Data Modernization Senior Advisor

Overview The Data Modernization Senior Advisor will serve as a subject matter expert, guiding public health agencies through the development and delivery of technical projects that improve the use of public health data to inform decision making. This role is aligned to the Workforce Acceleration Initiative (WAI). WAI is a federally funded CDC Foundation program with the goal of helping the nation’s public health agencies by providing them with the technology and data experts they need to accelerate their information system improvements.  The Data Modernization Senior Advisor will be hired by the CDC Foundation and assigned the Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center (GPTEC), a department of the Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board. GPTEC supports the public health needs of the 17 Tribal Nations within the Great Plains Area and serves as a central hub for tribally governed public health data and analytics.  The advisor will support GPTEC’s ongoing development and expansion of Winter Count, a tribally owned cloud-based public health data ecosystem that provides secure access to dashboards, raw datasets, and a production-ready Electronic Disease Surveillance System (EDSS) supporting more than 60 reportable conditions across Tribal Public Health Authorities. This role will guide the strategic evolution of the Winter Count ecosystem through expanded data integrations, enhanced analytics capabilities, improvements to system usability, and strengthened governance structures that support Tribal data sovereignty. The advisor will work closely with GPTEC leadership, WAI placements, and Tribal Public Health Authorities to ensure that modernization investments are aligned with long-term sustainability, interoperability standards, and Tribal priorities. The Data Modernization Senior Advisor will develop and implement the organization’s strategy for increasingly effective use of data and information through improvements in information systems, policy, workforce, and work processes. This position will strategically direct the organization’s data modernization effort identifying and addressing needs, gaps, and opportunities in the organization’s data ecosystem. The data ecosystem includes both the technical data infrastructure and the workforce that relies on and works with the data infrastructure and the data itself, including systems and data of external partners. This position will combine deep expertise in public health operations with expertise in the development, maintenance, operation, enhancement, and configuration of information systems, and with knowledge of advanced information technology, tools, and processes. The ideal candidate will have deep knowledge of the public health informatics landscape, modern data infrastructure, and experience working with public health organizations to design and implement data systems improvements. The role requires strong communication and partnership skills, as well as the ability to collaborate effectively with Tribal partners, technical teams, and public health leadership. This position is eligible for a fully remote work arrangement for U.S. based candidates.  Responsibilities:- Collaborate with GPTEC leadership and Tribal Public Health Authorities to assess data needs and identify opportunities to strengthen the Winter Count data ecosystem and related public health information systems within available resources. - Lead the development and implementation of GPTEC’s long-term data modernization strategy, including a strategic plan outlining one-, three-, five-, and ten-year priorities for strengthening the organization’s data ecosystem. - Provide strategic guidance on the continued development and expansion of the Winter Count data hub, including scalable cloud infrastructure, automated data pipelines, and advanced analytics capabilities. - Support the enhancement and deployment of the Electronic Disease Surveillance System (EDSS), including development of condition models, case management workflows, and a Master Person Index. - Advise on the integration of Tribal, state, federal, and programmatic data sources to strengthen interoperability and support comprehensive public health analytics. - Guide the development and implementation of data governance structures, stewardship practices, and policies that support Tribal data sovereignty, responsible data sharing, and appropriate data access. - Lead efforts to modernize GPTEC’s data infrastructure, including data pipelines, transformation processes, analytics environments, and visualization tools. - Assess and modernize GPTEC’s data visualization and analytics environment, including evaluation of platforms such as Tableau, Power BI, and other modern analytics solutions. - Conduct organizational data and system assessments to identify gaps, integration opportunities, and priorities for modernization and improved interoperability. - Support Tribal needs assessments and stakeholder engagement to ensure data systems and analytic products meet the operational needs of Tribal Public Health Authorities. - Provide strategic guidance on change management, workforce readiness, and adoption strategies to support effective use of new data systems, tools, and