University of Tennessee Health Science Center Looking for Vice Chancellor for Research – Memphis, TN Full Time

Description

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), the public’s statewide academic health system, invites applications and nominations for the appointment of Vice Chancellor for Research (VCR). The position is based in Memphis, Tennessee, with responsibilities for UTHSC campuses in Memphis, Nashville, Chattanooga, Knoxville, and many affiliated partners. This position reports directly to the UTHSC Chancellor.

UTHSC is Tennessee’s only statewide, public, academic health science institution. As the state’s largest educator of healthcare professionals, we are vital to Tennessee. Additionally, UTHSC’s clinical faculty and more than 1,400 residents and fellows staff major hospitals in Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga. With six colleges – Dentistry, Health Professions, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy – UTHSC has more than 3,100 students, who are Tennessee’s future healthcare workforce, and more than 380 researchers working to improve the health of Tennesseans.

VICE CHANCELLOR FOR RESEARCH

Reporting to the UTHSC Chancellor, the Vice Chancellor for Research serves as a member of the Chancellor’s leadership cabinet and will lead efforts to enhance basic, translational, and clinical research across all UTHSC colleges and campuses. The VCR contributes to the overall leadership of UTHSC by working collaboratively as part of an energetic and collegial team to advance the University’s mission and goals. Growing clinical programs in transplant, trauma, stroke, pediatrics, cardiovascular disease, and cancer provide an opportunity to develop basic, translational, and clinical research foci that address major acute and chronic healthcare concerns of Tennesseans. In parallel, ongoing programs in comparative effectiveness and health outcomes support the further development of research to assess the real-world impact of UTHSC’s advancing biomedical and other health-related discoveries. To ensure success in basic, clinical, and translational research, the VCR will maintain and enhance strong and creative partnerships with affiliated teaching hospitals in major cities, including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, and the VA Memphis Healthcare System.

The Vice Chancellor for Research will be responsible for the sustained promotion and facilitation of research interactions among UTHSC colleges; strengthening extramural funding; formulating and maintaining university research policies and procedures; representing the institution to external funding organizations, and partner institutions; communicating research findings and activities to lay audiences; enhancing the research infrastructure to meet the needs of faculty, research staff, students and administrators; fostering new research initiatives; and, maintaining a comprehensive research compliance program.

The Vice Chancellor for Research will ensure the operational and performance effectiveness of the centrally-funded support units, developing and implementing strategies to continuously improve research infrastructure and services provided by central administration.  The support units are the Office of Sponsored Programs, Office of Research Compliance, Office of Research Development, Office of Scientific Writing, and Research Safety Affairs. Additional units within the VCR’s portfolio are various shared resource facilities, the Lab Animal Care Unit, the Regional Biocontainment Lab, the Institutional Core Labs, the Institutional Review Board (IRB), the Clinical Research Units, the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC), Export Control, Research Integrity, and Research Conflict of Interest/Integrity.

The Vice Chancellor for Research will also advise the Chancellor on matters of university research policy, vision, strategic planning, and long-range budgeting. Working closely and collaboratively with the Deans, the inaugural Vice Chancellor for Strategic Partnership, and other leaders, the Vice Chancellor for Research will be the ambassador and liaison with the other UT system campuses: they will advocate for and promote increased collaboration in health science related research across all UT campuses. They will also facilitate the commercial development of novel research findings.

UTHSC seeks an accomplished researcher who is a highly collaborative individual who demonstrates the leadership attributes that will enable a unity of purpose and synergism among Deans, Chairs, and research faculty and staff. The Vice Chancellor for Research should be customer-oriented, highly receptive to feedback, and dedicated to continuous process improvement.

The Vice Chancellor for Research will be responsible for providing effective leadership to all administrative research units serving the research enterprise at UTHSC; nurturing research, scholarship, and creative activity by faculty, staff, and students; working with university and college administration in establishing new programs and research directions to promote and enhance contributions to knowledge and the national standing of UTHSC.

Finally, the Vice Chancellor for Research is the focal point for all UTHSC research and should understand the key social, political, economic, and technological changes affecting academic health science centers and higher education today and bring creativity and vision to UTHSC’s efforts to address those changes. 

Qualifications

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS/EXPERIENCE

•         Earned doctorate (e.g., Ph.D., Ed.D.) or other professional health science terminal degree (e.g., M.D., D.D.S., D.M.D., D.O., D.V.M., PharmD., D. NSc.) from an accredited university and a distinguished research and scholarly productivity record.
•         Minimum of eight years of combined experience in basic, clinical, or translational research and progressive leadership or management roles in academic or research administration at an institution of higher education or health care organization.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS and Desirable Leadership Attributes

