{"id":3744464,"url":"https://alion.io/job/merck-co-associate-director-study-data-services-2","title":"Associate Director, Study Data Services","company":{"id":3768,"name":"Merck & Co.","domain":"msd.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/msd","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Workday","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":98,"open_postings":176,"ghost_share":0.028,"stale_share":0.114,"repost_share":0.165,"time_to_fill_p50_days":16,"computed_at":"2026-11-05T05:54:30Z"}},"role":"Leadership","role_family":"Leadership","seniority":"head","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Rahway, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":142400,"max":224100,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":224100},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":8,"visa_sponsorship":true,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"SAS","optional":false},{"name":"SQL","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-03T00:00:00Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-03","last_verified_at":"2026-11-05T18:14:19Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":2,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":2},"description":"Job Description\nRole Overview:\nThe Associate Director, Study Data Services leads and develops a programming and reporting team - set goals, assign work, coach performance, and manage recruiting/onboarding - while communicating status and risks to leadership and partners. Provide hands-on technical review, solutioning support, enforce SOPs/standards, manage workload and prioritization, track quality and timelines, and drive best practices (code review, reusable components, test automation) and continuous improvement.\nResponsibilities:\nProgramming and reporting:\nLead design and deployment of clinical technology system solutions (e.g., for EDC [Electronic Data Capture], RTSM [Randomization and Trial Supply Management], and eCOA/ePRO [electronic Clinical Outcomes Assessment/ electronic Patient-Reported Outcomes]) using programming frameworks and automation tools.\nProvide technical oversight for clinical programming, reporting, and data integration across portfolios.\nRecommend and implement tools to streamline design, build, and validation processes.\nApply data literacy to design transformation strategies for actionable insights.\nDevelop advanced reporting solutions (dashboards, listings, visual analytics) with reusable components and role-based access.\nData Engineering:\nDefine and govern integration architecture, including data sources and transformation workflows.\nEnsure consistent implementation of enterprise standards and reusable assets.\nMonitor and troubleshoot data ingestion and consumption for reliability.\nAutomate and strengthen data engineering processes to reduce risk and improve efficiency.\nDevelop robust data models, semantic layers, and curated datasets; enforce quality checks.\n\nProcess:\n Drive process optimization by identifying gaps and implementing improvements.\nTranslate strategy into clear priorities, roadmaps, and ways of working for assigned domains.\nLead testing strategies for solutions; automate validation and ensure traceability.\nContribute to resource planning and workload distribution across global teams.\nSet documentation and audit standards; ensure compliance through rigorous change management.\nLead cross-functional collaboration, meetings, and enterprise-level improvement programs.\nInfluence adoption of data standards, tools, and automation for better delivery and decision-making.\nProvide leadership, coaching, and mentoring to build capabilities and foster a culture of quality and collaboration.\nSupport release management across environments; align stakeholders, lead UAT (User Acceptance Training), and improve reporting standards.\nPartner across teams to turn data and technical findings into clear, actionable recommendations\nAct as a reliable partner to GDMS and other cross-functional teams, actively seeking input, aligning on priorities, and closing feedback loops to drive high-quality, coordinated delivery.\nPeople management:\nAlign teams around a clear direction; set clear objectives aligned to organizational goals; assign work and set priorities accounting for work-life balance sustainability.\nConduct regular check-ins and annual reviews; coach for performance; provide recognition.\nDevelop career plans; create growth opportunities and promotion cases; ensure appropriate training and mentoring.\nCoordinate on-shore/off-shore and contingent resources; ensure role clarity and effective handoffs.\nManage an operating budget and optimize spend against priorities.\nInspires and ensures that team leaders are effectively supporting and empowering their individual leaders.\nTechnical skills:\nExpert-level proficiency in different technology languages (e.g., SQL, Python, SAS, and R) for implementing clinical data collectors, integrations, transformations, visualizations\nEvidence of experience in architecting and interoperability of EDC platforms, data integration environments, clinical operations systems, and cloud computing platforms\nProficiency with key data-management and/or clinical operations tools and platforms (e.g., systems for data capture, review, visualization, reconciliation, and reporting), with the ability to help select, configure, or optimize solutions.