Chair, Department of Implementation Science

Wake Forest University School of Medicine (WFUSM) is seeking a dynamic leader for the position of Chair, Department of Implementation Science in the Division of Public Health Sciences. Requirements for the position include national academic stature and demonstrated leadership and management skills to build and expand all aspects of the department, including research and educational activities. The Chair will serve as a visible and inspiring leader and will provide strategic leadership and direction for all aspects of the Department of Implementation Science. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to develop the shared vision for this department, leveraging the talents of a diverse group of faculty and staff as the medical school and health system continue in a period of unprecedented growth. The candidate will also demonstrate a commitment to promoting an academic culture that prioritizes fairness for communities served by Wake Forest University School of Medicine and a commitment to providing a just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive environment for all members, trainees, and affiliates of the department.

About the Department

Established in 2017 as the first department of its kind in the United States, the Department of Implementation Science was created to serve as a catalyst for the adoption, integration, and sustainability of evidence-based practices in real-world settings to improve population health. By bridging the persistent gap between research discovery and practical application, the department advances the science of translating proven interventions into routine care and community practice.

The department's work is organized around three core areas of scientific inquiry:

• Health services research to identify opportunities for improved care delivery, with particular emphasis on organizational, health systems, and policy-level gaps and solutions.
• Intervention optimization through the identification of efficacious, cost-effective, and time-neutral approaches to implementing the best and most promising health care and public health practices.
• Implementation and dissemination strategy testing to translate evidence-based interventions more efficiently and effectively into real-world clinical and population health settings.

The department is comprised of 21 faculty members, more than 40 staff, and several postdoctoral fellows. Collectively, members bring methodological expertise in pragmatic, hybrid, and adaptive trial designs; contextual analysis; co-design and community-engaged research; ethnography; program evaluation; cost-effectiveness and cost-of-implementation analyses; and the application of implementation science theories, models, and frameworks.

Faculty and staff work with populations across the life course and partner with collaborators in both domestic and international settings. Substantive areas of expertise include aging, cancer, cardiometabolic disease, mental health, substance use, infectious disease, and health behaviors, among others. The department's portfolio spans community, health system, and policy contexts, reflecting a commitment to multilevel change.

Together, these capabilities position the department to advance its mission of improving population health through rigorous science-to-practice translation within an academic learning health system.

Qualifications

• Terminal degree (e.g., PhD, DrPH, or MD) in health policy, sociology, psychology, public health, implementation science, or a related field
• Established research investigator with demonstrated active academic productivity and scholarship in implementation science sufficient to qualify for appointment at the rank of tenured Associate Professor or Professor (strongly preferred).
• A vision for the next phase of implementation science towards emerging areas and opportunities such as academic learning health systems, pragmatic clinical trials, patient-centered outcomes, embedded research, and/or real-world evidence. Methodologic or scientific opportunities could include:
  • Pragmatic study designs (hybrid implementation trials, cluster-randomized, stepped-wedge, adaptive and SMART designs, embedded pragmatic trials etc.)
  • Clinical trial design, coordination, and analysisoCreating implementation laboratories embedded within health systems and communities
  • Leveraging academic learning health system infrastructures and data for implementation science and practice
  • Advancing measurement science in implementation scienceoInnovating in participatory and community-engaged implementation methods
  • Application and development of implementation science theories, models, and frameworks
  • Other emerging topics including AI, economic evaluation, adaptation
• Ability to balance collaborative team science and active and robust implementation science research portfolio
• Demonstrated experience and achievement in academic administrative leadership.
• National or international reputation in implementation science or academic learning health systems
• Ability to work effectively in a matrixed organization with research center directors and clinical and health system leadership to further advance the Department’s academic programs.
• Ability to build and lead a diverse group and work with health system partners using a collaborative approach that fosters a sense of community, collaboration, and inclusivity.
• Entrepreneurial, with the proven ability to work creatively to help ensure team members are funded and have access to the resources they need for success.
• Exceptional advocacy and influencing skills, with the ability to represent and market the department, team, and resources across the academic enterprise.
• Success in promoting or producing scholarship and external funding, including a track record of building programs and managing large teams.
• Outstanding mentorship ability.
• Experience collaborating with medical and public health professionals in a multidisciplinary setting.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Prioritization of the whole person through demonstration of kindness and emphasis on well-being of faculty, trainees, and staff.

To Apply

For applications and nominations, please contact the DSG Global Team, reaching out to Abby Walsh [email protected]. For applications, please include your current CV and letter of introduction.