Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Yoga Research Manager

🎯 Role Definition

The Yoga Research Manager leads the design, execution, and dissemination of rigorous yoga and mind‑body research projects across clinical, community, and academic settings. This role combines clinical trial and mixed‑methods research experience with deep familiarity with yoga interventions (styles, teacher training standards, and trauma‑informed approaches) to deliver high‑quality, reproducible evidence. The manager oversees study operations, regulatory compliance, data integrity, team training, community partnerships, and grant/ manuscript development to advance the organization’s yoga research portfolio.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Clinical Research Coordinator (mind‑body or behavioral trials)
Project Manager or Program Manager with health research experience
Postdoctoral fellow in behavioral medicine, public health, or integrative health

Advancement To:

Director of Research (Integrative Health / Mind‑Body Programs)
Principal Investigator / Senior Scientist (academic or clinical setting)
Head of Clinical Trials or Outcomes Research

Lateral Moves:

Implementation Scientist (health services or community implementation)
Program Director for Yoga Therapy or Wellness Initiatives

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead the full lifecycle of yoga research projects, including conceptualization, study design (pilot, feasibility, randomized controlled trials, pragmatic trials), protocol writing, budgeting, and timelines to ensure on‑time, on‑budget delivery of high‑quality research.
Draft and manage IRB submissions and continuing review materials; coordinate responses to IRB queries, ensure consent language is trauma‑informed and culturally appropriate, and maintain regulatory binders and documentation for audits.
Develop and manage study protocols, manuals of procedures (MOP), standard operating procedures (SOPs), and fidelity checklists to ensure consistent delivery of the yoga intervention across sites and instructors.
Design and implement rigorous participant recruitment, screening, and retention strategies tailored to the target population (clinical, community, older adults, veterans, perinatal populations), including outreach plans, advertising materials, and partnerships with clinics/community organizations.
Oversee training and supervision of yoga instructors and study staff: design training curricula, conduct competency assessments, implement fidelity monitoring (live/recorded session review), and provide ongoing coaching and corrective action as needed.
Create and maintain data management plans, configure and oversee secure electronic databases (REDCap, Qualtrics, or equivalent), ensure data quality control procedures, and coordinate with data managers for extraction and cleaning.
Lead statistical analysis planning in collaboration with biostatisticians: prepare statistical analysis plans (SAPs), define primary/secondary/exploratory endpoints, and ensure pre‑registration of analyses (ClinicalTrials.gov or registries) as appropriate.
Manage vendor and subcontractor relationships (e.g., lab facilities, wearable sensor vendors, coding/translation services, community partners), negotiate scope of work and contracts, and monitor deliverables and budgets.
Oversee physiological and behavioral data collection (e.g., heart rate variability, actigraphy, blood biomarkers, salivary cortisol) including equipment selection, calibration, protocol standardization, and training for biospecimen handling.
Plan and implement mixed‑methods data collection, including structured quantitative instruments, ecological momentary assessment (EMA), qualitative interviews and focus groups, and integrative analysis plans to capture nuanced intervention effects.
Coordinate safety monitoring and adverse event reporting processes: maintain incident logs, report to IRBs and funders as required, and work with clinical partners to ensure participant safety and appropriate medical oversight.
Lead grant development activities: identify funding opportunities (NIH, PCORI, foundations), draft aims, methods, and budgets, manage internal proposal reviews, and prepare progress reports for funders.
Produce high‑quality scientific outputs: prepare abstracts, posters, manuscripts, and technical reports; manage review and submission processes; and present study findings at conferences and community meetings to maximize research impact.
Implement participant engagement and retention innovations (reminders, transportation support, culturally adapted materials, virtual/hybrid delivery options) and track retention metrics to optimize trial completion rates.
Manage project budgets and fiscal reporting: develop cost estimates, track spend across budget lines, forecast needs, and reconcile expenses with institutional and funder requirements.
Ensure compliance with data privacy and security regulations (HIPAA, GDPR where applicable), institutional policies, and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) standards; coordinate audits and corrective action plans.
Develop measurement strategy: select validated patient‑reported outcomes (PROMs), performance measures, and observer‑rated scales; adapt or validate instruments for new populations as needed.
Facilitate stakeholder engagement and community advisory boards: cultivate relationships with clinical partners, community organizations, yoga teacher networks, and patient advocates to co‑design recruitment, intervention adaptations, and dissemination plans.
Implement quality assurance and continuous improvement activities: monitor protocol adherence, conduct periodic audits, track KPIs, and implement corrective measures to improve study operations and participant experience.
Supervise and mentor research staff and trainees: hire, onboard, set performance expectations, conduct performance reviews, and provide professional development opportunities to build a high‑performing team.
Oversee trial registration and transparency: register trials in public registries, ensure timely posting of results, and maintain open science practices (data sharing plans, preprints) when possible.
Coordinate multi‑site study logistics: harmonize procedures across sites, manage teleconferences and site visits, conduct site initiation and closeout visits, and troubleshoot operational challenges.
Integrate implementation science and dissemination planning from project inception: develop scalability and real‑world adoption strategies, cost analyses, and implementation toolkits for yoga programs in clinical and community settings.
Maintain subject matter expertise in yoga therapy standards (e.g., Yoga Alliance, IAYT) and evolving evidence on mind‑body practices to inform intervention design and ensure teacher qualifications align with study goals.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
Support institutional initiatives to translate research into practice, including training curricula for clinicians and community partners.
Assist in public relations and outreach activities to raise visibility of study findings and program offerings.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Expertise in clinical trial design and management (RCTs, pilot/feasibility studies, pragmatic trials) specific to behavioral and mind‑body interventions.
Strong knowledge of human subjects protection, IRB submission processes, GCP, and adverse event reporting requirements.
Proficiency with electronic data capture systems such as REDCap, Qualtrics, or equivalent and experience developing CRFs and data dictionaries.
Advanced quantitative analysis literacy and comfort working with biostatisticians; familiarity with statistical software (R, SAS, STATA, or SPSS) and interpreting outputs for clinical audiences.
Experience with qualitative research methods and software (NVivo, Dedoose, Atlas.ti) for interview/focus group coding and thematic analysis.
Hands‑on experience with physiological and wearable data (HRV, actigraphy, accelerometry) including protocol development, device management, and preprocessing pipelines.
Grant writing and funder relations experience, including preparation of NIH, PCORI, foundation, or institutional proposals and progress reports.
Project and budget management skills: creating budgets, tracking expenditures, managing subawards, and financial reporting.
Knowledge of intervention fidelity assessment, manual development, and training program creation for interventionists (yoga teachers, coaches).
Clinical measurement expertise: selecting, adapting, and validating patient‑reported outcome measures, clinical scales, and biomarkers.
Familiarity with trial registration platforms (ClinicalTrials.gov) and open science/data sharing policies.
Competence with data visualization and reporting tools (Tableau, Power BI, ggplot2) to create dashboards and stakeholder reports.
Experience coordinating multi‑site studies and managing site relationships, initiation, monitoring, and closeout activities.
Basic understanding of HIPAA and data security practices for storing and transferring protected health information.
Experience with implementation science frameworks (RE-AIM, CFIR) and pragmatic trial considerations for real‑world adoption.

