Manager, Research Innovation Core

A cover letter is required for consideration for this position and should be attached as the first page of your resume. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experience that directly relate to this position.

The Eisenberg Family Depression Center’s (EFDC) mission is “to catalyze interdisciplinary, data-intensive collaborations that produce high-impact advances and rapidly translate advances to improve the mental health and quality of life for individuals suffering, their families and communities.” As EFDC seeks to expand its reach, it is seeking a Manager for its Research Innovation Core.

This new position will help launch and lead the EFDC Research Innovation Core, one of three cores being established within the Center to provide infrastructure support to Center faculty members engaging in cutting-edge research. The Manager for the Research Innovation Core reports to the EFDC Managing Director and partners with the faculty lead for the Research Innovation Core to drive forward their strategic vision.

The goal of the Research Innovation Core is to facilitate and accelerate the creation of high impact research projects by providing broad research development support including pre-submission planning, connection to campus grant workshops some of which may be led by the EFDC, proposal writing and editing services, and letters of support, in addition to identifying potential funding opportunities, curating grant proposal development resources, and organizing peer-feedback sessions. The Manager will be responsible for building and overseeing the operations of this new core and directly supporting development of a variety of faculty research proposals initiated by both individuals and teams of EFDC member investigators. The research development portfolio may include a subset of large research projects (such as Program Project Grants/Center Grants), as well as Research Grants, and Career Development Awards. This position will be responsible for hiring staff who will report up to them, and they will be responsible for assessing needs and developing new programs and/or partnerships with others, including but not limited to, Michigan Institute for Clinical Health Research (MICHR) and the U-M Office of Research.

The successful candidate will be able to work independently; successfully hire and develop high-performing staff teams; build strong collaborative relationships; perform at a consistently high level under significant deadline pressure; demonstrate outstanding customer service, organizational and technical skills; and exercise judgment to meet the unique needs of each research project and investigator.

Michigan Medicine improves the health of patients, populations and communities through excellence in education, patient care, community service, research and technology development, and through leadership activities in Michigan, nationally and internationally. Our mission is guided by our Strategic Principles and has three critical components; patient care, education and research that together enhance our contribution to society.

Michigan Medicine is one of the largest health care complexes in the world and has been the site of many groundbreaking medical and technological advancements since the opening of the U-M Medical School in 1850. Michigan Medicine is comprised of over 30,000 employees and our vision is to attract, inspire, and develop outstanding people in medicine, sciences, and healthcare to become one of the world’s most distinguished academic health systems. In some way, great or small, every person here helps to advance this world-class institution. Work at Michigan Medicine and become a victor for the greater good.

What Benefits can you Look Forward to?

• Excellent medical, dental and vision coverage effective on your very first day
• 2:1 Match on retirement savings

• In conjunction with EFDC leadership and Research Innovation Core lead faculty, develop for the Core: programmatic goals, objectives, budget, timelines, staffing needs, and key metrics to measure engagement and success
• Oversee project(s) day-to-day operations of the Core, including staff hiring and management and development of a high-performing team with emphasis on continued professional development for all members of the team
• Become familiar over time with EFDC’s membership to assist faculty in identifying a wide range of potential collaborations across the breadth and depth of EFDC’s membership
• Work with faculty members across disciplines to catalyze new research ideas and opportunities by convening faculty teams and/or research networks to strategically approach proposal development and funding opportunities.
• Guide research teams through the proposal development process and assists individual faculty members with developing ideas for effective proposals. Interprets Requests for Proposals (RFP) and Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOA).
• Identify and plan (1) research innovation events, like shark tanks, hackathons, speed networking, and ideas labs to catalyze development of cutting-edge research projects, as well as (2) opportunities, like mock-study sections, for faculty to receive peer feedback on proposals
• Track funding announcements from federal agencies and private funders that align with EFDC’s strategic areas of focus, and communicate opportunities to appropriate investigators
• Write and maintain EFDC’s ‘grant boilerplate’ language, including organizational descriptions and letters of support from EFDC’s Director
• Establish and maintain a grant development resources section on the EFDC website to include grant writing and grantsmanship guidance, linkages to EFDC and University-wide grant education and funding resources, and other helpful materials to support members’ proposal development efforts
• Implement systems to track requests for grant development support and all services provided; evaluate and produce annual and longitudinal summaries of service delivery to determine return on investment and appropriate mix of services
• Develop additional programming and resources for faculty and staff such as online proposal libraries, research development newsletters, PI toolkits, and early career mentoring plans.
• Project management, including supporting the administration of internal funding programs, limited submissions competitions, and online tools supporting research development.

We are looking for a person who is creative, energetic, and can connect with a diverse set of stakeholders. This person needs to be willing to try new things, can work independently and as part of a team, is highly dependable, and has a positive attitude.

• Bachelor’s degree in health sciences, health communications, or a related field.
• 2-4 years of experience.
• Track record of hiring, building, and managing high-performing teams
• Previous experience launching new programs and initiatives
• Previous experience creating and overseeing budgets and developing metrics for tracking
• Excellent writing skills, with a track record of writing and/or editing successful grant proposals
• Ability to work as part of a team that values brainstorming and collaboration, as well as capacity to work independently and take initiative
• Strong organizational skills, and ability to effectively manage numerous projects, simultaneously and in various stages of development
• Must be productive and flexible under pressure and able to meet deadlines
• Evidence of creative spark and initiative, accountability, discipline, and integrity

• Master’s degree or higher
• Experience working within complex healthcare or academic settings

Michigan Medicine conducts background screening and pre-employment drug testing on job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent job offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background screenings. Background screenings are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Report Act. Pre-employment drug testing applies to all selected candidates, including new or additional faculty and staff appointments, as well as transfers from other U-M campuses.

Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the eighth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended.

The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.

U-M COVID-19 Vaccination Policy

COVID-19 vaccinations are now required for all University of Michigan students, faculty and staff across all three campuses, including Michigan Medicine. This includes those working or learning remotely. More information on this policy is available on the Campus Blueprint website or the U-M Dearborn and U-M Flint websites.