Research Program Manager, Distributed Research

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain the program roadmap for decentralized data collection initiatives, partnering with researchers and stakeholders to align priorities, balance team capacity, and establish realistic timelines
• Lead intake and scoping processes for new requests by partnering with researchers and stakeholders to define requirements, assess feasibility, and determine appropriate timing and scope
• Ensure decentralized data collection planning incorporates applicable regulatory and compliance timelines, including IRB review and approval milestones where applicable
• Manage and prioritize incoming requests with a clear understanding of team bandwidth and operational constraints, making thoughtful trade-offs across scope, timing, and prioritization
• Build and maintain scalable intake workflows, SOPs, tracking systems, and operational processes that support efficient and repeatable research execution
• Ensure data collection initiatives are planned and executed without overextending technical systems or operational capacity, proactively identifying risks and driving mitigation strategies
• Own and manage internal tooling that supports decentralized data collection operations, partnering closely with technical teams to enable, monitor, and improve system usage
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Research, Product, Engineering, and Operations teams to align priorities, surface dependencies early, and support smooth execution across initiatives
• Use program metrics, operational insights, and performance indicators to improve prioritization frameworks, optimize processes, and increase the overall efficiency and impact of distributed research efforts

Requirements

• 3+ years of experience in a Program Management or Project Management role, preferably within a research, technical product, data, or operations-focused environment
• Demonstrated experience managing intake, prioritization, roadmap planning, and execution across multiple stakeholders and competing priorities
• Proven ability to translate ambiguous or evolving requests into clearly defined scope, timelines, and actionable execution plans
• Experience building and scaling operational processes, workflows, and SOPs in fast-paced, evolving environments
• Familiarity with Agile methodologies and project management tools such as Jira or similar workflow management systems
• Comfort working closely with technical teams and managing dependencies involving internal tooling, data systems, or operational infrastructure
• Strong analytical, operational, and data-driven decision-making skills
• Excellent communication, organizational, and stakeholder management skills with the ability to drive alignment across cross-functional teams

Nice-to-Haves

• Experience supporting human subjects research, decentralized research operations, or data collection infrastructure
• Passion for health, wellness, and WHOOP’s mission to unlock human performance and healthspan
• Strong commitment to embracing and leveraging AI tools in day-to-day tasks, ensuring AI-assisted work aligns with the same high-quality standards as personal contributions