Associate Vice President for Research Computing

Laine Recruiting has been engaged by one of the most respected institutions and largest employers in the Rochester area! We've partnered to find an Associate Vice President for Research Computing at their Center for Integrated Research Computing (CIRC). This team provides hardware, software, training and support to over 110 departments across the organization.

This is an inaugural role for the institution, and with that will come not only the responsibility, but the autonomy to make your mark on this incredible R1 research university!

About the Role

The Associate Vice President (AVP) for Research Computing serves as the senior executive responsible for the vision, strategy, and execution of institution-wide research computing infrastructure and services. As a member of the University's IT and research leadership, the AVP oversees the High Performance Computing (HPC) and data-intensive research environments that enable world-class, interdisciplinary research across all academic disciplines.


The AVP provides thought leadership in advanced computing infrastructure, leads enterprise-scale research computing initiatives, and ensures alignment with evolving faculty needs, regulatory requirements, and national standards. The role engages faculty, research leadership, and external agencies to position the university as a national leader in computational science and digital research infrastructure.

Essential Functions

Strategic Leadership and Research Advancement

• Lead the development and execution of a long-range strategic plan for research computing that supports the university's R1 research mission, including investments in HPC, research storage, AI/ML environments, cloud platforms, secure data enclaves and staffing.
• Collaborate with the Vice President for Research and IT, Deans, and faculty leaders to define institutional priorities, align resources, and support cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research initiatives.
• Represent the University in national and international consortia focused on research computing infrastructure, research data governance, and secure research computing.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to executive leadership on research policy, funding, and risk management related to advanced research computing.

Operational Oversight of Research Computing and Data Services

• Oversee Operations, performance, and lifecycle management of the University's research computing environment, including HPC clusters and , cloud platforms,
• Lead cross-functional technical teams responsible for system design, user support, research application integration, and compliance with research security standards (e.g.NIST 800-171, FISMA)
• Oversee service-level agreements, uptime metrics, downtime and maintenance procedures and communications and annual investment planning to ensure the environment remains resilient, scalable, and aligned with faculty needs.

Faculty Engagement, Consultation, and Research Enablement

• Act as a campus-wide leader and trusted advisor to faculty and research teams across disciplines, proactively identifying research needs and aligning computational services accordingly.
• Lead outreach, onboarding, and education programs that expand awareness of research computing services and improve access and usability for all research teams, especially those in emerging or underserved disciplines.
• Oversee consultation and proposal development services that support grant applications, including effort related to compute budgeting, data management planning, and infrastructure letters of support.

Organizational Leadership and Talent Development

• Build and lead a high-performing organization that includes technical staff, research facilitators, computational scientists and systems administrators; implement structures that promote career development, operational excellence, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• Promote an inclusive, service-oriented, and research-centric culture, emphasizing responsiveness, creativity, and collaboration with faculty and campus and community partners.
• Establish internal governance structures to prioritize investments, align service delivery, and foster transparency.

Funding Strategy and Grant Support

• Develop and execute strategies for sustained funding of research computing, including cost recovery models, external grants, and institutional partnerships.
• Collaborate with principal investigators on major federal research infrastructure proposals (e.g., NSF MRI, NIH S10), providing technical input, budget guidance, and institutional coordination.
• Serve as PI or co-PI on institutional-scale cyberinfrastructure grants and partnerships.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field of study.
• Doctoral or advanced degree in a relevant field of study, advanced strongly preferred.
• Minimum of 10 years of experience in informatics and computational research, with at least 5 years in a leadership role preferred.
• Experience as a faculty member in higher education preferred.
• Experience working in research-intensive higher education environment preferred.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Deep understanding of the research lifecycle and advanced knowledge of HPC architectures, scientific software, cloud-based research environments, and large-scale data storage.
• Working knowledge of scientific concepts in fields such as biology, biochemistry, genomic, imaging, chemistry, physics and data science / AI
• Proven ability to lead large technical teams, foster faculty partnerships, and manage multimillion-dollar research computing portfolios.
• Strong communication skills and ability to interact effectively at all organization levels.
• Broad IT experience including solutions architecture, application development, engineering, business analysis, and project management.
• Knowledge of IT systems management, infrastructure, applications, information security, and information management.
• Knowledge of federal grant funding mechanisms, regulatory standards for research data security, and the national research cyberinfrastructure landscape.

Compensation

• Base salary between $225,000 - 350,000
• Generous PTO (4+ weeks)
• Lucrative 403(b) contribution
• Tuition Assistance for you and family
• Excellent insurance options at very affordable prices