Job Purpose:
MBZUAI is expanding its partnership in the Global Human Phenotype Project (HPP) through the establishment of a new on-campus site comprising a Clinic and a Site Lab (“Clinic Testing Center – CTC”).
The CTC Lead will be responsible for planning, coordinating and tracking delivery of the project from establishment through steady-state operation, including hands-on operation of the on-campus CTC.
Key Responsibilities:
Project Planning and Delivery:
- Working closely with the Global HPP team to
- Develop and maintain an integrated project plan for the CTC, aligned with the agreed indicative project plan and HPP requirements.
- Define workstreams, milestones, dependencies and the critical path.
- Coordinate day-to-day execution across internal teams and external partners.
- Track progress against plan and drive timely resolution of delays and blockers.
- Ensure MBZUAI’s dependencies and inputs to the project are delivered on time.
On-campus CTC Establishment:
- Serve as the lead for establishment of the new on-campus CTC in collaboration with the Global HPP team. Responsibilities include:
- Coordinate with facilities, architects, engineers and contractors on the build-out of the site floor housing the CTC.
- Coordinate equipment and consumables procurement, delivery, installation and commissioning.
- Coordinate IT, network, security and platform access requirements with university IT.
- Coordinate recruitment and onboarding of CTC personnel.
- Localization and adaptation of HPP protocols and SOPs.
- Lead site-readiness planning and go-live preparation, in coordination with the Clinic Lead and Site Lab Lead once recruited.
Regulatory, Ethics and Approvals:
- Work closely with the Global HPP team and the relevant MBZUAI reference person to plan, coordinate and track all approvals required for the project, including:
- Ethics / IRB submissions, amendments and renewals.
- Facility and laboratory licensing with the relevant local authorities.
- Data protection, data transfer and information-security approvals.
- Institutional approvals, contracts and agreements required for delivery.
Operational Launch and Ongoing Operations:
- Once the CTC is operational, day-to-day operations are led by the Clinic Lead and Site Lab Lead. The CTC Lead supports them at project level by tracking:
- Participant recruitment.
- Operational KPIs, throughput and performance against HPP SOPs and requirements.
- Sample and data collection by the CTC.
- Follow-up of improvement actions arising from operational reviews.
Governance and Stakeholder Management:
- Act as the main point of contact for the Global HPP team for the on-campus CTC matters.
- Organize and run regular project meetings with the Global HPP team and internal stakeholders.
- Prepare materials for the project steering committee.
- Manage escalation of unresolved issues to senior representatives in line with the agreed governance.
- Build strong, collaborative working relationships across all parties.
Budget and Procurement:
- Tracking the project budget and expenditure against plan.
- Coordinating purchase orders, invoices and payment schedules with finance.
- Supporting vendor selection, negotiations and service contracts with procurement.
- Monitoring contractual deliverables and obligations under the project agreements.
Other Duties:
Perform all other duties as reasonably directed by the line manager that are commensurate with these functional objectives.
Qualifications and Criteria:
- Bachelor’s degree in Life Sciences, Health Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, Public Health, Business Administration or a related discipline
- Master’s degree (e.g. MPH, MBA, MSc) in a relevant field.
- Recognized project-management certification (e.g. PMP, PRINCE2).
Essential:
- Proven record of relevant experience in project or program management.
- Experience managing complex, multi-stakeholder projects in healthcare, clinical research or life sciences.
- Experience delivering the establishment of a new clinical site, laboratory or research facility.
- Familiarity with clinical research operations, ethics / IRB processes and Good Clinical Practice (ICH-GCP).
- Experience managing budgets, procurement and vendor relationships.
- Experience working within, or in partnership with, academic or research institutions.
- Experience reporting to senior leadership and steering committees.
- Excellent written and spoken English; Arabic is an advantage.
Preferred:
- The UAE / GCC healthcare and research regulatory environment
- Cohort studies or population-health programs
- Clinical trial site start-up
- International or multi-site research partnerships
- Laboratory accreditation projects
- Digital health and research data platforms
- Middle East Experience