Functional Area Geography Associate Director, GDMS Clinical Data Management

Job Description

The Functional Area Geography Associate Director, GDMS Clinical Data Management oversees day-to-day data-management operations and resources within the assigned geography. The role ensures operational efficiency, compliance, and quality delivery, supports regional strategy and resourcing, and partners with other leaders to promote consistent practices and staff development across sites.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee Data Management operations within the assigned geography, ensuring quality, compliance, operational excellence, and inspection readiness.
• Drive resource planning, workload balancing, and performance monitoring in partnership with operational stakeholders.
• Ensure consistent implementation of GDMS (Global Data Management and Standards)/GCTO (Global Data Clinical Operations) standards, regulatory requirements, and best practices.
• Manage operational risks, support continuous improvement, change initiatives, and cross-regional alignment.
• Build, develop, and lead high-performing teams through coaching, onboarding, talent development, and performance management.
• Lead hiring, workforce planning, employee engagement, and budget management.
• Coaches, inspires and empowers team members, creating the support structures and clarity needed for high performance.

Technical Expertise

• Strong knowledge of clinical data management, clinical trial lifecycle including study start-up processes, and industry regulations (GCP, 21 CFR Part 11).
• Experience with data standards, data flow, quality oversight, and inspection readiness.
• Proficiency in resource planning, operational metrics, and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Ability to drive high-quality clinical data design, validation, delivery, and audit preparation.

Leadership & Professional Skills

• Exceptional stakeholder management, communication, influencing and presentation skills across global, cross-functional environments.
• Proven people leadership with a strong focus on coaching, mentoring, talent development, and team performance.
• Ability to lead through influence, foster collaboration, and drive alignment without direct authority.
• Strong decision-making, problem-solving, adaptability, and resilience in dynamic environments.
• Demonstrated success in leading organizational change, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Fluent English with excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Enterprise Leadership Skills

• Execution Excellence | Drives reliable, high-quality delivery within their team - developing core functional capabilities and KPI-driven measurement approaches (e.g., time-to-lock, query rates, error reduction) to track progress, improve outcomes, and support consistent, submission-ready outputs across studies.
• Strategic Planning | Thinks strategically within the assigned scope and gains alignment through collaborative stakeholder engagement and influence across development, clinical operations, regulatory, safety, and IT.
• Networking & Partnerships | Builds and sustains strategic internal and external relationships (cross-functional leaders, service providers, alliance partners, customers) within the assigned scope to advance functional area objectives.

Qualifications & experience

• Advanced Degree (Masters or Doctorate) (preferred in Life Science, Data, Information Technology, Project Management or Business) with 4 years of related industry experience in data management, including demonstrated experience in clinical data management, clinical trial operations, and managing large diverse teams, and minimum 2 years of people leadership or management experience (direct or matrix leadership).

Additional location(s) Compensation Information:

Required Skills:

Clinical Data Management, Clinical Development, Clinical Research, Clinical Trials, Data Analysis, Data Extraction, Data Integration, Data Validation, Delivery Management, Enterprise Leadership, Good Clinical Practice (GCP), People Leadership, People Management, Pharmacovigilance, Project Management, Stakeholder Management, Strategic Planning, Strategic Thinking

Preferred Skills:

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Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

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Merck & 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. Please, no phone calls or emails.

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

No

Travel Requirements:

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

n/a

Job Posting End Date:

10/25/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.

Our company is a global health care leader with a diversified portfolio of prescription medicines, vaccines and animal health products. The difference between potential and achievement lies in the spark that fuels innovation and inventiveness; this is the space where we have codified our legacy for over a century. Our success is backed by ethical integrity, forward momentum, and an inspiring mission to achieve new milestones in global healthcare.

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