Executive Director, Trauma & Acute Care Innovation Center

Executive Director, Kenneth L. Mattox, MD Center for Trauma and Acute Care Innovation

Position Summary

Baylor College of Medicine seeks an accomplished surgeon-scientist to serve as the inaugural Executive Director of the Kenneth L. Mattox, MD Center for Trauma and Acute Care Innovation. Candidates from trauma and acute care surgery, orthopaedics, neurosurgery, urology, vascular surgery, and related specialties are encouraged to apply.

This senior leadership role will establish and lead a multidisciplinary center focused on improving care for injured, critically ill, and acutely ill surgical patients through research, innovation, implementation science, data science, and commercialization. The Executive Director will develop the Center's scientific strategy, build research infrastructure, recruit and mentor investigators, expand extramural funding, and foster collaborations across medicine, engineering, industry, and government.

The position includes protected leadership and research time, administrative support, and significant institutional resources.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

* Develop and execute the Center's vision and growth strategy.

* Build a nationally recognized multidisciplinary research program in trauma, acute surgical disease, and critical illness.

* Foster collaborations across Baylor, affiliated hospitals, industry, foundations, and government agencies.

* Recruit, retain, and mentor investigators, research faculty, and staff.

Research Leadership

* Expand NIH, DoD, BARDA, NSF, PCORI, VA, and foundation funding opportunities.

* Mentor faculty in grant development, study design, scholarship, and career advancement.

* Advance translational, clinical, outcomes, implementation, and multicenter research programs.

Faculty Development

* Develop training and mentorship pathways for surgeon-scientists and multidisciplinary investigators.

* Support residents, fellows, and early-career faculty in research and innovation.

* Promote cross-specialty collaboration and scholarly activity.

Innovation and Commercialization

* Accelerate translation of discoveries into clinical practice, digital health tools, AI applications, devices, diagnostics, and therapeutics.

* Establish partnerships with industry, engineering programs, venture capital, and technology transfer offices.

* Support intellectual property development, licensing, startup formation, and commercialization.

Research Infrastructure

* Oversee shared resources including:

o Clinical research coordination

o Biostatistics and epidemiology

o Regulatory and IRB support

o Grant development

o Data science and AI resources

o Biospecimen management

o Clinical trials support

o Implementation science and methodology expertise

Data Science & Informatics

* Build an integrated acute care and injury research data platform across Baylor-affiliated sites.

* Develop scalable data pipelines supporting clinical trials, quality improvement, predictive analytics, AI, and machine learning.

* Establish data governance and collaboration frameworks.

Clinical Research Network

* Create a coordinated research network across Baylor-supported surgical ICUs and acute care environments.

* Standardize data collection, research protocols, and quality metrics.

* Promote multidisciplinary and multicenter research initiatives.

Clinical Practice

* Maintain an active clinical practice appropriate to specialty and leadership responsibilities.

* Serve as a role model in patient care and multidisciplinary collaboration.

* Leverage clinical challenges to drive innovation and research.

Qualifications

Required

* MD, DO, or equivalent degree.

* Board certification in a surgical specialty.

* Eligible for Texas medical licensure.

* Qualifications for appointment as Associate Professor or Professor at Baylor College of Medicine.

* National or international reputation in trauma, acute surgical care, critical illness, surgical innovation, or related fields.

* Established record of extramural funding and academic scholarship.

* Proven mentorship experience and success leading multidisciplinary programs.

Preferred

* Experience directing a research center, institute, or major academic program.

* Success developing interdisciplinary research initiatives.

* Experience with technology development, patents, licensing, startups, or commercialization.

* Expertise in clinical informatics, AI, data science, or large clinical databases.

* Experience leading multicenter clinical trials and collaborative research networks.

* Demonstrated ability to build partnerships with industry, government, engineering, and foundations.

Desired Attributes

The successful candidate will be:

* A visionary leader in trauma and acute care innovation.

* An accomplished surgeon-scientist with strong academic credibility.

* A collaborative builder across specialties and institutions.

* A committed mentor and faculty developer.

* An innovative and entrepreneurial thinker.

* An effective communicator able to engage academic, clinical, industry, and philanthropic stakeholders.

Success Metrics (First Five Years)

* Growth in competitive extramural funding and funded research programs.

* Increased number of independently funded investigators.

* Successful recruitment and development of high-impact researchers.

* Creation of an integrated acute care and injury research data platform.

* Expansion of multicenter clinical trials and collaborative research initiatives.

* Demonstrable implementation of clinical innovations that improve outcomes.

* Growth in intellectual property, commercialization, and industry partnerships.

* National and international recognition of the Center as a leading hub for trauma, acute care, and critical care innovation.