Intuitive · 21 hours ago
Sr Director, Translational Research Scientist - MD/PhD
United States
Full-time
Remote
Director/Executive
5+ years expIntuitive is a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, developing technologies such as the da Vinci surgical system and Ion. The Senior Director, Translational Research Scientist will lead translational research for pulmonary medical devices, designing studies, interpreting biological and engineering data, and translating findings into device design, regulatory submissions, and clinical studies. The role also leads external collaborations, cross-functional alignment, and the growth of a translational research team.
HealthcareManufacturingMedical DeviceHealth Care
Responsibilities
These may include in vitro, ex vivo, and/or in vivo studies to evaluate mechanism of action, performance, and safety of medical devices
Develop and validate experimental models, assays, and protocols that characterize clinical outcomes and support regulatory filings
Analyze and interpret study data then synthesize findings into study reports focusing on implications for medical device development and clinical study design
Manage data integrity and study documentation per requirements including GLP (Good Laboratory Practice)/GCP (Good Clinical Practice) best practices for research
Relationship Building: Identify subject matter expert collaborators. Build and sustain strongdeep, trusted relationships with collaborating investigators, labs and study sites
Site Awareness: Maintain awareness of study progress with collaborating labs
Communication: Establish and maintain open lines of communication with principal investigators and collaborating scientists
Subject Matter Representation: Serve as a trusted collaborator to investigators and site teams, capable of discussing the underlying science and potential implications for medical device design as well as clinical implications
Exploratory Research: Facilitate exploratory research by identifying opportunities for sub‑studies, brainstorming novel investigation areas, and assisting with publication efforts
Act as the internal expert on the clinical application, technical performance, and limitations of treatment platforms
Translate clinical experience into insights related to safety, efficacy, usability, and procedural outcomes
Identify and characterize patient subgroups most likely to benefit, including anatomical, physiological, and disease-specific factors
Convert clinical findings into actionable inputs for product development and design evolution
Influence product roadmap and development priorities based on real-world clinical use
Support validation of safety and efficacy for products not yet on label across multiple trials
Serve as a key communication bridge with Commercial teams to ensure alignment across shared clinical and commercial pulmonary sites
Provide regular, structured updates on site activity, investigator engagement, and trial progress
Collaborate on which investigators and KOLs to prioritize, ensuring coordinated outreach and consistent communication
Support harmony between clinical trial activity and existing commercial product presence while maintaining strict compliance boundaries for not-on-label products
Partner Collaboration: Collaborate closely with strategic alliance partners conducting sponsored studies
Study Guidance: Provide clinical and technical oversight to ensure sponsored studies align with overall product strategy, evidence-generation goals, and data quality expectations
Outcomes Integration: Maintain visibility into progress, learnings, and outcomes from strategic alliance-led studies, i
Integrating thesee insights from sponsored external studies into internal clinical, engineering, and product decision-making
Strategic Connector: Serve as the primary liaison aligning Engineering, Clinical Affairs, Medical Affairs, Regulatory, and Data Analytics with data generated from translational projects
Commercial Readiness: Ensure that learnings and data from studies are packaged to support regulatory submissions, device design, clinical study design, and marketing claims
Function Building: Define the standard operating procedures for the translational research scientist feedback loop within the organization
Mentorship & Growth: Recruit, train, and mentor a growing team of translational research scientists and specialists as the product pipeline matures
Build and manage external collaborations with academic labs, contract research organizations (CROs), and clinical partners to expand capacity and access specialized expertise
Scale translational capabilities: develop standardized models, assay platforms, and automation to increase throughput and reproducibility (ie biospecimen processing – staining and imaging, data storage, data sharing, data interpretation, others)
Coordinate across Clinical, Engineering, Medical, Regulatory, Data Analytics, Commercial, and Strategic Alliance teams
Ensure clinical and technical insights are captured, analyzed, and disseminated in a timely and structured manner
As clinical activity scales, help define team structure and lead the growth of a clinical engineering learnings function
Qualification
Required
* Education: MD/PhD, or equivalent advanced degree in bioengineering, biomedical engineering, physiology, pharmacology, or related field
* 5+ years experience in translational research for medical devices, combination products, or biologics with direct responsibility for study design and execution
* Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to manage multiple projects and timelines
* Excellent written and verbal communication skills essential for successful long-term relationships with external collaborators
* Ability to analyze complex biological and engineering data, produce study reports, and present findings to technical and nontechnical stakeholders
* Travel: Up to 20% travel required to clinical sites, partner locations, and the home office as needed
Preferred
* Prior experience building or managing a research laboratory including lab technicians, PhD students/candidates, and/or postdoctoral researchers
* Understanding of regulatory pathways for medical devices (e.g., FDA and EU requirements) and experience designing studies to support submissions
* Experience with GLP-compliant study execution or working with CROs under GLP frameworks
* Experience establishing external academic or CRO partnerships and negotiating study agreements
Location: Remote / Work-from-home, with the ability to maintain working hours that partially overlap with Pacific Time. Relocation is preferred but not required for this role
Benefits
Remote / Work-from-home
Company
Intuitive
Intuitive designs and manufactures robotic-assisted surgical systems.
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
Intuitive has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
81%
Represents job field similar to this job
Engineering and Development
Management and Executive
Accounting and Finance
Legal and Compliance
Customer Service and Support
Creatives and Design
Product Management
Human Resources
Sales
Marketing
Public Sector and Government
Education and Training
Trends of Total Sponsorships
*2026 (102)
2025 (333)
2024 (237)
2023 (176)
2022 (285)
2021 (145)
2020 (138)
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
$5MKey Investors
St. Cloud Capital
2003-04-30Post Ipo Equity
2000-06-23IPO
1996-01-01Seed· $5M
Leadership Team
Gillian Duncan
Senior Vice President, Professional Education & Program Services - Worldwide
Myriam Curet
Executive Vice President & Chief Medical Officer
Recent News
2026-08-09
Company data provided by crunchbase