SVP of Engineering
About the role
Medidata is seeking a visionary and results-driven SVP of Engineering to lead and scale our integrated engineering organization. This pivotal role oversees the technical strategy and execution for our three core pillars: Data, Study, and Patient Experiences. Reporting directly to the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), you will be a key member of the R&D executive leadership team.
About the Team
We are seeking a visionary and results-driven SVP of Engineering to lead and scale our integrated engineering organization. This pivotal role oversees the technical strategy and execution for our three core pillars: Data, Study, and Patient Experiences.
Key Responsibilities
Strategy & Multi-Experience Execution
Unified Roadmap: Define and own the long-term engineering roadmap across the Data, Study, and Patient pillars, ensuring a seamless technical interface between clinical data, researcher workflows, and patient engagement.
Architecture & Resilience: Lead the architecture review process for a unified platform, driving decisions on cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure, or GCP) to ensure high availability and GxP compliance.
Executive Leadership: Act as a primary advisor to the CTO on technical debt, resource allocation, and the long-term scalability of the R&D organization.
Organizational Design & Career Pathing
Defining the Path: Design and implement a standardized Engineering Career Ladder (IC and Management tracks) across all of R&D to ensure transparency, growth, and retention.
Mentorship & Culture: Scale multiple cross-functional teams (Backend, Frontend, DevOps, Data, QA), fostering a high-performance culture that balances high-velocity shipping with the rigors of a regulated environment.
Talent Acquisition: Own the global hiring strategy for engineering, ensuring we attract top-tier talent capable of operating at the intersection of life sciences and deep tech.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Compliance
Primary Technical Partner: Collaborate with Product Management, Clinical Operations, and Scientific R&D to translate complex scientific needs into secure technical solutions.
Compliance Sovereignty: Serve as the ultimate owner of the platform's security and compliance posture (e.g., GxP, 21 CFR Part 11, HIPAA, GDPR).
Audit Readiness: Oversee system validation and audit readiness for regulatory submissions and client inspections.
Qualifications
Required Experience:
12+ years of progressive experience in software engineering, with 5+ years in a senior leadership role (e.g., VP or Head of Engineering).
Direct Reporting to C-Suite: Proven ability to operate at the executive level, influencing company-wide strategy and reporting directly to a CTO or CEO.
Regulated Industry Mastery: Deep experience within Life Sciences, Healthcare, or MedTech, with a firm grasp of GxP and HIPAA requirements.
Complex Systems: Proven track record of managing "Experience" ecosystems (User-facing apps + Data-heavy backends).
People Operations: Demonstrable experience in org design, including the creation of career leveling and performance management frameworks.
Experience in AI and agentic enablement of R&D teams and transforming engineering practices, skills, and SDLC towards an AI powered organization.
Preferred Experience
Experience integrating AI/ML for scientific insights or clinical trial optimization.
Advanced degree (Master’s or PhD) in Computer Science or a related technical field.
Familiarity with Electronic Data Capture (EDC) and decentralized clinical trial (DCT) workflows.
Pay
The salary range for positions that will be physically based in the NYC Metro Area is $252,750- $337,000. Base pay is one part of the Total Rewards that Medidata provides to compensate and recognize employees for their work. Most sales positions are eligible for a commission on the terms of applicable plan documents, and many of Medidata's non-sales positions are eligible for annual bonuses.
Benefits
Medidata offers best-in-class benefits, including medical, dental, life and disability insurance; 401(k) matching; flexible paid time off; and 10 paid holidays per year.
Equal Employment Opportunity
In order to provide equal employment and advancement opportunities to all individuals, employment decisions at Medidata are based on merit, qualifications and abilities. Medidata is committed to a policy of non-discrimination and equal opportunity for all employees and qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or medical or common conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, familial status, national origin, ancestry, age (40 and above), disability, veteran status, military service, application for military service, genetic information, receipt of free medical care, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law.