Sr Manager, Clinical Operations - Imaging

ICON Clinical Research; Center Square (PA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Retirement plan

Life insurance

Employee assistance program

Paid time off

Job summary

ICON is seeking a Senior Manager, Reader Operations - IMC Imaging to provide strategic leadership of the Reader Operations team delivering high-quality medical imaging and cardiac safety services. You will oversee staffing, training, quality, and collaboration across PM, MSA, Readers, Technology and QA to meet client expectations and regulatory standards.

You will drive KPIs, optimize workflows, manage capacity planning, and mentor staff while aligning with corporate objectives and business

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Health Sciences, Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, or a related field required.
• Advanced degree and/or leadership certifications preferred.
• Extensive experience in clinical research, medical imaging, healthcare operations, or related regulated environments.
• Minimum of 8-10 years of progressive operational leadership experience, including direct people management responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic and tactical leadership for the Reader Operations function.
• Oversee onboarding, qualification, credentialing, training, and ongoing competency assessment programs.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to optimize reader utilization and scheduling strategies.
• Drive KPI planning, monitoring, and reporting to ensure quality, efficiency, and client satisfaction.
• Lead process improvements to enhance quality, scalability, and operational performance.
• Ensure compliance with SOPs, regulatory requirements, and company policies.
• Mentor and develop staff, manage workforce planning, and drive engagement.
• Support business development with operational input and resource planning.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Operational excellence

Cross-functional collaboration

People management

Change management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences or related field

Advanced degree or leadership certifications (preferred)

Job description

Sr Manager, Clinical Operations - IMC - Imaging

ICON is a global healthcare intelligence and clinical research organisation united by a mission to bring new medicines and treatments to patients faster.

As a values-driven organisation, integrity, collaboration, agility, and inclusion are at the heart of how we work and interact with each other, customers, patients and suppliers.

Overall Job Summary

The Senior Manager, Reader Operations, is responsible for the strategic leadership, operational management, and performance of the Reader Operations function. This role oversees the delivery of high-quality medical imaging and cardiac safety services through effective management of reader resources, operational processes, workforce planning, training programs, quality standards, and cross-functional collaboration.

The Senior Manager provides vision, leadership, and mentorship to the Reader Operations team while ensuring alignment with corporate objectives, customer expectations, regulatory requirements, and operational excellence standards. The position is accountable for resource utilization, operational efficiency, quality performance, business continuity, technology adoption, employee engagement, and continuous process improvement.

Working collaboratively across Project Management, MSA, Readers, Technology, Quality Assurance, Business Development, and Executive Leadership, the Senior Manager ensures operational readiness, successful study execution, client satisfaction, and achievement of departmental goals while maintaining compliance with IMC and ICON policies and procedures.

Essential Responsibilities

Leadership and People Management

• Recognize, exemplify, and adhere to ICON's values centered on People, Clients, and Performance.

• Provide strategic and tactical leadership for the Reader Operations function.

• Establish and maintain a high-performing, collaborative, and customer-focused team culture.

• Mentor, coach, and develop Reader Operations staff through performance management, professional development planning, and career growth opportunities.

• Conduct regular assessments of employee engagement, team effectiveness, and organizational health, implementing action plans as needed.

• Support workforce planning, recruitment, interviewing, onboarding, succession planning, and retention initiatives.

• Foster accountability and continuous learning through regular feedback, coaching, and recognition programs.

• Ensure adequate staffing levels to meet current and future business demands.

Reader Workforce Management

• Oversee reader onboarding, qualification, credentialing, training, and ongoing competency assessment programs.

• Partner with ICON MSA to ensure optimal reader utilization and assignment strategies.

• Develop and maintain reader capacity models to support current operations and future growth.

• Manage reader allocation, workload balancing, and scheduling strategies to maximize efficiency and client responsiveness.

• Monitor reader productivity, turnaround times, utilization, and quality metrics to ensure operational excellence.

• Develop contingency plans to address reader availability risks and business continuity requirements.

