M3M3 — Senior Manager
Clinical Trials Operations Manager II (Senior Manager)
Leads a cluster of clinical programs or large, complex studies from start to finish, integrating strategic planning into day-to-day operations.
What this level means
Leads multiple teams or a sub-function; sets goals and owns cross-team execution.
- Scope
- Multiple teams or a sub-function
- Autonomy
- Sets goals within functional strategy
- Complexity
- Multi-team execution and resourcing trade-offs
- Impact
- Sub-function outcomes
- Decision rights
- Owns goals, budget input, and people decisions across teams
- Leadership
- Manages managers and/or several teams
- Typical experience
- 8–12 yrs
What you'd do
- Oversee the operational execution of several concurrent studies
- Translate higher-level clinical strategy into operational plans
- Lead multi-disciplinary study teams
- Make key CRO/vendor decisions
- Anticipate and navigate operational challenges
- Ensure all studies meet quality standards
- Lead study teams
- Translate strategy to operations
- Ensure quality standards
Skills, knowledge & tools
- Strategic planning
- Leadership
- Communication
- Problem-solving
- Team management
- Vendor negotiation
- Quality assurance
- Operational oversight
- Strategic clinical operations
- Multidisciplinary team leadership
- Vendor management
- Quality standards in clinical trials
- Operational challenge management
- Clinical strategy translation
- Concurrent study management
- Advanced communication techniques
- Strategic Thinking
- Influential leadership
- Advanced communication
- Adaptability
What good looks like
- Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s or advanced clinical degree preferred
- ~5–8 years in clinical operations
- Experience with international regulations and late-phase trial management
Common titles
Senior Manager, Clinical Trials OperationsClinical Trials Operations Senior ManagerClinical Trials Operations Manager II
What it pays
Market-pay benchmarks for this family × level are being recalibrated across all survey sources and will return shortly.
O*NET / SOC: 19-0000 — Life, Physical, & Social Science Occupations (inferred)