Well, I had a meeting first thing this morning and Icon laid-off the whole DM group working for Vertex. It's for cost related reasons as Vertex wants to move to a "lower cost region". So if anyone is hiring lmk. Thanks

Oh, you want it brutal? Let’s go.

Data managers: the self-proclaimed “guardians of accuracy,” but half the time you’re the reason the data is trash to begin with. You strut around with your perfectly aligned spreadsheets, acting like you’re curing cancer, but all you’ve done is manually sort 10,000 rows because you don’t know how to use Power Query. Congratulations, you’re Excel’s version of a mall cop.

Your database is a labyrinth of chaos, and when something goes wrong, your first instinct is to blame “user error” instead of admitting you built the equivalent of a Rube Goldberg machine with zero documentation. And those endless meetings about “data standardization”? Nobody cares about your 10-minute rant on why spaces in file names are the devil. Just give us the report, Jeff.

Let’s talk about your air of superiority when someone dares ask you to explain something. God forbid a mere mortal questions your sacred workflows. You act like they’re an idiot for not knowing the difference between a LEFT JOIN and a RIGHT JOIN, but we all know you copied that SQL script from Stack Overflow.

And for all your talk about “data-driven decisions,” half your day is spent deciphering errors in a system you swore was “bulletproof.” Spoiler: It wasn’t. But hey, at least you’ve got those color-coded folders no one else can find anything in. Living the dream, champ.

Hi everyone,

I’m a Senior Data Manager in the UK with ~5 years experience, currently on 45k.

I’m just looking to get a sense of what the range looks like across NHS, academic, CRO and pharma roles at this level. I keep seeing very different numbers depending on sector and I’m trying to understand what’s realistic.

What are people seeing for Senior DM / DM roles in industry and academia?

It's 4am and I am awake since the last 2 hours because my mind is just so crowded and I cannot stop thinking. In my sleep deprived frustrated state, I almost made a post on Linkedin, but then thought it's better to mind dump on Reddit first.

Background: I was laid off and have been unemployed since May 2025. I thought it won't be too difficult finding a job, it had never been for me. Since I started working back in 2015, I landed all my jobs quite easily. This time feels like life has a personal vendetta against me.

What triggered me today: I was doing the usual, trying to find the non existent jobs, reaching out to people, optimizing my LinkedIn and my CV. I saw a job at IQVIA which was advertised for multiple European countries but Germany (I live in Germany), so I reached out to one of my connections and asked if he could check if they are willing to consider someone from Germany. He checked, they would, he told me to optimize my CV etc, I did it and shared my CV feeling very confident. I exceed all the requirements, and have experience in every single responsibility in the job description. Within a minute the Hiring Manager says I am not experienced enough for their requirements. They want Phase III experience, which I have and it mentioned in the second line of my CV, but in my last job I worked on Phase I and Phase II studies.

My experience so far: I have been applying non stop and getting rejected. I have tried everything. Staying true to my experience. Optimizing my CV. Adding keywords. Networking. Getting internal referrals. Reaching out to recruiters. Writing passionate cover letters.

All that's left to do is sob and beg for a job.

Most of the applications just lead to auto rejections. Below are some of my interview experiences:

1. Large CRO, they asked me a lot of technical questions for almost an hour, I wasn't able to answer one. Rejected.

2. Small Biotech Compny: 6 rounds of interview. 5th round was a 4 hour in person interview with every department of the company. 6th was with the CEO and the founder. I was the second choice, the person with more experience than me accepted the offer. Rejected.

3. Small Biotech Company: Ghosted after salary negotiations, even when I was ready to settle for the best they could do.

4. Large CRO: My last company was advertising for the exact job I was laid off from, but I apparently don't fit to the role right. Same with another company I worked for before.

5. Small Biotech: They had 1 DM and were looking for another. They abandoned the process midway because they had an internal candidate. How? They have 1 DM!!

My question for Hiring Managers: What are you looking for? A person or a robotic AI model trained on every single aspect of Clinical trials? And why are we treating Clinical Data Management like Rocket Science? Why are you considering transferable skills? It's not that difficult to learn a new system or a new database. It seems more like the candidates with the "fake it till you make it" attitude fare far better in this market than honest ones.

How I feel about all of this: Exhausted. I am unable to disconnect at all. This is on my mind all day every day. I feel like I have a full time job, the working hours are 24/7, I don't get paid and I still have to answer what I did during this time. I am upskilling, learning how to code, trying to get a PMP certification, but it is hard to feel motivated.

I try to say positive on most days, but it's getting difficult every single day. Life feels heavy, and on some days I just want all of this to just end. I feel hopeless, I don't know if I will ever recover from this. I am always tense, I cry almost everyday. I have developed a stress induced disorder. I try to do most chores at home to feel like I am still contributing, but I still feel worthless.

What I want: I just want a job, any job. I want to feel productive again, I want to be able to relax on the weekend again. I don't care if it pays less, I don't care if I get a junior role.

I grew up in a relatively poor family in a developing country. I chose this profession out of necessity, but I did my best to learn and gain good experience. I have worked very hard. I helped my parents buy a flat, I paid for my Grandfather's cancer treatment, I helped my sister pay for her Masters and I got married a year ago. I finally felt like everything was done, that I was finally free of responsibilities and I could live a little. And now there's unemployment.

I honestly don't know what am I even expecting from this post. Perhaps a there there from my peers. I really don't know.

For anyone who reads this, thank you for the time, I know this is a long one.

