Job DescriptionSavannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) is seeking a Strategic Program Development Manager to serve as Georgia Tech's dedicated senior liaison to SRNL; understand and advance the goals of GT, Strategic Energy Institute (SEI), and SRNL leadership, through activities such as advancing collaborative research and identifying areas of strategic alignment. This role will report directly with the Science, Energy, and Innovation Associate Laboratory Director at SRNL to ensure alignment of goals. This role will also work to facilitate similar outcomes in advancing research between other universities and Battelle Savannah River Alliance (BSRA).
Impact and influence:This position will interact on a regular basis with: SRNL and University executive leadership, national laboratory engagement program members, Campus research leadership (e.g., Associate Deans for Research, School chairs, Interdisciplinary Research Institute executive directors), Corporate Engagement, Government Relations, Commercialization, academic faculty, and industry partners.
ResponsibilitiesSRNL-University Strategic Engagement:- Serve as the strategic point of contact for SRNL engagement with Georgia Tech. Work to build strong relationships with other BSRA partners, SRNL and Georgia Tech.
- Facilitate connections between SRNL researchers and faculty, centers, and institutes to accelerate team formation and proposal readiness.
- Identify opportunities for strategic joint faculty appointments and student engagement with SRNL.
- Advance collaboration across priority areas, such as energy, advanced manufacturing, nuclear materials processing and disposition, environmental remediation, national security, grid resilience, and workforce development.
- Oversee discussions between GT-SRNL leadership and translate priority strategies into actionable collaboration pathways of mutual interests.
- Develop SRNL-university programs specifically designed to advance workforce development in energy.
Proposal and Program Development:- Support the development of large, complex, multi-investigator proposals involving SRNL and GT.
- Assist in aligning proposal concepts with both SRNL programmatic priorities and GT research capabilities.
- Support communications with federal agencies regarding areas of SRNL-GT collaboration.
- Coordinate SRNL participation in GT-led initiatives and workshops.
Integration within the framework of GT national lab program:- Operate within the GT national laboratory engagement framework to build programming and identify opportunities for strategic collaborations leading to long-term funding.
- Coordinate closely with university executive leadership to ensure alignment with campus-wide strategy.
Communications and Outreach:- Contribute to communications outlining notable deliverables to key stakeholders which may include briefings, presentations, and web content, in coordination with the university and national lab communications teams.
- Represent SRNL-GT engagement in internal GT and SRNL meetings and selected external forums, as appropriate and aligned with program leadership.
- Support workforce development and engagement practices, including coordination with regional partners where relevant.
Time commitment and boundaries:- This role is dedicated to advancing SRNL-GT collaboration and primarily maintains a clearly defined effort allocation to Georgia Tech activities.
- Participation in multi-institutional proposals must follow SRNL and Georgia Tech conflict-of-interest (COI) and disclosure policies.
- When serving on proposals involving multiple SRNL partner universities, GT engagement responsibilities will be clearly defined and documented.
- Effort allocation and engagement boundaries will be reviewed annually.
Scope and authority:- This role does not independently set Georgia Tech national laboratory strategy.
- This role does not supervise other national lab liaisons or programs.
- This role reports to the SEI executive leadership, who oversees strategic priorities, performance evaluation, and expansion of national lab engagement activities.
QualificationsMinimum qualifications:- PhD in a relevant field and experience commensurate with the level of appointment, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience. Appointment rank will be determined based on the selected candidate's qualifications and experience.
- 8 years of relevant working experience.
- Demonstrated senior leadership experience in a national laboratory or equivalent research organization.
- Proven record of managing complex, multi-stakeholder programs funded by federal program offices.
- Experience with DOE national laboratory operations, funding processes, and federal stakeholder engagement.
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to work effectively across academic, laboratory, federal, and corporate environments.
- For ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance, US Citizenship is Legally Required
Preferred qualifications:- 10-15 years of working experience in a national laboratory or comparable federal research environment.
- Expertise leading or contributing to large-scale federally funded or DOE-funded research initiatives.
- Experience managing collaborations and deliverables with large teams (20+)
- Experience facilitating leadership discussions, such as advisory committees, and developing and implementing strategic initiatives
- Experience bridging laboratory capabilities with university research ecosystems.
- Familiarity with advanced manufacturing, nuclear systems, environmental remediation, or integrated energy systems.
- Experience managing large piloting capabilities at the intersections of energy and manufacturing.
Some of the *Benefits offered to employees include:
*Benefits vary based upon employment status
- Highly competitive Medical, Dental, and Vision options including HSA options with company provided seed
- Short- & Long-Term Disability (company paid)
- Life Insurance Non-Contributary 1X salary (company paid)
- AD&D Non-contributary 1x salary (company paid)
- Savings & Investment plan:
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- Qualified Non-Elective Company Contribution of 5% each pay period with immediate vesting
- Company match 50 cents/dollar up to 8% (5 yrs. vesting in company match)
- Contributory Life Insurance up to 5x Salary with $1M Cap
- Contributory AD&D (employee, spouse and children)
- Paid Time Off
- Employee Assistance Plan
- SRNL offers a competitive relocation package to ease the transition process. Domestic and international relocation assistance is available for certain positions.
For more information about our benefits, working here, and living here, visit the "About" tab at www.srnl.doe.gov.
