Vice President for Research

Responsibilities

The Role of the Vice President For Research

The vice president for research will define and shape the role as leader of the University’s research initiatives, infrastructure, and support for this central mission of the University of Rochester. The vice president will build further the collaborations that have contributed to the University’s research successes and find and enhance connections among the schools. The University’s research has global impact; the vice president will, through vision and persuasion, establish an environment in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

The vice president for research will be the senior liaison with numerous government granting and regulatory agencies, including the NIH, NSF, DOE, DOD, NASA, HRSA and many others, and will be the University’s signing official on grant applications, ensuring compliance with federal research regulations.

The vice president will report to the president. Working with the deans and the faculty, and with the guidance of the trustees’ research and innovation committee, and others as appropriate, the vice president will define policy and budget processes for this university-wide function.

Direct reports to the vice president for research will include the:

• Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE)

• URVentures

• Office of Research and Projects Administration (ORPA)

• Office for Human Subjects Protection (OHSP) Center for Integrated Research Computing (CIRC)

• Health Sciences Center for Computational Innovation (HSCCI)

Job Responsibilities

Articulate a vision for the research enterprise. The new vice president will bring a vision for what is possible for the research activity at the University, recognizing scholarly opportunity and academic and industry trends, and positioning the University’s research and scholarship at the forefront of its fields of inquiry. The vice president will work with the University research community and senior leadership to develop and pursue a strategic plan for research. The new vice president will serve as a highly visible and inspirational leader and role model for the development of future leaders.

The key recommendations that have been presented to the Research & Innovation Committee of the University of Rochester's Board of Trustees include the following:

Develop, refine and implement the UR’s next research strategic plan.

• Build research programs that enhance UR's reputation, impact and contributions to society

• Enhance research infrastructure and space

• Establish a central research function that supports, coordinates and oversees research across river campus schools & integrates with SMD and LLE

• Invest in graduate student (and post-doctoral) programs

Coordinate faculty nominations for major awards. We will use data-driven methods to select and nominate faculty candidates from across the institution for highly prestigious international and national awards, with the goal of enhancing the visibility of our brightest scholars and building upon our institutional research reputation through centralized coordination.

Facilitate improved performance in international ranking. We will work with the Office for Global Engagement to develop strategies that yield improved performance in global rankings.

Evaluate the effectiveness of institutional pilot funding programs. We will develop a robust reporting structure around UR pilot funding programs (including the University Research Awards [URAs]) that: captures external funding and publications resulting from the seed grant program for the purposes of establishing Return on Investment (ROI); uses a common application and evaluation platform across the institution; allows for automated follow-up reporting and record keeping

Serve as resource generator driving collaboration and growth of research initiatives with industry, government and the University. The new vice president will bring keen insight and instinct about the possibilities for research, including the market value of intellectual property, and will develop and execute strategic plans to drive the growth of research and the commercialization of inventions, spawned from the wide breadth of University laboratories and other centers of research and scholarly endeavor, as well as inventions developed in collaboration with other universities, government agencies, and the private sector.

The vice president will drive growth through leadership, through nurturing and coaching, and through integrating and guiding research initiatives. The current environment is one that celebrates entrepreneurial initiatives; the vice president will lead the effort to bring independent initiatives together, especially across school, center and departmental boundaries, and focusing on large interdisciplinary center and program project grants. The vice president will also seek to strengthen connections between the medical center and the River Campus. He or she will be charged with persuading investigators that coordination and collaboration will benefit them and the University, intellectually and financially.

Manage the administrative functions supporting research. Several teams have ably supported current initiatives at the University. The vice president will review the administrative functions supporting research activity, evaluating effectiveness and efficiency as well as assessing institutional impediments to collaborative research efforts. As appropriate, some structures may change to support the new University-wide approach to supporting research activity and some assets may be redeployed.

The vice president will be accountable for refining and implementing the vision and strategic plans for research establishing performance metrics for the overall initiative, streamlining processes and ensuring that strategic, tactical and performance goals are met.

The new vice president will set and realize a very high standard of ethics in research at the University of Rochester.

