Senior Director, Corporate Strategy - Prolaio

About Us 

This position is based in Chicago and dedicated to supporting Prolaio, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kardigan.  

Prolaio is a patient-centered clinical intelligence company dedicated to advancing today’s cardiology research and care with real-world patient data and insights. The company was created by cardiologists and cardiovascular scientists specifically to address the world’s number one cause of death, cardiovascular disease. Its FDA-cleared software integrates real-world clinical data and proprietary algorithms to deliver outcome-driven insights to empower patients, researchers, physicians, and product leaders. By combining scientific rigor with cutting-edge technology, Prolaio aims to expedite clinical trials and improve patient outcomes across cardiology therapeutic areas. 

Position Title: Senior Director, Corporate Strategy - Prolaio 

Department: Corporate Strategy 

Primary Reporting Line: Vice President, Corporate Strategy, Kardigan 

Secondary Reporting Line: General Manager, Prolaio 

Location: Chicago, IL – On-site 4 days per week (Mon to Thurs) 

Job Overview: 

The Senior Director, Corporate Strategy – Prolaio is a senior individual contributor role dedicated to Prolaio, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kardigan. This position will play a central role in shaping and executing Prolaio’s company strategy, leading high‑impact strategic initiatives, and supporting pricing, partnerships, and business development efforts across Prolaio’s clinical research and care delivery offerings. 

While the role sits within Kardigan’s Corporate Strategy function and reports to the Vice President of Corporate Strategy, it operates day‑to‑day as a dedicated strategic leader for Prolaio, working in close partnership with the Prolaio General Manager and leadership team. The role serves as a strategic bridge between Kardigan and Prolaio, ensuring alignment with enterprise priorities while enabling Prolaio to operate with speed, focus, and strategic independence. 

This role focuses on framing Prolaio’s most critical strategic questions; conducting market landscaping, market research, and market sizing; shaping pricing and monetization strategies; developing business cases and financial analyses for new growth opportunities; and driving execution across complex, cross‑functional initiatives. The scope spans clinical research strategy, care delivery models, patient pathways, and commercialization, integrating clinical operations, regulatory considerations, provider workflows, and external partnerships. 

The ideal candidate is a highly independent strategic operator who can lead initiatives end‑to‑end, operate effectively in ambiguity, and influence across teams without direct authority. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Lead and drive the development and execution of Prolaio’s company strategy, including long-term strategic direction, growth priorities, and key strategic choices, in alignment with Kardigan’s enterprise objectives.
• Conduct market landscaping, market research, and market sizing analyses to inform opportunity prioritization, investment decisions, and strategic roadmaps for Prolaio.
• Shape and advance new business concepts and growth initiatives, including:
  • Pricing and monetization strategies
  • Commercial and partnership models
  • Evaluation of new customer segments, use cases, and offerings
• Develop strategic business cases and financial analyses (e.g., NPV, ROI, scenario and sensitivity analyses) to evaluate: 
  • New business line opportunities
  • Pricing and commercialization approaches
  • Specific partnership and business development opportunities
• Assess strategic and financial trade-offs across proposed growth initiatives, including market attractiveness, investment requirements, execution risk, and long-term value creation potential
• Support and execute partnership and business development initiatives, including:
  • Strategic rationale development and deal structuring
  • Opportunity sizing and valuation frameworks
  • Cross‑functional execution of signed partnerships
  • Ongoing partnership performance assessment and governance
• Lead strategic initiatives spanning clinical research, care delivery, and patient pathways, with a focus on:
  • Clinical operations and trial enablement models
  • Regulatory and compliance considerations
  • Provider, site, and health‑system workflows

(in close coordination with Prolaio’s product, technology, and data leadership as appropriate)

• Frame critical strategic decisions for Prolaio and Kardigan leadership, developing clear, evidence‑based recommendations and articulating trade‑offs, risks, and execution implications.
• Operate as a strategic thought partner to the Prolaio General Manager and leadership team, providing structure, analytical rigor, and execution support on the company’s highest‑priority initiatives.
• Independently lead complex, cross‑functional strategic initiatives end‑to‑end, from problem definition through recommendation, alignment, and implementation support.
• Leverage resources from Kardigan’s Corporate Strategy team as needed to support analyses and initiatives, without formal people‑management responsibility.
• Serve as an informal mentor and collaborator to members of the broader strategy team, contributing to strategic rigor and best practices.
• Prepare and present strategic analyses and recommendations to senior leadership and executive stakeholders across Prolaio and Kardigan.

Qualifications and Preferred Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, healthcare, life sciences, engineering, or a related field
• MBA strongly preferred; advanced clinical or scientific degree (e.g., MD, PhD) a plus
• 7–10 years of experience in corporate strategy, management consulting, business development, or a related role
• Prior experience in healthcare technology, clinical research, life sciences, or care delivery innovation strongly preferred
• Demonstrated experience with:
  • Market landscaping, market research, and market sizing
  • Pricing strategy, value proposition development, and monetization models
  • Strategic business case development, including NPV-based financial analyses
  • Partnerships and strategic collaborations
• Working understanding of:
  • Clinical research operations and trial enablement
  • Provider and health system workflows
  • Regulatory and compliance considerations in healthcare environments
• Proven ability to operate as a senior individual contributor, leading complex, ambiguous initiatives independently and influencing across teams without direct authority
• Strong executive level communication skills, including experience presenting to senior leadership
• Strong analytical skills, including the ability to leverage emerging AI-enabled tools to support market analysis, strategic insights, and decision-making (in addition to traditional tools such as PowerPoint and Excel)
• Excellent analytical and strategic thinking skills; advanced proficiency in PowerPoint and Excel
• Strong stakeholder management, judgment, and cross functional collaboration skills