SVP of Engineering

About the role

The SVP of Engineering leads and scales Medidata's integrated engineering organization, overseeing the technical strategy and execution for Data, Study, and Patient Experiences. Reporting directly to the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), this role acts as the organizational architect for the engineering craft, defining and implementing career pathing and professional development frameworks.

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.

Benefits

Medidata offers competitive compensation, including base pay ranging from $252,750 to $337,000 for positions in the NYC Metro Area, plus a comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, dental, life and disability insurance, 401(k) matching, flexible paid time off, and 10 paid holidays per year. Equal employment opportunity is also a priority at Medidata.