analytic products. - Support development of training resources, technical documentation, and knowledge transfer processes to ensure long-term sustainability of GPTEC’s data systems. - Advise GPTEC leadership on sustainability planning, including strategies for maintaining and expanding the Winter Count ecosystem beyond the WAI project period. - Facilitate coordination among GPTEC leadership, WAI placements, Tribal Public Health Authorities, and partner organizations to align modernization priorities and technical efforts. - Participate in project meetings, milestone reviews, and reporting activities with GPTEC leadership and CDC Foundation program staff. - Perform other related duties as assigned. - Up to 10% domestic travel may be required. Qualifications: - Bachelor's degree in public health, computer information systems, health informatics, epidemiology or other related field from an accredited college or university. Master’s degree preferred. - Minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience with direct experience in epidemiology, informatics, data science, or information systems development related to public health. Including a minimum of 5 years of experience leading or collaborating with partners in the development of technical data strategies and infrastructure.  - Demonstrated experience supporting the development or implementation of modern public health data ecosystems, surveillance systems, or analytics platforms. - Knowledge of modern data architectures, including cloud-based infrastructure, automated data pipelines, and scalable analytics environments. - Experience working with public health agencies, Tribal organizations, or multi-jurisdictional public health partnerships. -  Understanding of data governance, data stewardship, and policies that support responsible data sharing and data sovereignty. - Familiarity with national public health data modernization efforts, interoperability standards, and public health data exchange environments - Understanding of information systems development and use, data and system life cycles, requirements development and good practices for developing information systems and processes. - Understanding of data use within public health, including the advantages and challenges associated with common data sources, systems and work processes. - Familiarity with successful and failed efforts to improve data exchange and use within public health. - Strong project management skills, ability to meet deadlines, and ability to adapt to changing priorities. - Ability to engage with, listen to and learn from a broad range of stakeholders, encouraging their meaningful participation. - Ability to communicate in a clear, positive manner with internal staff, leadership, and external partners, as well as clearly communicate to non-technical audiences. - Strong written and verbal communication skills. - Superior organizational skills and attention to detail. - Excellent interpersonal skills, ability to listen well and effectively represent the organization and its mission. - Creativity, problem solving, demonstrated ability to effectively collaborate with others. Job Highlights - Location: Remote, must be based in the United States, Up to 10% domestic travel may be required. - Salary Range: $135,000 - $166,050, per year, plus benefits. Individual salary offers will be based on experience and qualifications unique to each candidate. - Position Type: Grant funded, limited-term opportunity - Position End Date: June 30, 2027   Special Notes This role is involved in a dynamic public health program. As such, roles and responsibilities are subject to change as situations evolve. Roles and responsibilities listed above may be expanded upon or updated to match priorities and needs, once written approval is received by the CDC Foundation in order to best support the public health programming.   All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, mental or physical disabilities, veteran status, and all other characteristics protected by law. We comply with all applicable laws including E.O. 11246 and the Vietnam Era Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 governing employment practices and do not discriminate on the basis of any unlawful criteria in accordance with 41 C.F.R. §§ 60-300.5(a)(12) and 60-741.5(a)(7). As a federal government contractor, we take affirmative action on behalf of protected veterans.   The CDC Foundation is a smoke-free environment.   Relocation expenses are not included.   About the CDC Foundation The CDC Foundation helps CDC save and improve lives by unleashing the power of collaboration between CDC, philanthropies, corporations, organizations and individuals to protect the health, safety and security of America and the world. The CDC Foundation is the go-to nonprofit authorized by Congress to mobilize philanthropic partners and private-sector resources to support CDC’s critical health protection mission. The CDC Foundation manages hundreds of programs each year impacting a variety of health threats from chronic disease conditions including cardiovascular disease and cancer, to infectious diseases like rotavirus and HIV, to emergency responses, including COVID-19 and Ebola. Visit www.cdcfoundation.org for more information.