Associate Director - Quality and Patient Safety Strategic Initiatives

The Department of Quality and Patient Safety (QPS) supports Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s mission to reduce the burden of cancer by advancing quality across the cancer-care continuum. Under the direction of the Senior Director of Business Operations, the Associate Director of QPS Strategic Initiatives oversees a portfolio of cross-functional priorities that advance operating capabilities and performance across the six pillars of quality. A key enabler of the Institute’s quality agenda, the Associate Director leads goal-setting and tracking processes and oversees a team driving coordinated action toward these objectives. By cultivating a culture of best practice-driven project-management, applying systems thinking, and modeling a collaborative, solutions-oriented approach, the Associate Director fosters the alignment, accountability, and focus needed to achieve measurable and sustainable impact.

Located in Boston and the surrounding communities, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is a leader in life changing breakthroughs in cancer research and patient care. We are united in our mission of conquering cancer, HIV/AIDS, and related diseases. We strive to create an inclusive, diverse, and equitable environment where we provide compassionate and comprehensive care to patients of all backgrounds, and design programs to promote public health particularly among high-risk and underserved populations. We conduct groundbreaking research that advances treatment, we educate tomorrow's physician/researchers, and we work with amazing partners, including other Harvard Medical School-affiliated hospitals.
 

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

• Team Leadership:Leads the QPS Strategic Initiatives team, the department’s project-management office and central resource for project-delivery standards, tools, and expertise. Responsible for directing day-to-day operations, managing resources and relationships, and defining the project-management methodologies applied by the team. Monitors the capacity and health of the team’s portfolio to sequence commitments, allocate work, and demonstrate impact. Performs quality checks to ensure projects and their associated deliverables meet business requirements and are completed within time, scope, and budget constraints. Uses data and stakeholder feedback to continuously improve effectiveness and engagement. Identifies financial needs and manages expenses to budget. Recruits, supervises, and develops talent with the capability to achieve goals through coaching, performance management, and structured development planning. Sets clear expectations and fosters a productive, collaborative, and learning-oriented work environment.
• Portfolio and Goal Management:Oversees QPS portfolio and goal management, establishing the infrastructure, workflows, and engagement needed to translate strategic priorities into actionable work, support informed decision-making, and create the accountability and transparency that drive successful execution across a complex network of contributors. Collaborates with leaders and key stakeholders to establish annual departmental goals and institutional Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement (QAPI) priorities that are clearly defined, measurable, achievable, and supported by appropriate governance and resourcing structures. Provides timely insight through effective monitoring and reporting, with defined pathways for elevating risks and accomplishments. Refines work-tracking solutions over time to meet evolving business and stakeholder needs.
• Project Leadership: Manages the most complex projects within the Strategic Initiatives portfolio and serves as the project and change-management lead within QPS for major Institutional endeavors, such as planning for the Clinical Transformation and Lavine Bekenstein Cancer Hospital. Guides multiple quality and operational improvement initiatives from concept through closure. Partners with sponsors and subject-matter experts to define objectives, scope, governance structures, implementation plans, success measures, and sustainment strategies. Mobilizes cross-functional teams to advance work toward intended outcomes, owning both the mechanics and trajectory of the project. Operates from a consultative mindset, anticipating needs, proactively managing resources, dependencies, risks, constraints, and expectations, and escalating barriers with proposed solutions. Effectively engages stakeholders to maintain awareness, alignment, and momentum.
• Project-Management-Practice Championship: Serves as a subject-matter expert and advisor for the practice of project management, promoting a systematic approach from initiation through closure with practical tools and standards that strengthen consistency across QPS. Keeps abreast of advances in the field and adapts best practices to fit the department's culture and business needs. Serves as the department's in-house expert for Smartsheet and other collaboration, productivity, and survey platforms. Strengthens project-management capabilities across the QPS workforce through education, structured mentoring, community building, and other offerings. Creates pathways for knowledge transfer, leveraging project experiences and outcomes to mature practice and amplify lessons learned. Represents QPS in project-management efforts beyond the department, advocating for internal interests while building visibility and cultivating external relationships for collaboration, shared learning, and practice alignment, where appropriate.
• Performs other duties, as required. Note that responsibilities may change over time to encourage professional growth and meet evolving business needs.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Advanced knowledge of project-management methodologies and tools.
• proven track record of guiding high-stakes initiatives to their intended outcomes, facilitating cross-functional teams, and translating strategic vision into actionable plans with clear goals, objectives, and deliverables.
• Critical thinking and the analytical mindset to apply structure and ingenuity to solve complex challenges.
• Strong leadership, team-building, and managerial skills, with the ability to develop staff and influence effectively both with and without formal authority.
• Political savvy and exceptional stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to forge productive relationships with providers, staff, and leaders at all organizational levels.
• Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information into effective stakeholder communications and high-quality work product.
• Exceptional prioritization and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple responsibilities simultaneously, navigate ambiguity, resolve conflict, and adapt to change.
• Ability to respond effectively to time-sensitive issues and make independent decisions in a fast-paced, dynamic, and deadline-driven environment.
• A self-directed workstyle, taking initiative while thriving in a setting that requires collaboration, teamwork, and matrixed oversight.
• An understanding of the quality-management landscape, experience implementing change-management strategies,and familiarity with process- and performance-improvement methodologies.
• A strong command of Microsoft Office, Smartsheet, and other business applications; expertise using data analysis, visualization, and/or survey tools.

Minimum Job Qualifications:

Bachelor's Degree in Business, Health Management/Policy, Industrial Engineering, or other related field required. Master's degree preferred. 7 years of experience leading complex projects to success required, ideally within an academic medical setting. Prior healthcare-quality experience required, either through direct work in the field or consulting support for quality and patient-safety initiatives. Prior managerial experience strongly preferred.

License/Certification/Registration Required:

Professional certification in project management (e.g., PMP, CAPM, PMO-CP) required upon or within six months of hire. Smartsheet Professional or Architect certification preferred. Professional certification in healthcare quality (e.g., CPHQ) and/or improvement science (e.g., Lean Six Sigma, CCMP) preferred.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Yes

Patient Contact:

No

Special Working Conditions:

None

At Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, we work every day to create an innovative, caring, and inclusive environment where every patient, family, and staff member feels they belong. As relentless as we are in our mission to reduce the burden of cancer for all, we are committed to having faculty and staff who offer multifaceted experiences. Cancer knows no boundaries and when it comes to hiring the most dedicated and compassionate professionals, neither do we. If working in this kind of organization inspires you, we encourage you to apply.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is an equal opportunity employer and affirms the right of every qualified applicant to receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, national origin, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability, age, ancestry, military service, protected veteran status, or other characteristics protected by law.  

EEO Poster

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Pay Transparency Statement

The hiring range is based on market pay structures, with individual salaries determined by factors such as business needs, market conditions, internal equity, and based on the candidate’s relevant experience, skills and qualifications.

For union positions, the pay range is determined by the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

$126,900.00 - $152,100.00