Program Manager

Job Description

Job Title: Research IT Program Manager

Type: W2 Contract

Location: PA / NJ / DE / MD (primarily remote with occasional expensed travel)

Schedule: Monday-Friday, Daytime

Start: ASAP

Duration: Through June 30 (strong likelihood of extension; potential long-term conversion)

Role Overview

Penn Medicine is seeking a Senior Research IT Program Manager to lead multiple large-scale, multi-year initiatives within the Research Computing and School of Medicine environment. This role will focus on standing up and driving early-phase program execution for critical cybersecurity, infrastructure, and research IT initiatives-most immediately centered on NIST 800-171 compliance within high-performance computing (HPC) environments.

This is a highly visible role working across research IT, cybersecurity, infrastructure, and university stakeholders, with regular interaction with executive leadership. The ideal candidate is a strong program leader who can bring structure, momentum, and clarity to complex, politically nuanced environments.

Key Responsibilities

Lead and coordinate multiple concurrent research IT programs transitioning from business case and high-level planning into detailed scoping and execution

Serve as the primary program driver for NIST 800-171 security compliance initiatives within research computing environments

Partner closely with research IT leadership, cybersecurity teams, infrastructure teams, and external consulting partners to define scope, timelines, and dependencies

Develop and manage integrated program plans, schedules, and status reporting across multiple workstreams

Drive execution through structured governance, recurring status meetings, and cross-functional accountability

Support a two-phase HPC cluster initiative, including:

Short-term implementation of NIST controls on existing clusters

Longer-term consolidation and rebuild of clusters into a new data center environment

Help scope and advance a multi-year cybersecurity roadmap for the School of Medicine, including segregation of sensitive research data, managed vs. unmanaged devices, access controls, and BYOD considerations

Perform early-stage analysis and discovery (including use of analytics and AI-driven insights) to help answer key planning questions (e.g., scope, cost, duration, staffing models)

Translate complex technical and regulatory topics into clear, executive-level updates and recommendations

Participate in and occasionally co-present during leadership and executive meetings

We are a company committed to creating diverse and inclusive environments where people can bring their full, authentic selves to work every day. We are an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer that believes everyone matters. Qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment regardless of their race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, marital status, national origin, ancestry, genetic factors, age, disability, protected veteran status, military or uniformed service member status, or any other status or characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations, and ordinances. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or recruiting process, please send a request to [email protected] learn more about how we collect, keep, and process your private information, please review Insight Global's Workforce Privacy Policy:

Skills and Requirements

Required Qualifications

Senior-level Program Management experience (healthcare, research, or higher-education environments

Proven ability to lead large, complex, multi-year programs with multiple stakeholders and dependencies

Strong technical acumen with the ability to engage directly with engineers, infrastructure teams, and cybersecurity partners

Experience working within research computing or research IT environments (distinct from clinical operations)

Familiarity with regulatory and compliance frameworks

Demonstrated ability to navigate organizational complexity and political nuance within large institutions

Excellent communication skills, including comfort presenting to executive and senior leadership audiences

Analytical mindset with the ability to support early-phase scoping, roadmap development, and investment planning Nice to Have / Pluses

NIST 800-171 strongly preferred

Experience supporting HPC environments, data centers, or large infrastructure rebuilds

Exposure to cybersecurity roadmap development or enterprise security programs

Experience coordinating with external consulting partners and internal cyber teams

Background leveraging data, analytics, or AI to inform planning and decision-making