Vice President, Global Project Management & Delivery in Linthicum Heights, Maryland at Clinical Research Services, LLC

About CSS

CSS is transforming clinical trial recruitment through a technology-enabled, performance-driven delivery model focused on measurable outcomes. The Vice President, Global Project Management & Delivery will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of the organization, driving operational excellence, and building a world-class delivery team that sets a new standard for patient recruitment performance across the industry.

Position Overview

The Vice President, Global Project Management & Delivery is responsible for the strategic leadership, operational excellence, and performance delivery of all patient recruitment and retention programs across CSS. This executive leader will oversee the global Project Management organization and serve as the primary owner of recruitment execution, ensuring programs are delivered on time, on budget, and in alignment with client enrollment expectations.

This role requires a highly analytical and operationally focused leader with deep expertise in patient recruitment, clinical research operations, site engagement, performance-based delivery models, and global team leadership. The VP will be responsible for building a best-in-class delivery organization that leverages data, technology, process discipline, and cross-functional collaboration to drive measurable enrollment outcomes and exceptional client experiences.

As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, this individual will partner closely with Commercial, Marketing, Global Site Optimization, Technology, Data Analytics, Finance, and Executive Leadership to continuously improve operational performance, client satisfaction, and profitability.

Key Responsibilities

Executive Leadership

• Lead and develop the global Project Management and Delivery organization.
• Establish and execute the long-term vision for operational excellence and enrollment delivery across all CSS programs.
• Create a culture centered on accountability, urgency, collaboration, innovation, and measurable outcomes.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the President and Executive Leadership Team on operational performance, enrollment risks, resource planning, and client success.
• Develop scalable organizational structures, talent strategies, and operating models to support continued growth.

Global Project Delivery

• Own delivery performance across all active client programs and studies.
• Ensure projects are executed according to agreed timelines, enrollment targets, quality standards, and financial objectives.
• Establish consistent delivery methodologies, governance frameworks, and operational standards.
• Lead portfolio reviews to identify risks, opportunities, and resource requirements across all active programs.
• Ensure project teams proactively identify enrollment risks and implement mitigation plans before timelines are impacted.
• Oversee study startup, launch, execution, recovery planning, and closeout activities.

Patient Recruitment Performance

• Maintain executive accountability for recruitment performance and patient enrollment outcomes across the organization.
• Partner with Marketing, Global Site Optimization, Local Enrollment Specialists, and Site Networks to improve patient conversion rates and enrollment velocity.
• Drive accountability through recruitment performance metrics, forecasting, and operational scorecards.
• Establish standardized enrollment forecasting and risk assessment methodologies.
• Lead study rescue initiatives and executive-level intervention plans for underperforming programs.
• Continuously improve referral-to-consent and consent-to-randomization performance across all studies.

Client Leadership & Strategic Partnerships

• Serve as executive sponsor for key strategic clients and accounts.
• Participate in executive business reviews, governance meetings, and operational strategy discussions.
• Build trusted relationships with sponsors, CROs, site networks, and strategic partners.
• Ensure transparent communication regarding study performance, risks, mitigation plans, and opportunities.
• Support client retention, expansion opportunities, and long-term partnership growth.

Operational Excellence

• Establish KPIs, dashboards, and reporting frameworks across the delivery organization.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on scalability, quality, efficiency, and profitability.
• Implement best practices for project planning, enrollment forecasting, issue management, and resource allocation.
• Ensure consistent utilization of technology platforms, project management systems, and reporting tools.
• Partner with Technology and Data teams to advance predictive analytics, automation, and operational intelligence capabilities.

Financial & Business Performance

• Maintain accountability for project-level profitability and delivery efficiency.
• Monitor resource utilization, project budgets, and operational costs.
• Partner with Commercial, Finance, and Pricing teams to ensure operational assumptions align with project delivery realities.
• Support forecasting efforts related to enrollment performance, revenue generation, and organizational capacity planning.
• Drive operational decisions that protect margins while maximizing client outcomes.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner with Marketing leadership to align patient acquisition strategies with enrollment objectives.
• Collaborate with Global Site Optimization teams to improve site engagement, responsiveness, and patient throughput.
• Work closely with Commercial leadership to ensure seamless transition from sales to execution.
• Partner with Technology, Product, and Data Analytics teams to develop advanced reporting and predictive enrollment tools.
• Collaborate with Quality and Compliance teams to maintain operational excellence while meeting regulatory requirements.

Leadership Responsibilities

• Recruit, mentor, and retain high-performing project management and operational leaders.
• Establish clear performance expectations and accountability measures throughout the organization.
• Conduct performance reviews, coaching sessions, and leadership development initiatives.
• Build succession plans and career development pathways within the delivery organization.
• Foster a high-performance culture focused on results, collaboration, and continuous improvement

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience within clinical research, patient recruitment, CRO operations, healthcare services, or related industries.
• Minimum 5+ years leading large-scale project management or operational delivery organizations.
• Deep expertise in patient recruitment, enrollment forecasting, site engagement, and clinical trial operations.
• Experience managing global teams and multi-regional study portfolios.
• Strong financial acumen and experience managing budgets, profitability, and operational performance metrics.
• Proven success leading organizational transformation and operational improvement initiatives.
• Exceptional executive communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Demonstrated ability to build, scale, and lead high-performing teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience within a patient recruitment organization, CRO, sponsor, or site network.
• Experience operating within performance-based or outcome-driven business models.
• Familiarity with AI-enabled recruitment technologies, predictive analytics, and enrollment forecasting tools.
• Experience supporting Phase I–IV global clinical trials across multiple therapeutic areas.
• Experience leading complex, multi-country recruitment programs.

Success Measures

Success in this role will be measured by:

• Achievement of enrollment commitments and client objectives.
• Client retention, satisfaction, and growth.
• Project profitability and operational efficiency.
• Forecasting accuracy and proactive risk management.
• Improvement in referral, consent, and randomization conversion metrics.
• Employee engagement, retention, and leadership development.
• Successful implementation of scalable operational processes and technologies.
• Contribution to CSS revenue growth, margin performance, and strategic objectives.

Equal Opportunity Employer

CSS is committed to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace where all employees and applicants are treated with respect and dignity. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.