I might agree with you if pandemic prevention actually seemed oversubscribed. Instead, when I went looking for what needed doing I found lots of valuable potential projects that didn't have anyone working on them, and others that had been started but limited by hiring.

One good list of projects: https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/u5JesqQ3jdLENXBtB/...

In any case, my 'alpha' was something like, I'm a software engineer and engineering manager willing to work in an academic environment well below market wages, in a situation where the organization needed someone with my skills.