Director, Research Security

The mission of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is to eliminate cancer in Texas, the nation, and the world through outstanding programs that integrate patient care, research, and prevention, and through education for undergraduate and graduate students, trainees, professionals, employees and the public.

The Director, Research Security, supports the Research Security Program responsibilities regarding strategy, planning, execution, monitoring, and assessment of all institutional initiatives undertaken to address research security risks posed to the MD Anderson research environment, including discovery development, discovery commercialization, and international collaborations.

As a key member of the MD Anderson Research Security ecosystem, the Director will collaborate with stakeholders in the Offices of Information Security, Compliance, Legal Affairs, Human Resources, and Research. The Director will provide tactical support in the execution of the research security processes implemented in support of maintaining a secure research environment, fulfilling funding agencies’ fiduciary expectations, and providing research security risk-based guidance to appropriate risk decision makers.

The Director will facilitate education, training, and communication related to research security to promote awareness and engagement across the institution. The Director will help develop and maintain relationships with external stakeholders such as the FBI, CBP, and granting agency Offices of Inspector Generals.

JOB SPECIFIC COMPETENCIES

Operational Leadership and Execution: 

Executes the processes designed to fulfill the research security program critical functions:

• Participates in the collection and analysis of information from all relevant sources to identify research security concerns (e.g., undue foreign influence, talent programs and state-sponsored actors, insider threats, corporate espionage, conflicts of interest, data exfiltration) and recommends appropriate response actions.

• Provides high-level consultation to executive leadership in assessing and mitigating identified threats to MD Anderson research data and research efforts.

• Monitors the regulatory environment to identify emerging requirements and enforcement activities as they arise, alerting executive leadership and adjusting institutional strategy and operations as needed.

• Supervises the research security Program Manager/Analyst tasked with the collection and analysis of OSINT and relevant institutional data to support informed risk-based decisions that foster responsible international collaboration and maintain a secure research environment.

• Fosters a collaborative relationship with appropriate internal MD Anderson stakeholders.

• Develops research security response protocols and procedures, and designs processes to centrally manage and disseminate all institutional research security response actions.

• Ensures research security program interests are incorporated into the organizational enterprise and considered in policy and acquisition strategies.

• Establishes a system of records to properly record and document program activities.

• Establishes a system to obtain current reporting on research security threats, trends, and methods.

• Employs a research security risk assessment capability for the institution and incorporates the results into the institution’s critical asset identification and risk assessment processes.

• Coordinates with Institutional Compliance and others as needed to assist with investigating research security threats and allegations of research security misconduct.

• Encourages innovation, creativity, and efficiency in solving research security problems.

• Leverages information-gathering, analytic, investigative, and operational resources from across the institution to ensure that each insider threat or foreign influence concern is documented, promptly investigated, and resolved.

Institutional Engagement and Awareness: 

Promotes awareness of research security initiatives, education and training.

• Serves as an ambassador for the research security program while promoting a positive culture of awareness.

• Acts as the institutional focal point to coordinate and respond to requests for information.

• Builds and maintains necessary internal and external partnerships to draw in expertise and collaboration from other sources, including federal law enforcement.

• Develops research security training for the workforce per the Research Security Plan and Policy. Ensures training is conducted on a routine basis and incorporated into various mandatory training vehicles.

• Disseminates institution-wide information about research security activities that should be shared with the program along with reporting mechanisms.

• Other duties as assigned