Director of Research

The Amyloidosis Research Consortium (ARC) is a 501c(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2015, harnessing the power of collaboration and innovation to advance science and both improve and extend the lives of those with Amyloidosis. We are dedicated to transforming the way research is being done and focus on what will have the most significant impact on improving the lives of amyloidosis patients. We forge collaborations across industry, research, clinical care, and regulatory to address unmet need and accelerate the discovery of new treatments. ARC empowers and supports patients by ensuring they have access to the best quality care and information.

Amyloidosis is the term for a group of rare diseases in which an abnormal protein misfolds and deposits as amyloid in organs and tissues, causing damage and eventually organ failure. There are different types of Amyloidosis, and they vary from one another in their biochemical nature and natural history. Some are acquired, and others are inherited. In the United States, approximately 4,000 people develop Amyloidosis each year. It is currently recognized to be wildly underdiagnosed, and therefore that number is expected to rise significantly.

To learn more about ARC, visit www.arci.org.

About the Position

Are you looking for a meaningful role? Interested in working with a motivated, thoughtful, creative, and friendly team to make a difference? ARC seeks a full-time Director of Research to help drive the development, growth, and implementation of ARC’s research activities, ensuring that ARC drives advances in the awareness, science, and treatment of amyloid diseases by partnering with patients and stakeholders across prioritized areas of research.

The Director of Research will be responsible for leading the execution of a portfolio of prioritized research programs designed to advance the strategic goals of ARC. This position will partner with key stakeholders across companies, academia, non-profits, research funders, health care providers, and within the community of patients, to ensure that ARC’s research programs are of the highest quality and inform drug development and broader research efforts across amyloidosis. Focus areas within the department include ARC’s public private partnership (PPP) with the FDA, known as the Amyloidosis Forum, development and evaluation of disease specific patient reported outcome (PRO) measures for amyloidosis, community research initiatives aimed at seeking to better understand amyloidosis patient experiences, perspectives, and outcomes, identifying barriers that lead to health disparities in minority patients with cardiac amyloidosis, and development of a multifaceted data sharing program that will catalyze research across the community. The Director of Research will be responsible for the day-to-day implementation of programs, operationalizing projects from concept development to execution and completion, identifying funding opportunities for each of the above programs, as well as driving and contributing to grant writing, and building relationships and opportunities across stakeholder groups.

Reporting to the Executive Director of Research, this position will generate new project ideas and independently execute programs with minimal supervision. As part of the leadership team, the Director will assist in the annual planning process and development of ARC programs of work, including identifying strategic opportunities, conceptualizing new project plans, developing existing programs of work, and auditing and evaluating program performance. The Director will manage and empower a small team, fostering a culture that is collaborative and encourages innovation, action, and impact.

The ideal candidate will have an in-depth understanding of the drug development continuum, as well as experience partnering with a variety of different stakeholders, including from academia, regulatory, life science companies, and medical professionals, to design and implement rigorous research programs that inform and guide healthcare bodies, clinical trial design, and patient experience. This candidate must be a self-starter, have the ability to effectively manage and activate teams, be a strategic thinker that can identify new opportunities and successfully build, mobilize, and manage programs to achieve collective impact and shared goals.

Skills and Experience

• Advanced degree (Master’s or higher) preferred, with 7-10+ years of progressive responsibility and experience in clinical research, rare disease, medical technology product development, public health, epidemiology, and/or life science industries.
• Demonstrated track record of successfully designing, managing, and delivering programs through cross functional and multi-stakeholder teams.
• Fluency with scientific terminology and comfort facilitating and synthesizing scientific discussions with leading experts.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with internal staff, external experts, and other stakeholders to collaborate on programs of work.
• Knowledge of fundamentals of health outcomes/human subjects research principles and good clinical practices.
• Experience designing and executing or overseeing human research projects; comfortable with quantitative and qualitative data and familiarity with analysis methods.
• Direct experience managing a team and individuals.
• Experience and demonstrated ability to balance and manage multiple priorities, projects and deadlines; ownership of the work and outcomes.
• Highly organized, very detail-oriented, proactive and takes initiative. Ability to perform and prioritize multiple tasks, exercise good judgment, and quickly identify and resolve problems.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively as part of a team within a dynamic work environment that includes virtual teams.
• Demonstrated experience with communicating science to different audiences and through different media, including websites, emails, presentations, and publications.
• Passion for non-profits, health equity, patient engagement, and cross-sector collaboration.
• Ability to be flexible, compassionate, and creative, while having a sense of humor.
• Experience utilizing MS Office, Salesforce, and project management tools such as Wrike, Smartsheet, or Microsoft Project.

This is an exciting opportunity to work at a growing organization, with a team that values a diversity of experience and demonstrates an unwavering commitment to the amyloidosis community.

How To Apply

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. To apply, please send a resume, cover letter, and writing sample to Kevin Palmer at kpalmer@arci.org. Emails without a cover letter and writing sample will NOT be considered.

Please ensure that your resume, cover letter, and writing sample are sent as Word or PDF documents with the titles “your name cover letter”, “your name CV”, and “your name writing sample.” Please put “Director of Research – Your Name” in the email subject line and let us know where you saw the post advertised. Thank you!

Additional Information

Office Hours & Requirement

This position is full-time, exempt. 40 hours per week, Monday – Friday 9-5 pm; opportunity to flex workday schedule to meet employee needs.

ARC will require that all employees are vaccinated with exceptions for medical and religious accommodations. ARC may require proof of vaccination. This role may start as a remote position but will transition to a hybrid working arrangement of 40% on-site at our Newton office. Preference given to applicants located in Greater Boston Area.

Interview Process

Please note that we are currently conducting the majority of interviews and onboarding remotely and virtually. We appreciate your understanding.

Benefits Package

We offer a competitive benefits package including generous paid time off, health insurance, dental, vision, Long Term Disability, Life insurance, and more.

• Paid Time Off: Generous paid time off including holidays, sick leave, and vacation time.
• Medical/Dental/Vision: We offer a full range of contributory medical plans, dental & vision plans; all coverage begins as of your start date, no waiting period for new hires.
• Life/Disability: 100% employer-paid Life and AD&D plan, and Long-term Disability plan.
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA): Offer both Health FSA & Dependent Care FSA.
• Others such as Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Worker’s Compensation, and more.

Equal Employment Opportunity

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer – and celebrate our employees’ differences, regardless of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or Veteran status.