Program Director

The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the University's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.

Position Summary

Columbia University's Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute unites world-class scientists across diverse academic disciplines to conduct groundbreaking research that transforms our understanding of the brain and its influence on the mind and behavior.

As a leading neuroscience institute, our mission is to decipher the mind and brain to better understand behavior. Our researchers are committed to foundational science, uncovering the principles that shape how the brain develops, functions, and recovers.

With more than 50 labs, the Zuckerman Institute serves as a hub for collaboration, bringing together Columbia's top scholars to drive research in bold new directions. Located in Manhattanville, our state-of-the-art Jerome L. Greene Science Center provides an inspiring home for discovery in one of the world's most dynamic cities.

The International Brain Laboratory (https : / / www.internationalbrainlab.com / ) is seeking a Program Director, who will play a key role in the leadership of a large-scale international collaboration in brain research. The IBL combines the efforts of about 60 scientists in 20 laboratories toward understanding the brain-wide basis of a complex behavior using a range of experimental and theoretical neuroscience approaches. This position will work closely with the collaboration's scientific leadership and technical staff to achieve its objectives and obtain continued funding. The successful candidate will play a critical role in defining new objectives as the organization takes on new scientific partners.

The Program Director will liaise with funders, the Scientific Advisory Board, external agencies and partners. This will include organizing site visits, meetings, and funder reports. They will also be responsible for financial oversight of the organization. The ideal candidate will have a background in neuroscience and program management experience. As this is a distributed collaboration, the candidate should be prepared to be based in one of our partner sites, and travel to the others (London, Lisbon, New York City, Princeton, Los Angeles and Seattle).

Responsibilities

• Serve as the main liaison with funders, the Scientific Advisory Board, external agencies, and partners.
• Forge consensus, acting as a moderator of online and physical meetings.
• Ensure that meetings are carried out effectively, that decision-making processes are respected and decisions reviewed, that communication processes and other software tools are working as well as possible.
• Assist the collaboration in achieving its objectives, obtaining continued funding, and defining new objectives.
• Oversee the generation and revision of a strategic plan with key stakeholders.
• Facilitate program governance and internal communication.
• Provide supervision to other personnel hired by the collaboration. Run a bi-annual performance review process.
• Manage overall project budget and finances (work with university partners for contracting / purchasing / reimbursement, work with the project manager for budgeting).
• Organize funder site visits and periodic meetings of the members of the collaboration.
• Orchestrate preparation of reports for funders.
• Assist in identifying funding opportunities and preparing funding applications.
• Lead efforts to improve organizational culture.
• Provide support for the researcher representatives and trainees in general.
• Oversee internal HR processes (work with University partners for hiring / termination).
• Create and maintain administrative documentation; provide administrative orientation for new members.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in neuroscience, biology, computer science, engineering, or a related discipline.
• At least 5 - 7 years of experience as a Program Manager / Director or related experience
• Ability to work independently, meet deadlines, and multitask efficiently.
• Outstanding interpersonal and communication skills required; be able to communicate effectively with a wide range of partners, including funders, advisors, and technical personnel.
• Ability to work co-operatively in a geographically distributed and multidisciplinary team.
• Must be detail-oriented, possess analytical skills, and be highly organized.

Preferred Qualifications

• An advanced degree in neuroscience, biology, computer science, engineering, mathematics, physics, or a related discipline is highly desired. Experience in establishing full project lifecycle plans for one or more projects of moderate to high visibility and / or complexity.
• Prior experience with an institution of higher education or other large, complex organization preferred.
• Familiarity with University financial systems is a plus.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.