Assistant​/Associate​/Professional Researcher – Spine Research Program

Overview

Professional Research Series – Spine Research Program, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). The Department is recruiting a Professional Researcher to lead and advance a growing Spine Research Program. This position will play a central role in developing and managing an innovative research portfolio spanning spine surgery outcomes, health economics, and value-based care. This is an academic appointment with administrative responsibilities, designed for a highly experienced investigator who will be eligible to serve as Principal Investigator (PI) on funded research projects, subject to OSR and sponsor approval, while also providing strategic leadership for program operations and research prioritization.

The Professional Researcher will provide leadership to research staff and oversee the planning, implementation, and day-to-day operations of the Spine Research Program. The incumbent will work closely with faculty, clinicians, and internal and external collaborators to ensure the successful execution and growth of the program’s research mission.

• Eligibility to serve as Principal Investigator (PI) on competitively funded research projects, subject to OSR and sponsor approval, and contributing to the development of new, externally visible research initiatives.
• Lead the design and execution of novel research methodologies and analytical frameworks that advance spine surgery outcomes research, health economics, and value-based care.
• Lead the development, implementation, and maintenance of analytical and data infrastructure supporting spine research, including outcomes analytics, health economics, and automation of data pipelines across clinical and administrative datasets.
• Oversee a high-volume, multi-project research portfolio including concurrent prospective, retrospective, and industry-sponsored studies across spine surgery and health services research.
• Develop research goals, timelines, and milestones; monitor progress and outcomes.
• Provide strategic oversight of regulatory, compliance, and grant development activities in collaboration with regulatory specialists.
• Lead and mentor research staff and foster a collaborative, high-performing research environment.
• Work with surgeons and faculty to design studies and advance research projects from idea conception through data analysis, manuscript preparation, and publication.
• Support scholarly dissemination of research findings through abstracts, presentations, and related academic outputs.
• Communicate research progress and findings through regular presentations to UCSF Spine leadership, faculty, trainees, and external collaborators.
• Represent the Spine Research Program to internal and external partners, including funding agencies, professional organizations, industry collaborators, and at national and international conferences.
• Participate in peer review and scientific evaluation activities, including review of manuscripts, abstracts, or research proposals.
• Support continuous improvement of research processes and infrastructure.
• Contribute to the long-term strategic development of spine research infrastructure, including databases, registries, and analytic platforms that enable sustained scholarly output, external funding, and national research collaboration.

Required

• MD, PhD, or equivalent doctoral degree in medicine, health services research, epidemiology, health economics, public health, biomedical sciences, biostatistics, or a related discipline.
• Minimum of 3 years of experience managing a department-level research program, overseeing multiple concurrent research projects from conception through publication, grant preparation, and regulatory processes (e.g., IRB).
• Demonstrated experience designing, leading, and coordinating competitively funded research programs, including federal, societal, and industry-sponsored grants.
• Eligibility to serve as Principal Investigator.
• Excellent organizational, leadership, and communication skills.
• Demonstrated leadership experience directing multidisciplinary research teams and mentoring trainees and junior investigators who contribute to…