\nBroad understanding of the data-management technology ecosystem (e.g., data capture, review, reconciliation, reporting, analytics, and enabling tools) and how components fit together across the end-to-end process.\nExperience leveraging automation, scripting, or digital solutions to streamline data-management activities and reduce manual effort.\nAbility to interpret operational and quality metrics, use analytical/forecasting tools for capacity and scenario planning, and translate insights into clear decisions and actions.\nStrong understanding of common clinical and regulatory data standards, clinical operational data models, metadata management, and controlled terminologies (e.g., MedDRA, WHODrug) to ensure consistency and submission readiness.\nStrong understanding of validation, system lifecycle, data-privacy, and System Development Lifecycle Management activities\nStrong understanding of drug discovery process, FDA regulations, GxP / ICH guidelines\nAbility to connect business outcomes to technical deliverables\nNon-technical skills\nStrong ability to lead teams in a matrixed, global organization while ensuring delivery excellence through effective problem-solving techniques\nDemonstrated success in coaching, developing, and performance-managing high-performing individuals\nBuilds strong partnerships across technical, business, and quality functions to enhance collaboration and deliver integrated outcomes\nBalances business needs, resource capacity, and compliance requirements to make sound operational decisions\nCapable of leading teams through process and organizational transformation with empathy and clarity\nEnterprise Leadership Skills:\nExecution Excellence | Is results-focused per compliance standards; sets ambitious expectations for accomplishment and ensures others contribute to org strategies by focusing them on the most critical priorities; translates departmental goals into clear expectations\nCoaching and Development | Manages individual contributors and/or supervisors, provides technical guidance, and develops others through coaching, feedback, and guidance\nEntrepreneurship | Embraces patient customer focus, ensuring that internal or external customer perspective is the driving force behind strategic priorities, business decisions, org processes, and individual activities; crafts and implements service practices that meet customers' and own organization needs\nQualifications & experience:\nNon-Degree or Associate's Degree with a minimum of 10 years experience working in clinical data programming, data engineering, or related data-management/clinical operations function, as well as:\n2 years people management experience.\nDemonstrated deep subject matter expertise in clinical development.\nOR\nBachelor's Degree with a minimum of 8 years' experience working in clinical data programming, data engineering, or related data-management/clinical operations function, as well as:\n2 years people management experience.\nDemonstrated deep subject matter expertise in clinical development.\n\nOR\n Advanced Degree (Masters or Doctorate) with a minimum of 4 years' experience working in clinical data programming, data engineering, or related data-management/clinical operations functions, as well as:\n2 years people management experience.\nDemonstrated deep subject matter expertise in clinical development.\nRequired Skills:\nClinical Data Management, Data Integrity, Data Management, Decision Making, Good Clinical Data Management Practice (GCDMP), Organizational Leadership, People Leadership, Stakeholder Management, Strategic Thinking, Team LeadershipPreferred Skills:\nCurrent Employees apply HERE\nCurrent Contingent Workers apply HERE\nUS and Puerto Rico Residents Only:\nOur company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.\nAs an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. Asa federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:\nEEOC Know Your Rights\nEEOC GINA Supplement\nWe are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.\nLearn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts\nThe primary location for this posting is:\nUSA - New Jersey - RahwayWhere required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.\nThe salary range for the primary location of this role is:\n$142,400.00 - $224,100.00This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs. The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.\nWe offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits.\nAdditional location(s): Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.\nAdditional location(s) Compensation Information:\nSan Francisco Residents Only: We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance\nLos Angeles Residents Only: We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance\nSearch Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully\nMerck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. 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