Senior Director, Clinical Operations

At ICON, it’s our people that set us apart. Our diverse teams enable us to become a better partner to our customers and help us to fulfil our mission to advance and improve patients’ lives.

Our ‘Own It’ culture is driven by four key values that bring us together as individuals and set us apart as an organization: Accountability & Delivery, Collaboration, Partnership and Integrity. We want to be the Clinical Research Organization that delivers excellence to our clients and to patients at every touch-point. In short, to be the partner of choice in drug development.

That’s our vision. We’re driven by it. And we need talented people who share it.
If you’re as driven as we are, join us. You’ll be working in a dynamic and supportive environment, with some of the brightest and the friendliest people in the sector, and you’ll be helping shape an industry.

The role:

• Recognize, exemplify and adhere to ICON's values which center around our commitment to People, Clients and Performance.
• Each employee is expected to ‘Own’ their role through values of integrity, partnership, collaboration and accountability and delivery.
• As a manager, you are expected to recognize the importance of and create a culture of process improvement with a focus on streamlining our processes, adding value to our business and meeting client needs.
• Accountable for oversight of overall functional quality, operational and financial delivery in line with corporate and departmental objectives, at the pan-regional, regional, or country level.
• Drive the department to achieve utilization and productivity targets at country/regional level.
• Ensure all Clinical Resources within assigned team, region and/or countries, are meeting or exceeding performance objectives for productivity and quality and take appropriate remedial actions and/or escalations as required.
• Ensure agreed corrective and preventative actions are implemented, and/or further training is received, as required. Proactively inform Department Heads of critical issues and corresponding corrective and preventative action plans; follow through to timely closure.
• Lead the development of clinical functional and people manager trainings; drive change within clinical as well as across other departments and functions, to embrace and enforce the current and changing paradigm of monitoring.
• Accountable for overall compliance with internal processes and requirements at team, country or regional level as applicable.
• Provide the experience and ability to manage client portfolios at the functional level, as applicable, by serving as the clinical subject matter experts.
• Ensure that monitoring is conducted within budget to maintain departmental margin parameters and apply efficiencies within country/regional regulatory confines. In addition, offer alternatives to teams or clients where appropriate, incorporating a Risk-Based Quality Management approach or Risk-based Monitoring.
• Consider a decentralized or patient centric approach to clinical trials in line with current regulations, e.g. use of home nurses or actigraphy; and educate other functions on these where appropriate.
• Act as key contact for the country/region for operational questions and escalations, both internally and externally.
• Ensure Inspection Readiness at CRA and site level is maintained at all times.
• Understand Clinical Operations and ICON Key Performance metrics and how to ensure delivery against them.
• Use data outputs to measure against, and act upon, Key Performance metrics.
• Contribute to departmental strategy.
• Recognize and support, as well as implement initiatives to broaden, our culture of diversity and inclusion.
• Work with Talent Acquisition and within own network for selection and recruitment of suitable and qualified staff, including future leaders. Lead succession planning and development of staff/leaders in the clinical department. Provide mentorship to developing leaders across the organization.
• Ensure balanced approach to internal and external hiring.
• Develop a strong feedback culture, lead by example and hold yourself and the People Leaders in your team accountable. Set expectations and goals, conduct timely and objective performance reviews and appraisals for direct team using a metrics-driven, as well as 360 feedback approach.
• Drive a high-performance culture across the team using the appropriate tools.
• Be a champion of effective performance calibration reflecting differentiated contribution in terms of results achieved and competencies demonstrated.
• Use budget effectively to reward strong performance and ensure alignment to the market.
• Ensure that promotions across the team are fair and consistently based on performance and business needs.
• Establish a trusting and open two-way communication path with all reporting lines to provide and receive timely and relevant updates. This includes presenting Snr Management at team meetings to relay corporate messaging.
• Foster a culture of continuous development, set clear expectations with your People Leaders in terms of development of their teams, proactively identify development opportunities at team, country or regional levels for your team members; partner with other functional directors to identify opportunities for cross-functional development.
• Collaborate with client and/or project team to ensure feeder paths and career progression opportunities across the function and organization.
• Maintain a healthy turnover balance in department/teams.
• Act as a role model for the team - embrace ICON's Own It! Culture and always act as ICON's representative when you interact with your team.
• Coach and mentor Clinical Operations Managers in your team or in other teams in the department.
• Identify and develop successors for the short and longer-term.
• Lead Clinical Operations regional-wide business development activities, as appropriate.
• Own business critical issues (e.g. quality concerns and solutions, business growth opportunities) and proactively and clearly present metrics-driven solutions to senior management.
• Develop key relationships with the wider business locally at country level, and through the global function; this includes, but is not limited to, global project management, clinical trial management, start-up, central and risk-based quality management, and decentralized trial functions.
• Identify the need for cross-department training as required and set up cross functional project teams to address.
• Act as global client liaison to key accounts in Clinical Operations issues.
• Improve client and site satisfaction with ICON services.
• Collaborate with client and/or project teams to ensure CRAs are accepted into teams and trained appropriately.
• Ensure innovation and continuous improvement in all areas of responsibility is driven and adopted where appropriate.
• Create and/or execute on an operational strategy for a future monitoring algorithms whilst delivering in the current realm. This may include decentralized clinical trials, risk-based quality management and risk-based monitoring including options for remote / hybrid monitoring, and reduced SDV/SDR and central monitoring. This involves not only operational changes but change management tactics at the personnel and corporate level.
• Collaborate with ICON Commercial Services to increase new business awards, including development of competitive, non-traditional monitoring paradigms to suit indication and country.
• Be able to offer regional/client-based knowledge to boost sales and client relations.
• Build / foster / maintain client relationships with key accounts and/or senior counterparts at the client’s head office.
• Foster a culture of change, where change is properly planned, communicated and explained by focusing on the benefit of change for both ICON and the individual.
• Identify change agents at all levels of the organization that will be key in embedding change in ways of working.
• Travel (approximately 20%) domestic and/or international.
• Other duties as assigned.

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

We offer very competitive salary packages. And to keep them competitive, we regularly benchmark them against our competitors. Our annual bonuses reflect delivery of performance goals – both ours and yours.
We also provide a range of health-related benefits to employees and their families and offer competitive retirement plans – and related benefits such as life assurance – so you can save and plan with confidence for the years ahead.
But beyond the competitive salaries and comprehensive benefits, you’ll benefit from an environment where you are encouraged to fulfil your sense of purpose and drive lasting change.

ICON is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer and 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 through the form below.

#LI-MM2

#LI-Remote