Overview

The Program Manager will join the newly established translational research program at the MIT Center for Constructive Communication (CCC) and will work closely with Dimitra Dimitrakopoulou, Head of Translational Research to manage the core functions of the program. The Program Manager’s primary responsibility will be managing a diverse network of field pilot collaborators across local government, civil society, industry, media, and academia and contributing to developing a portfolio of field pilots, research projects and programs, and educational opportunities. The Program Manager will oversee translational research program execution, including strategic planning, program design/management, and team coordination. The Program Manager will also support a culture of research in CCC,  including organizing research events and meetings, tracking and promoting CCC research output, and collecting and distributing relevant funding opportunities for CCC faculty and research staff.

The position requires extensive interaction with many internal/external stakeholders. The Program Manager will work closely with a diverse group of research staff, students, community partners, collaborators, and visitors who are passionate about conducting collaborative, human-centered, and applied research on social dialogue technologies to foster constructive communication in a variety of spaces, such as communities, the workplace, mediation, and deliberation. In addition to outstanding communication, writing, and editing skills, this job requires superior organizational skills, flexibility, and the ability to effectively prioritize, integrate and balance the various ongoing efforts under strict deadlines.

This position is ideal for candidates who have experience executing the implementation of research projects, communicating and coordinating with academics and people conducting human-centered and participatory research, and communicating research results across diverse stakeholders. The Program Manager will work on many projects simultaneously in a demanding, fast-paced environment with the ability to shift tasks quickly and successfully balance and prioritize workload. The Program Manager will be involved in all aspects of projects including project scoping and design, communication with field pilot partners, field visits, coordination of other staff, supporting funding applications, and communicating research outputs.

About MIT CCC

Fostering collaborations across the MIT campus and beyond, the MIT Center for Constructive Communication (CCC), based at the MIT Media Lab, leverages data-driven analytics to better understand current social and mass media ecosystems and designs new tools and communication networks to foster constructive dialogue, listening, and bridging across divides. To achieve this, CCC brings together researchers in AI, computational social science, digital interactive design, and learning technologies with software engineers, journalists, political scientists, designers, and community organizers. An important aspect of the center is its commitment to design new models for more trusted and less toxic social networks.

Responsibilities

Project Management (30%)

• Develop, execute, and manage program/project plans and proposals. Manage activities and strategies to ensure program/project operations are effective and efficient;
• Manage timelines/action steps and work with others to meet objectives and deadlines. Work with management to determine objectives and success metrics; Manage the implementation of changes;
•  Develop recommendations for program/project process improvements. Manage program/project scope and schedule, identify and resolve issues (e.g. overrunning budget or project timeline problems);
• Facilitate and plan the content of project meetings, making recommendations and pertinent changes to program content and objectives, provide feedback on ideas and project direction, and follow-up with stakeholders;
• Collaborate with internal and/or external stakeholders to ensure the achievement of deliverables;
• Draft progress reports for submission to external funding agencies.

Field Pilot Management (40%)

• Onboard field pilot partners by presenting processes and technology tools to potential and existing partners;
• Outline and implement CCC’s strategy with field pilot partners, clearly and compellingly sharing our vision, process, and technology with potential and existing partners;
• Manage large multi-phase field pilots with field partners in a variety of spaces, such as communities, the workplace, mediation, and deliberation;
• Work collaboratively with faculty, research program leaders, and collaborators to define and operationalize each study’s needs and requirements, including recruitment strategy, protocol, data management, and reporting of findings;
• Implement rigorous research designs, including –but not limited to– facilitated conversations, interviews, focus groups, and surveys experiments, under the supervision of Principal Investigators/Co-Principal Investigators;
• Support the full research implementation pipeline, including data use agreements, IRB protocols, research design, and implementation, and drafting analysis plans under the supervision of Principal Investigators/Co-Principal Investigators;
• Explore opportunities for field pilot initiatives, developing new outreach strategies and onboarding requirements; Participate in the conceptual design of new field pilot projects;
• Support study-related documents including IRB protocols and amendments, guidelines, training and reference materials;
• Design and develop program/project systems and resources (e.g. databases, documentation, policies, and procedures);
• Provide documentation and/or reporting to internal and/or external stakeholders and responds to inquiries;
• Develop, implement, organize, and maintain processes and systems to support study execution in a research setting or in the field;
• Coordinate with cross-study recruitment strategies to prioritize outreach to maximize recruitment efforts;
• Manage the resolution of human subjects’ issues that may arise during the study.

Communications (20%)

• Represent program(s)/project(s) to internal and external stakeholders;
• Support scheduling and coordination of meetings and events;
• Track CCC events, research publications, and achievements. Coordinate with CCC Communications staff to document and publicize events and research achievements internally and with the broader MIT community;
• Support the preparation of agendas for meetings, record meetings as needed, and monitor action items for standing meetings;
• Support the preparation of materials to communicate about upcoming workshops, research seminars, and events or to report on hosted workshops, research seminars, and events;
• May be responsible for gathering project information from faculty members and research staff, organizing and formatting the information into reports and other required documents and submissions.

Event Management (10%)

• Manage the planning and coordinating of workshops, research seminars, and events, including speaker recruitment, preparation of agenda, creating and distributing event listings across multiple media, and managing recordings and dissemination of output;
• May be asked to attend MIT or outside events (including after-hours and weekends).

Supervision Received:

General supervision by Dimitra Dimitrakopoulou, Head of Translational Research

Supervision Exercised:

None.

Qualifications and Skills

Required Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree;
• Minimum of 3+ years of related experience in program management preferably in an academic setting, with a broad understanding of academic operations and research required;
• Experience executing the implementation of research projects, communicating and coordinating with academics and collaborators in the field;
• Superior interpersonal skills for interacting with a diverse group of researchers, students, community partners, and other affiliates;
• In addition to outstanding communication, writing, and editing skills, this job requires superior organizational skills, attention to detail, flexibility, and the ability to effectively prioritize, integrate and balance the various ongoing efforts under strict deadlines;
• Experience leading projects, programs, or functions;
• Must be comfortable working both independently and as part of a team and be comfortable meeting deadlines and balancing competing priorities;
• Project management experience-strong skills in developing timelines, and creating and maintaining project documentation;
• Strong ability to synthesize and communicate information and data in a cohesive and succinct manner;
• Previous experience in academia, research lab setting, or applied research environment, as is in-depth experience working with faculty, staff, and administrative staff;
• Proven ability to prioritize and deliver quality results in a high-volume research ecosystem;
• Ability to be flexible and multitask and comfortable working in a demanding, fast-paced environment;
• Ability to prioritize and accomplish tasks with minimal supervision, and creatively solve problems;
• Good judgment under pressure, while negotiating competing and often time-sensitive priorities from multiple stakeholders in a varied and sometimes demanding office environment.

Minimum Qualifications: 

• Master’s degree with 3+ years of related experience in program management preferably in an academic setting, with a broad understanding of academic operations and research required.
• Prior experience conducting or supporting applied research.
• Experience submitting proposals and working with research investigators.
• Outstanding writing and editing skills, with the demonstrated ability to translate research for a range of audiences.
• Strong information visualization skills, to conceive of and design images that convey key programmatic messages.

This is a one-year appointment with the possibility of extension based on funding and the course of research.

Salary range is $71,000 – $119,000 based on experience