Senior Research Program Manager

The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team

The Institute for Disease Modeling (IDM) at the Gates Foundation supports global efforts to eradicate infectious diseases and achieve permanent improvements in health. We develop, use, and share computational modeling tools, and promote quantitative decision-making. The IDM team is comprised of research scientists, software engineers, and strategic planning professionals.

Your Role  

As a Senior Research Program Manager, you will apply experience in public health research, program & project management, and leadership advising to guide strategic alignment, road mapping, and partnerships that underpin scientific research activities across IDM.  

 

You will lead a team of program managers and collaborate closely with research managers and scientists who work across diverse domain areas (e.g., infectious diseases, reproductive, maternal, and newborn health, health system strengthening). You and your team will  structure and guide decision-making to prioritize and sequence research activities to meet foundation and partner needs and enhance impact. Additionally, you and your team will develop and maintain roadmaps for cohesive execution against these priorities, surfacing and recommending decisions for risk and timeline management. This role offers the opportunity to span across all areas of IDM research and contribute to our impact at the overall organizational level as well as at the specific project level..  

 

You will be a thought partner and catalyst for change, crafting, coordinating, and implementing plans for the most complex challenges in global health modeling. Whether developing strategy, guiding teams through ambiguity, or mentoring emerging talent, you’ll bring structure, insight, and collaboration to everything you do. 

 

You will report to the Deputy Director for Strategy, Planning, and Management, and you will partner with peers focus on software product management and overall IDM strategy development.  

 

What You’ll Do  

• Provide strategic guidance for planning and execution of research portfolios in accordance with IDM’s and the Gates Foundation’s overall goals..  

• Analyze and distill research findings to inform strategy, anticipate risks and guide portfolio-level pivots when needed.  <