Soft Skills

Excellent written and verbal communication skills for manuscripts, grants, and stakeholder reports.
Strong leadership and people management skills with the ability to mentor junior staff and foster collaborative teams.
Cultural humility and sensitivity to diverse populations; ability to design inclusive recruitment and engagement strategies.
High attention to detail, organizational skills, and the ability to manage multiple concurrent projects and deadlines.
Problem‑solving and critical thinking to anticipate operational risks and propose mitigation strategies.
Strong interpersonal skills for partnership building with clinicians, community organizations, and academic collaborators.
Adaptability and comfort working in hybrid/virtual delivery models and evolving research landscapes.
Teaching and facilitation skills for training instructors and presenting complex content to non‑technical stakeholders.
Commitment to scientific integrity, reproducibility, and transparent reporting practices.
Customer‑focused mindset for improving participant experience and retention.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Master's degree in Public Health (MPH), Clinical Research, Psychology, Kinesiology, Nursing, Health Services Research, or a related field.

Preferred Education:

Doctoral degree (PhD, DrPH, ScD) in Behavioral Medicine, Public Health, Integrative Medicine, Psychology, or related field; or equivalent experience leading funded clinical research.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Public Health
Behavioral Medicine / Psychology
Integrative or Complementary Medicine
Kinesiology / Exercise Science
Nursing / Clinical Research

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 5–10+ years of progressively responsible experience in clinical or behavioral research, including at least 2–4 years supervising teams or managing complex projects.

Preferred: Demonstrated track record leading yoga, mindfulness, or other mind‑body intervention studies; successful grant submissions and peer‑reviewed publications; experience with multi‑site trials and community‑based research.