delivery
• Demonstrated experience leading organizational initiatives, workforce planning, business operations, and strategic planning activities
• Experience developing and implementing organizational processes, metrics, KPIs, and performance management systems
• Demonstrated success leading strategic and operational initiatives across complex cross-functional organizations
• Demonstrated experience supporting organizational growth, workforce planning, resource management, and organizational design
• Experience supporting hiring, talent development, succession planning, and employee development initiatives
• Experience partnering with senior leaders on organizational planning, change management, and capability-building initiatives
• Demonstrated success leading cross-functional initiatives and influencing stakeholders at multiple organizational levels
• Proven success driving operational excellence and continuous improvement initiatives
• Exceptional collaboration, communication, and interpersonal skills
• Strategic thinker with strong business and operational acumen
• Demonstrated ability to influence without direct authority
• Creative problem solver with a proactive and solutions-oriented mindset
• Efficient independent worker with ability to focus and drive results
• Strong attention to detail with exceptional organizational skills
• Strong commitment to ethical standards
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, Smartsheet, project planning software, and data visualization/reporting tools
• Ability to travel up to 25%
• The salary range for this position is commensurate with experience

Viridian offers a comprehensive benefits package including:

• Competitive pay and stock options for all employees
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Short- and long-term disability coverage
• Life, Travel and AD&D
• 401(k) Company Match with immediate company vest
• Employee Stock Purchase plan
• Generous vacation plan and paid company holiday shutdowns
• Various fertility, mental, financial, and proactive physical health programs

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc. provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination, harassment, or retaliation of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by Federal, State, and Local laws. Viridian will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided 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. Please contact us to request accommodation.

Viridian Therapeutics, Inc participates in E-Verify, the federal program for electronic verification of employment eligibility.