Serve as an advocate for the University research enterprise, internally and externally. The Vice President for Research will be the leading advocate for the research enterprise at the University of Rochester. This will include deepening connections to Federal government agencies, ranging from NIH and NSF DARPA, DOD, NASA, HRSA and many others, and representing the University’s accomplishments and possibilities to them, opening doors for new initiatives. In addition, the vice president will be the leading voice for University research capabilities within the State and region.

The Vice President for Research will also work closely with inventors and industry for potential collaborations and partnerships that will serve to drive commercial alignment and market development of ideas. Cultivation of angel investors, venture capital firms, and others to drive potential growth will be essential.

Research is central to the culture at the University of Rochester. Yet, assuring that the organization is thoughtful and deliberate in all its parts to enhance the environment for research success will be a central charge of the vice president, to assure a structure that enhances opportunities and gives rewards for collaboration on research initiatives. The current infrastructure has been built to support the work of individuals and teams focused on scientific and intellectual ideas. The challenge for the new vice president will be to review and adjust as necessary that structure to encourage further additional research opportunities and new inter- and cross-disciplinary cooperation.

Strategic Partner and Collaborator. The Vice President of Research will act as a major strategic partner to the provost and the Dean of the School of Medicine and Dentistry in recruiting and retaining faculty and jointly creating the conditions to promote scholarly eminence at the University.

Serve as a senior University leader. The Vice President for Research will be a member of the president’s cabinet and the senior leadership group. It will be critical for the vice president to understand the University’s mission and vision, contribute to and help realize its strategic plans, and represent its interests across all parts of the University. The vice president will be a leading citizen of the University community.

The vice president will also work closely with the Board of Trustees Committee on research and Innovation, staffing it and participating in its deliberations.

Qualifications and Qualities

The ideal successful candidate will be a strong leader and scholar with the intellectual stature to inspire the faculty, staff, and students at the University with a sense of pride, purpose and quality. The ideal candidate will be a scholar of distinction committed to the search for new knowledge, and able to imagine new research possibilities for the University. The University seeks a person with an earned doctorate or equivalent terminal degree with a record of scholarship and research, demonstrated leadership and administrative ability, a documented record of funded research and significant personal research accomplishment, and successful experience in facilitating research, developing partnerships, and addressing critical issues for the research community. It is desirable that a candidate’s record be suitable for appointment as a tenured professor. Key qualities include:

• The vision to create and implement a strategic plan and direction to encourage and develop collaborative research within the schools and colleges of the University of Rochester, and externally with other institutions, agencies, and industry

• The ability to recruit and retain thought leaders in research and science with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion

• Strong leadership, coaching, and mentoring skills

• A commitment to be inclusive, collegial, and open, yet decisive

• An entrepreneurial approach and a willingness to take considered risks and seize opportunities

• Experience in the management of research grants and contracts

• Expertise and effectiveness in the management of fiscal resources

• The ability to promote and implement activities to insure compliance with Federal and State regulations governing research.

• The expertise to respond to legislation and rule-making as it applies to University

• The ability to work with a diverse faculty in a wide range of research disciplines

• Superb interpersonal and communication skills with demonstrated success in creating a collegial academic community; political savvy

• Strong academic values and good academic judgment

• A conscientious university citizen

This is a remarkable opportunity for a leader of vision and demonstrated expertise to contribute to one of the preeminent universities in the nation.

The University of Rochester is committed to fostering, cultivating, and preserving a culture of equity, diversity, and inclusion to advance the University’s mission to Learn, Discover, Heal, Create – and Make the World Ever Better. In support of our values and those of our society, the University is committed to not discriminating on the basis of age, color, disability, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, military/veteran status, national origin, race, religion/creed, sex, sexual orientation, citizenship status, or any other status protected by law. This commitment extends to the administration of our policies, admissions, employment, access, and recruitment of candidates from underrepresented populations, veterans, and persons with disabilities consistent with these values and government contractor Affirmative Action obligations.

How To Apply

All applicants must apply online.

EOE Minorities/Females/Protected Veterans/Disabled

Location: Central Administration
Full/Part Time: Full-Time
Opening: Full Time 40 hours Grade 000 President's Office