Clinical Operations Manager (COM)

Job Description

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Principal:

• Ownership of country and site budgets. Development, negotiation and completion of Clinical Trial Research Agreements (CTRA).

• Oversees and tracks clinical research-related payments. Payment reconciliation at study close[1]out. Oversees FCPA, DPS/OFAC, and maintenance of financial systems. Financial forecasting in conjunction with Sr.COM /other roles.

• Manages country deliverables, timelines and results for assigned protocols to meet country

• Contributes to the development of local SOPs. Oversees CTCs as applicable.

• Coordinates and liaises with CRM, CTC, CRA, (Finance and Legal if appropriate) to ensure country deliverables are obtained for submissions, budgets, CTRAs and local

milestones. Collaborates closely with Headquarter to align country timelines for

assigned protocols.

• Ownership of local regulatory and financial compliance. The position has a significant impact on how a country can deliver country-specific trial commitments and objectives especially during study start-up.

• Required to in/directly influence investigators, external partners and country operations and adheres to budget targets and agreed payment timelines.

• Contribute or lead initiatives and projects adding value to the business, as appropriate/required.

• Contributes strongly to COM team and other Country Operations roles knowledge by acting as process Subject Matter Expert (SME), sharing best practices, making recommendations for continuous improvement and providing training as appropriate/required.

• Contributes to COM team knowledge by acting as buddy/mentor and sharing best practices as appropriate/required

•Provide support and oversight to local vendors as applicable.

• Works in partnership internally with GCTO country operations, finance, regulatory affairs, pharmacovigilance, legal and regional operations, HQ functional areas and externally with vendors and sites, IRB/IECs and Regulatory Authorities in submission and approval related- interactions. Through continual interaction with local clinical team/s successfully delivers clinical and financial contracts within fair market value.

  

Desirable:

•Executes and oversees clinical trial country submissions and approvals for assigned protocols.

• Develops local language materials including local language Informed Consents and

translations. Interacts with IRB/IEC and Regulatory Authority for assigned protocols.

commitments. Responsible for quality and compliance in assigned protocols in country.

• Oversees and coordinates local processes, clinical and ancillary supplies management,

importing and exporting requirements, supplies destruction, local electronic/hard copy

filing, archiving and retention requirements, and insurance process management. Enters

and updates country information in clinical and finance systems.

Core competencies:

• Expertise of core clinical systems, tools and metrics

• Excellent verbal and written influencing and training/mentoring skills, in local language and English

• Strong coordination and organizational skills

• Skilled knowledge of budget and contract negotiations, local regulatory environment and

submission and approval processes, and understanding of how these impact study start-up.

• Ability to indirectly influence investigators, vendors, external partners and country managers to address and resolve issues, with minimal support from the Sr.COM or manager.

• Ability to make decisions independently with limited oversight from Sr.COM or manager.

• Requires strong understanding of local regulatory environment

• Ability to proactively develop risk management and mitigation plans in the country and resolve issues locally.

• Ability to lead a team of CTCs as applicable

Behavioural Competency Expectations:

• Problem solving is essential to this position. Requires the ability to pro-actively identify issues and risks, analyse root cause, and propose solutions to problems and escalate to management as applicable. Specific examples of common problems include: 1) Issues in budget / CTRA negotiations, 2) Quality and compliance issues, 3) Regulatory and legal issues, and 4) issues related to functional area deliverables that could jeopardize protocol milestones.

• Effective and efficient time management, organizational and interpersonal skills, conflict

management and problem-solving skills.

• High sense of accountability and urgency in order to properly prioritize deliverables

• Strong communication, leadership, and negotiation skills as well as excellent influencing and training/mentoring skills, both written and verbal, in local language and English.

• Ability to focus on multiple deliverables and protocols simultaneously is essential. Requires that the individual has ability to work effectively also in a remote virtual environment with a wide range of people.

• Positive mindset, growth mindset, capable of working independently and being self-driven

• Able to directly influence site staff

Experience Requirements:

Required:

5 years of experience in clinical research or combined experience in Clinical Research and

Finance/Business

Educational Requirements:

Required:

Bachelor's Degree in Business Finance/ Administration/ Life Science or equivalent Health Care related experience

Required Skills:

Adaptability, Adaptability, Business Agility, Business Management, Clinical Site Management, Clinical Trial Agreements (CTA), Clinical Trial Compliance, Clinical Trial Documentation, Clinical Trial Management, Clinical Trial Planning, Clinical Trials Monitoring, Clinical Trials Operations, Cross-Cultural Awareness, Growth Mindset, ICH GCP Guidelines, Impact Analysis, Legal Compliance, Patient Recruitment, Regulatory Compliance, Regulatory Management, Regulatory Processes, Regulatory Requirements, Regulatory Strategies, Risk Avoidance, Schedule Adherence {+ 6 more}

Preferred Skills:

Current Employees apply HERE

Current Contingent Workers apply HERE

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Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.  No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. 

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

VISA Sponsorship:

Travel Requirements:

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Hybrid

Shift:

Valid Driving License:

Hazardous Material(s):

Job Posting End Date:

10/26/2026

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