Program Associate, Medical Science

About the role

The Program Associate supports the Medical Science team by serving as a central project manager, execution partner, and operational lead. This individual works closely with the Senior Advisor and program team to drive forward a portfolio focused on Alzheimer’s disease and related neurodegenerative diseases.

Responsibilities

• Team Operations & Project Management (40%): Serve as the primary project manager for board cycles and other team-wide initiatives, ensuring timeline adherence and managing quality control.
• Partner closely with the Medical Science team to translate strategic priorities into actionable plans and ensure strong follow-through.
• Act as a connective “hub” across teams, ensuring alignment, communication, and progress on key initiatives.
• Coordinate team meetings by setting agendas, preparing briefing materials, and maintaining shared knowledge resources.
• Produce clear, well-designed materials (e.g., board books, dashboards, updates).
• Anticipate risks, bottlenecks, and information needs and proactively address them.
• Maintain and improve systems, tools, and processes to increase efficiency and clarity.
• Grant & Strategic Support (30%): Serve as a partner to the Medical Science team by synthesizing information, surfacing insights, and helping prioritize efforts.
• Develop clear, professional materials, including presentations, memos, data analyses, and board materials, that enable decision-making by Foundations leadership.
• Translate complex scientific and programmatic concepts into clear, structured, and visually compelling outputs (e.g., PowerPoint, dashboards) for program team review and refinement.
• Monitor progress against goals and proactively identify risks, gaps, and opportunities for improvement.
• Track, monitor, and report on active and prospective grants, ensuring timely updates.
• Support the full grant development process through managing pipeline timelines, QCing materials, and preparing polished board materials.
• Conduct preliminary research and monitor field trends to inform landscape analyses, grantee and external partner briefings, and monthly updates.
• As requested, participate in grantee calls, site visits, and events; synthesize meeting notes and extract insights for internal use.
• Database Management (30%): Manage databases supporting grant applications, portfolio tracking, and program evaluation and maintain strong data integrity.
• Use grant system data to support execution, identify patterns or issues, and recommend process improvements.
• Lead data quality control efforts and develop dashboards, visualizations, and Salesforce tools to support team decision-making.
• Collaborate with Grants Management to drive continual improvement in grants processes and system use.

Qualifications

• Expertise & Experience: 2–5 years of relevant professional experience, ideally in one or more of the following environments: philanthropy or foundation-based grantmaking; research institutions, academic labs, or biomedical organizations; consulting, strategy, or project management roles with exposure to complex problem-solving.
• Experience supporting senior leaders or operating in a project management or strategy execution role is highly valued.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex projects with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.
• Experience working with data systems, dashboards, or analytics (e.g., Salesforce, Excel, or similar tools).
• Education: Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree strongly preferred. Preferred fields include: neuroscience, biology, biomedical science, public health, data science, or related disciplines.
• Candidates with scientific training or demonstrated interest in Alzheimer’s disease, neurodegeneration, or biomedical research are strongly preferred.

Skills and Attributes

• Project Management Excellence: Exceptional ability to manage multiple complex workstreams, prioritize effectively, and execute with precision.
• Analytical & Technical Skills: Strong data analysis capabilities, with experience synthesizing and presenting data clearly.
• Communication & Presentation: Ability to create polished, executive-ready materials (especially PowerPoint) that drive clarity and decision-making.
• Systems Thinker: Skilled at building and improving processes, tools, and workflows.
• Execution Orientation: Willingness to operate across strategic and administrative work, with attention to detail and follow-through.
• Deep interest in or passion for Alzheimer’s disease, neurodegeneration, and biomedical science.
• Self-starter with strong initiative; able to operate independently while keeping stakeholders aligned.
• Intellectual curiosity and eagerness to learn in a fast-paced, evolving field.
• Collaborative and low-ego approach, with willingness to contribute wherever needed, including hands-on data and administrative tasks.