•         A PhD, M.D. or equivalent terminal degree is required with at least eight years relevant professional experience.
•         Distinguished research and leadership record and an understanding of the public higher education environment, academic health science centers, and the opportunities and issues faced, especially concerning research, innovation, compliance, and research training.
•         Excellent negotiation and influencing skills leading to demonstrably positive outcomes, including the ability to build cohesive team.
•         An innovative institutional leader who will facilitate discussions and collaborations among multiple constituencies able to shape consensus, compromising as necessary for institutional results over individual or unit perspectives.
•         Adept in communicating (both internally and externally) and leading dynamic changes in collaboration with other institutional leaders.
•         Demonstrated success as a principal investigator of substantial competitive federal research grants (or equivalent) and success in attracting support for research from private partnerships, government agencies, industry, and other funding entities.
•         Demonstrated ability to foster an inclusive and diverse office of research and expressed commitment to promoting equity in research funding and participation.
•         Understanding the broad research mission within an academic health science center.
•         Extensive knowledge of clinical trials and patient-based investigation (experience in developing an extramurally funded, investigator-initiated program in a clinical investigation).
•         Demonstrated success in a senior executive position in a large and complex organization.
•         Extensive experience in strategic and business planning, financial management, and in leading effective change.
•         A broad network and evidence of having established meaningful external stakeholder relationships across government and industry, in addition to national and international opportunities.
•         A deep understanding of commercialization issues and practices with particular emphasis on how the University can derive value from its intellectual property.
•         Demonstrated success in advancing faculty research within and across disciplines, including developing research centers.
•         Knowledge of intellectual property management, including technology transfer and university-industry relations, and a strong understanding of the federal appropriations process.
•         Understanding and knowledge of inclusion and diversity issues and their importance to the community and outside organizations to promote an institutional commitment to equal opportunity and affirmative action.
•         Ability to attend meetings and other work-related events and activities; and travel to attend state, regional, national, or international relevant conferences and workshops as appropriate.

APPLICATION PROCESS

All applicants should apply online at https://ut.taleo.net/careersection/uthsc_faculty/jobdetail.ftl?job=23000000V1&tz=GMT-05:00&tzname=America/Chicago. Application packages must include the following: (1) a curriculum vitae, (2) a modest-length letter of interest (not more than 3 pages) that speaks to your vision for fulfilling the key duties of the position and discusses relevant experiences, and (3) the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of five professional references. 

Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.

WittKieffer is assisting the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in this search inquiries and nominations for the position can be directed to John K. Thornburgh and Lauren Bruce-Stets at: [email protected]

Applicants should have a demonstrated commitment to and knowledge of equal employment opportunity and affirmative action.

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center is the flagship statewide, public, academic health institution in Tennessee. Founded in 1911, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to improve the health and well-being of Tennesseans and the global community by fostering integrated, collaborative, and inclusive education, research, scientific discovery, clinical care, and public service. Employing more than 4,600 people on its faculty, staff, and not-for-profit corporation faculty practice groups, and with more than 3,200 students across the state, UTHSC contributes $4 billion to the economy of Tennessee.

Part of the University of Tennessee System, the Health Science Center is headquartered in Memphis and includes all six of UT’s doctoral-degree-granting health science colleges — Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Nursing, Graduate Health Sciences, and Health Professions. UTHSC spans the state with its four major, regional clinical health science locations in Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Nashville, as well as more than 100 clinical education sites across Tennessee. UTHSC is the largest educator of health care professionals in the state and operates the state’s largest residency and fellowship advanced training programs.

Located in West Tennessee on the banks of the Mississippi River, Memphis is the second-largest city in the state and among the largest cities in the Southeast. The Greater Memphis metropolitan area has more than 1.3 million residents, and the city ranks among those with the lowest cost of living in the country. It is home to a vibrant restaurant scene, a revitalized Downtown, the Midtown Arts District, many scenic neighborhoods, an active medical district, and a burgeoning airport in the midst of a $214 million modernization.

Memphis boasts attractions, including Elvis Presley’s Graceland, the Memphis Grizzlies, historic Beale Street, the National Civil Rights Museum, the second-largest urban county park in the United States, and the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest.

Job: Executive/Administrative

Primary Location: US-Tennessee-Memphis

Organization: Vice Chancellor For Research

Campus/Institute: Memphis

Schedule: Full-time

All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment and admissions without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, or covered veteran status.

Eligibility and other terms and conditions of employment benefits at The University of Tennessee are governed by laws and regulations of the State of Tennessee, and this non-discrimination statement is intended to be consistent with those laws and regulations.

In accordance with the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, The University of Tennessee affirmatively states that it does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or disability in its education programs and activities, and this policy extends to employment by the University.

Inquiries and charges of violation of Title VI (race, color, national origin), Title IX (sex), Section 504 (disability), ADA (disability), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (age), sexual orientation, or veteran status should be directed to the Office of Equity and Diversity (OED), 910 Madison Avenue, Suite 826, Memphis, Tennessee 38163, telephone at 901-448-2133 or 901-448-7382 (V/TTY available). Requests for accommodation of a disability should be directed to the ADA Coordinator at the Office of Equity and Diversity.