Operational Excellence and Performance

• Drive operational performance through establishment, monitoring, and reporting of key performance indicators (KPIs), productivity metrics, utilization measures, quality outcomes, and customer service targets.

• Evaluate operational workflows and implement improvements to enhance quality, efficiency, scalability, and customer experience.

• Lead departmental process improvement initiatives using data-driven methodologies and best practices.

• Establish performance benchmarks and service level expectations across Reader Operations.

• Ensure effective use of operational tools, technologies, and reporting systems.

• Identify operational risks, develop mitigation plans, and communicate issues to leadership as appropriate.

• Promote a culture of continuous improvement and operational innovation.

Quality and Compliance

• Ensure compliance with SOPs, regulatory requirements, quality standards, and company policies.

• Partner with Quality Assurance to support audit readiness, inspections, CAPA activities, and quality improvement initiatives.

• Monitor operational quality metrics and implement corrective and preventive actions when necessary.

• Ensure consistency and standardisation of operational practices across the Reader Operations organisation.

• Drive a culture of quality, accountability, and regulatory compliance throughout the department.

Technology and Innovation

• Champion technology adoption and workflow optimisation initiatives that enhance operational performance and user experience.

• Partner with Technology, Product, and Business stakeholders to identify opportunities for automation and process efficiencies.

• Participate in evaluation, implementation, and optimisation of operational systems and platforms.

• Lead change management activities associated with new technologies and business processes.

• Ensure teams are effectively utilizing available tools and systems to maximise productivity and quality.

Client and Cross-Functional Partnership

• Serve as a senior escalation point for operational, client, reader, and cross-functional issues.

• Participate in client meetings, governance reviews, audits, and escalation discussions as required.

• Build strong partnerships with Project Management, MSA, Readers, Technology, Quality Assurance, and other stakeholders.

• Support business development initiatives by providing operational expertise and resource planning input.

• Ensure exceptional client service through proactive communication, operational transparency, and delivery excellence.

Additional Responsibilities

• Lead or participate in strategic initiatives, organisational transformation efforts, and special projects.

• Communicate and implement lessons learned and best practices across the organisation.

• Perform other duties as assigned by senior leadership.

• Travel possible up to 25%.

Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences, Health Sciences, Healthcare Administration, Business Administration, or a related field required.

• Advanced degree and/or relevant leadership certifications preferred.

• Extensive experience in clinical research, medical imaging, healthcare operations, central laboratory operations, or related regulated environments.

• Minimum of 8-10 years of progressive operational leadership experience, including direct people management responsibilities.

• Demonstrated success leading large operational teams and managing complex resource planning activities.

• Proven experience driving operational performance, workforce optimisation, process improvement, and organisational change management.

• Excellent leadership, communication, stakeholder management, and team development skills.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities with a data-driven approach to decision-making.

• Ability to influence and collaborate effectively across all levels of the organisation.

• Experience leading geographically dispersed teams preferred.

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What ICON can offer you:

Our success depends on the quality of our people. That’s why we’ve made it a priority to build a diverse culture that rewards high performance and nurtures talent.

In addition to your competitive salary, ICON offers a range of additional benefits. Our benefits are designed to be competitive within each country and are focused on well-being and work life balance opportunities for you and your family.

Our benefits examples include:

• Various annual leave entitlements

• A range of health insurance offerings to suit you and your family’s needs.

• Competitive retirement planning offerings to maximise savings and plan with confidence for the years ahead.

• Global Employee Assistance Programme, LifeWorks, offering 24-hour access to a global network of over 80,000 independent specialized professionals who are there to support you and your family’s well-being.

• Life assurance

• Flexible country-specific optional benefits, including childcare vouchers, bike purchase schemes, discounted gym memberships, subsidised travel passes, health assessments, among others.

Visit our careers site (https://careers.iconplc.com/benefits) to read more about the benefits ICON offers.

At ICON, inclusion & belonging are fundamental to our culture and values. We’re dedicated to providing an inclusive and accessible environment for all candidates. ICON is committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process, or in order to perform the essential functions of a position, please let us know or submit a request here (https://careers.iconplc.com/reasonable-accommodations)