Simulation and Analytics Specialist

The Simulation and Analytics Specialist supports the design, development, and implementation of advanced analytics, business intelligence solutions, and simulation models that improve quality, safety, operational efficiency, and strategic decision-making across Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Reporting to the Director of Health Systems Improvement within the Department of Quality and Patient Safety, this role partners with clinical, operational, and business leaders to transform operational and clinical data into actionable insights. The specialist integrates data from multiple enterprise systems, builds simulation models, conducts scenario analyses, collects manual time studies, and supports process improvement initiatives related to patient flow, staffing, capacity planning, quality improvement, and strategic growth.

Working with a broad range of healthcare data—including Epic (clinical, scheduling, and operational), quality, and other enterprise data sources—the specialist develops decision-support tools that help leaders evaluate current performance, forecast future demand, optimize resource utilization, and improve patient care.

Located in Boston and the surrounding communities, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is a leader in life changing breakthroughs in cancer research and patient care. We are united in our mission of conquering cancer, HIV/AIDS, and related diseases. We strive to create an inclusive, diverse, and equitable environment where we provide compassionate and comprehensive care to patients of all backgrounds, and design programs to promote public health particularly among high-risk and underserved populations. We conduct groundbreaking research that advances treatment, we educate tomorrow's physician/researchers, and we work with amazing partners, including other Harvard Medical School-affiliated hospitals.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

Analytics & Business Intelligence
• Leads the development and delivery of analytics solutions that support clinical, operational, and strategic decision-making across the organization. Manages multiple, concurrent analytics-and-simulation initiatives, partnering with clinical, operational, and administrative stakeholders to define business needs, establish project scope, and translate operational questions into actionable analytical solutions. Collaborates with internal partners to identify appropriate data sources, gather business requirements, and ensure data integrity.
• Develops SQL queries to extract, validate, and integrate data from enterprise-data warehouses and operational systems.
• Designs, builds, and maintains interactive dashboards, scorecards, and visualizations using Tableau or similar business-intelligence platforms. Contributes to the development of standardized reporting assets and enterprise-analytics capabilities that can be leveraged across multiple initiatives.
• Supports stakeholder adoption through training, documentation, and ongoing optimization of dashboards and analytical tools.

Simulation Modeling & Operational Analytics
• Develops, implements, and maintains simulation models that support operational planning, capacity management, and process redesign across clinical and administrative environments. Designs models representing patient flow, staffing, scheduling, clinic operations, and space utilization using FlexSim, Python, Simio, Arena, or comparable simulation platforms. 
• Conducts scenario analyses and "what-if" modeling to evaluate operational alternatives, forecast resource requirements, and inform strategic planning efforts. Analyzes simulation outputs to identify bottlenecks, evaluate improvement opportunities, and support data-driven operational decisions.
• Validates simulation models using historical operational data and performance metrics, ensuring accuracy, reliability, and ongoing model maintenance. Documents model assumptions, methodologies, and technical specifications to promote knowledge sharing, reproducibility, and long-term sustainability.

Process Improvement & Decision Support
• Partners with multidisciplinary clinical, operational, and business leaders to support process-improvement and strategic initiatives through advanced analytics, simulation modeling, and data visualization. Performs baseline, comparative, and post-implementation analyses to evaluate the effectiveness and sustainability of improvement efforts.
• Conducts operational performance assessments, patient-flow analyses, referral and access analyses, market evaluations, capacity planning, and resource utilization studies that inform organizational priorities.
• Translates complex analytical findings into clear, actionable insights and recommendations that support executive decision-making. Develops high-quality reports, presentations, and visualizations that effectively communicate project outcomes, operational performance, and strategic opportunities to leadership and key stakeholders.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Proficiency with SQL for data extraction, transformation, and analysis. 
• Experience developing dashboards and visualizations using Tableau, Power BI, or similar BI tools. 
• Familiarity navigating Epic Hyperspace, the Clarity-Data Model, and enterprise-data warehouses preferred. 
• Understanding of simulation-modeling methodologies, including discrete-event simulation (DES). 
• Working knowledge of statistical analysis, forecasting, and operational performance measurement. 
• Ability to translate business needs into analytical approaches and technical solutions. 
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills with exceptional attention to detail. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to present findings to technical and non-technical audiences. 
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to collaborate effectively across multidisciplinary teams. 
• Demonstrated curiosity, initiative, and a continuous learning mindset.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously while meeting deadlines. 
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint.

Minimum Job Qualifications:

Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Engineering, Operations Research, Computer Science, Data Science, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Business Analytics, Health Informatics, Public Health, Engineering or related quantitative discipline required. 2 years of professional experience in analytics, business intelligence, operations research, healthcare analytics, process improvement, simulation modeling, or related analytical fields required. Experience writing SQL queries to extract, manipulate, and analyze data required. Experience building dashboards using Tableau, Power BI, Python, or similar visualization software required. Experience with simulation software such as FlexSim, Simio, Arena, Python or AnyLogic preferred. Experience working with Epic data source or healthcare data warehouses (i.e., SnowFlake) preferred. Experience supporting healthcare operations, quality improvement, or performance improvement initiatives preferred.

License/Certification/Registration Required:

None

Supervisory Responsibilities:

No

Patient Contact:

No

Special Working Conditions:

None

At Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, we work every day to create an innovative, caring, and inclusive environment where every patient, family, and staff member feels they belong. As relentless as we are in our mission to reduce the burden of cancer for all, we are committed to having faculty and staff who offer multifaceted experiences. Cancer knows no boundaries and when it comes to hiring the most dedicated and compassionate professionals, neither do we. If working in this kind of organization inspires you, we encourage you to apply.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is an equal opportunity employer and affirms the right of every qualified applicant to receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, national origin, sexual orientation, genetic information, disability, age, ancestry, military service, protected veteran status, or other characteristics protected by law.

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Pay Transparency Statement

The hiring range is based on market pay structures, with individual salaries determined by factors such as business needs, market conditions, internal equity, and based on the candidate’s relevant experience, skills and qualifications.

For union positions, the pay range is determined by the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

$92,100.00 - $103,600.00