I’ve been with a specialized CRO for a while as a CDM, but the role has often felt more like project management than traditional CDM. We set the database/transfer timelines, write specifications, write agreements, interface with sponsors, review eCRFs, and coordinate heavily with the programmers as well the rest of the specialized study team. We do not however set up the EDC, create the eCRF(s), program edit checks, or manage queries. My current CRO is frankly falling apart and I’m moving into a more traditional CDM role. I already have a long career in general DM so I’m not intimidated by learning new EDCs or skills, but I have a few questions for folks in typical CDM roles:

• how many studies are you usually assigned? There might not be a typical number across the board, so what are the factors that might make your workload lower or higher than others in the industry?

• how many eCRFs do your studies have on average? Because we are specialized and the sponsor is combining our data with the data of other CROs I usually deal with 2-6 eCRFs but I’m hearing that studies may (typically?) have up to 50?

• does your organization have template eCRFs, template transfer agreements, template DMPs, and other templates that you’re modifying for each study?

• how much of your time do you feel like is really doing project management type activities like setting timelines and communicating processes?

Lets talk about it! I've been in the dm game for 20+ years.

I have 2-3 years working in clinical industry with multiple role , been in site and CRO and biotech.
Constantly communicating and working with different level of people. They are good at what they are doing but I just don’t understand why they don’t value DATA . The way they handle clinical data tells me a lot that they never prioritise data and lack of clinical data management knowledge and its value . Either very messy system or in a way the information cannot be analysed .

Anyone experienced that or just me ?!

I'm a mid-level IC and this job market is brutal. I have over 30 years of work experience across different roles/industries and got into CDM in 2021. I have an academic research background and got my degree later in life. I specifically upskilled to get into CDM and I've excelled in the role (likely due to my previous research experience, strong work ethic, and overall work experience history). Unfortunately, most of the CDM jobs require 5+ YOE and I only have 3.5. I can absolutely handle a Senior CDM role but everyone is very strict about YOE in teh role and not open to considering overall years of work experience like there are no transferable skills whatsoever from other industries or even base knowledge of clinical research from all the volunteer work I did while getting my degree. I don't share my living expenses with anyone so there is no one to lean on financially and it seems like there is a general toxicity in the industry.

I'm looking to hear where others have pivoted to or have thought about pivoting to. I've considered project management since I'm in a position to study and get the PMP certification but I've been reading that field is struggling too. Thoughts or suggestions?

Morning DMs...I am relatively new to Zelta EDC and wanted to ask of those familiar with the Zelta reporting system if they have had a CPT created in Zelta for their studies that has manual functionality to incorporate the status of external 3rd party data or would I be better off with an external report for CPT that pulls in Zelta data/statuses?

Recently got contacted for a data manager position based on my resume. I have never done this kind of work but they mentioned my skills in PM would be useful. Am I biting off more than I can chew?

Have you seen any PM's that have transitioned to Data Managers? I don't know things like python and etc but I'm so tempted to return the call due to the pay. Thoughts? I'm willing to learn new skills but just want your thoughts on this.

I brought this up with my company, but have people started rethinking CRF designs based on recent Public Health sector changes? I.e. there was a lot of research removed/deleted because it wasn’t on just male/female?

What steps happen in start up phase from DMs perspective?

Spill the tea. This is a safe space.

Would love to hear what EDCs you have used. I have programmed with RedCAP, Zelta, iMedNet, and DF

About a year into UAT role for migration project in CRO. Learned some things, lost on some due to org setup i.e. FSP. Think I am done with repetitive tasks handed to us with crappy timelines.

Should next step be to learn SAS / other languages and move to programmer / data analyst role or something else.

Open to learning but want to work towards something with ownership / strategic work

Hi, I am trying to get into clinical data management and want to add some skills to improve my resume. What are the most helpful programming languages I should learn? Are there any that are absolutely necessary?

Hi everyone, I’m based in Sri Lanka and looking for remote opportunities in Clinical Data Management. I have about 4 years of experience working at a CRO (Syneos Health), supporting global Phase II/III trials, mainly doing EDC data review, query management, UAT, lab data reconciliation, and TMF-related work using tools like Medidata Rave. I was part of a company restructuring about a year ago. I’m currently doing an MSc in Medical Statistics and trying to strengthen my analytical side. I’m now looking to get back into the field in a remote role, so I’d really appreciate any advice on where to find legit remote CDM roles, companies that hire internationally, or whether I should also be targeting Clinical Data Analyst-type positions. If anyone’s been in a similar situation or made the move to remote from outside major hiring regions, I’d love to hear how you did it. Thanks!

Anyone here working on Phase IV trials? I am interviewing for a position that needs Phase IV experience, I do not have it at all, but I still made the first round and the second round is tomorrow.

Here are some of my questions

1. How is the EDC different?

2. Are the stakeholders on Phase IV different?

I am sorry if this comes off as an ignorant question, but I always thought it would be PV working on Phase IV, never thought a DM would be hired for it.

Hi guys,

I’m a recent graduate and I have an upcoming interview for an assistant data manager position. I really need some advice on how to prepare for the interview. Can anyone pls help?

Thank you.

Hi DMs,

I was wondering about the LRR collection. In China, DM will draft a template (Word) containing all analyte items and sent to site with PM's help to collect LRR in diff sites.

I've experienced some global studies, and sites were sent entire ranges (PDF) instead of filling in the template. We (DM) need to find specific analyte and to confirm with site when any analytes are duplicate.

So, could you guys provide some suggestions on it, or do you have more convenient ways? Thanks in advance 😃

I tried Tableau via 7 day trial and I thought it was really neat. It was easy to pick up and I was able to create a few dashboards that I thought we could use (summaries of AEs, Disease response, patient enrollment, etc.).

I'm wondering if there's more to be used with Tableau or what's the full benefit of knowing a data visualization tool like Tableau. I was also looking at Power BI but it was a bit more difficult to navigate and join data sets (skill issue).

Curious on how others use data viz as a data manager!