VP VRI Research Administration

Job Description

At Vitalant Research Institute (VRI), our mission is to advance scientific discovery and innovation that improve transfusion medicine, blood health, and patient outcomes worldwide. As Vice President, Research Administration, you will play a critical leadership role in enabling that mission by providing strategic direction and operational excellence across the administrative, financial, and research support functions that empower our scientists and investigators to make life-changing discoveries.

Working Shift (if Applicable)

Shift 1 (United States of America)

Compensation

$208,270 - $260,000 annually

Location

360 Spear Street Suite 200 San Francisco, CA 94105

Job Category

Vitalant Research Institute

Requirements

• Master’s degree in research administration, business administration, healthcare administration, public administration, finance, scientific discipline, or related field required.
• Doctoral degree or other advanced professional degree in a relevant discipline preferred.
• Advanced knowledge of sponsored research administration, including proposal development, grant and contract administration, award management, post-award administration, research finance, and investigator support required.
• Advanced knowledge of federal, state, sponsor, and institutional requirements governing sponsored research required, including NIH and other federal agency requirements, Uniform Guidance, research integrity, conflict of interest, human and animal subjects protections, audit readiness, and applicable compliance obligations.
• Demonstrated knowledge of financial management, budgeting, forecasting, internal controls, administrative operations, human resources partnership, information technology, facilities, and business systems in complex research, healthcare, academic, nonprofit, or scientific environment required.
• Knowledge of intellectual property, technology transfer, research affiliations, industry collaborations, and extramural funding strategies preferred.
• Knowledge of blood banking, transfusion medicine, biomedical research, or related healthcare research environment preferred.
• Certified Research Administrator (CRA), Certified Pre-Award Research Administrator (CPRA), Certified Financial Research Administrator (CFRA), or comparable research administration certification preferred.
• Minimum of 15 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in research administration, sponsored programs, administrative operations, finance, or related research infrastructure functions required.
• Minimum of 7 years of senior leadership experience managing teams, leaders, or complex administrative functions required.
• Experience leading research administration in healthcare, biomedical research, academic, nonprofit, blood services, biotechnology, or similar scientific environment required.
• Demonstrated experience overseeing sponsored research administration, including grant and contract administration, pre-award and post-award processes, research finance, compliance, audit readiness, and investigator support required.
• Experience developing and implementing policies, procedures, controls, governance structures, and process improvements across complex administrative or research operations required.
• Experience partnering with executive leadership, investigators, corporate shared services, external sponsors, academic institutions, industry partners, and government agencies required.
• Experience supporting research growth strategies, investigator recruitment, strategic affiliations, external collaborations, technology transfer, intellectual property processes, or extramural funding initiatives preferred.

Skills/Abilities

• Executive leadership skills with the ability to set strategic direction, establish priorities, align resources, and drive results across complex research administration functions.
• Strong business, financial, and operational acumen, including the ability to evaluate budgets, forecasts, risks, controls, resource needs, and organizational performance.
• Demonstrated ability to lead through subordinate leaders, develop high-performing teams, build leadership capability, and foster accountability, engagement, and collaboration.
• Strong knowledge-based judgment and decision-making skills, with the ability to assess complex research administration, compliance, financial, contractual, and operational matters.
• Excellent executive communication, presentation, negotiation, and relationship-management skills, including the ability to influence senior leaders, investigators, sponsors, partners, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to design, implement, and improve policies, procedures, governance structures, controls, and administrative processes.
• Strong change leadership and organizational development skills, with the ability to lead teams and stakeholders through growth, integration, process improvement, and operational transformation.
• Ability to balance strategic priorities with operational execution, service orientation, compliance requirements, financial stewardship, and risk management.
• High level of integrity, discretion, and professionalism in handling confidential, sensitive, financial, personnel, contractual, and research-related information.
• Advanced proficiency with business, financial, reporting, research administration, and productivity systems sufficient to oversee data-informed decision making and administrative operations.