Finance and Administration represents a committed group of people who serve the University in a variety of areas including Financial Services, Information Technology Services, Risk Management, Internal Audit, Compliance, Human Resources, and Shared Services.
The goal of our division is to provide the services and support needed to foster an environment of academic and research excellence at the University of Chicago. Our team is dedicated to collaborative partnerships with our colleagues and clients that lay the foundation for an exemplary service delivery process. Finance and Administration is fully aligned with the strategic and academic priorities of the University, and each of the units within our division is tasked with implementing the processes necessary to achieve lasting excellence.
Job Summary
The Finance and Administration (F&A) Division at the University of Chicago is seeking a Director of Operational Excellence. The Director of Operational Excellence is accountable for the strategy, development, and implementation of continuous process improvement efforts, prioritization of enhancements to current systems to improve operational efficiencies, and development and management of a team focused on cross-functional service delivery across F&A.
Under the Executive Director for Client Service Management and Optimization's leadership, the Director of Operational Excellence will lead a team that collaborates with F&A Division leaders, central process owners, campus partners, and subject matter experts to analyze and implement process improvements to enterprise systems including Oracle Cloud Financials, Concur Travel and Expense Management, Workday HCM, ServiceNow, Intelligent Analytics/Robotic Process Automation, Orbit Reporting, and other proprietary technologies. Working with the Executive Director, the Director will use data analysis to identify trends, proactively communicating and partnering on identified issues, anticipating future service issues, and developing/delivering tools for operational efficiency through automation. Operational Excellence will partner with F&A Division leaders, central process owners across finance, budget, human resources, information technology, and research administration to define and report operational metrics and scorecards for decision support, quality management, continuous improvement, and advancing service missions.
The Director of Operational Excellence leads the team that ensures staff and faculty receive consistent and quality service. To this end, Operational Excellence will develop, refine, and revise established key performance indicators (KPIs) to report on timely and accurate support from the F&A Support Center and functional teams to confirm that support meets and exceeds the needs of clients across the University community. Operational Excellence will collaborate with functional leaders and the IT Services technical teams to assist in the implementation of new releases to enterprise systems including Oracle Cloud ERP (Financials), Concur, Workday and ServiceNow; focus on anticipating issues leveraging data from system use and adoption, client feedback, and knowledge of best practices; partner with the Support Center to manage complex cases and act as a liaison to clients and stakeholders; evaluate, build, and test new processes in partnership with technical teams and functional experts; and engage across the institution to collect feedback on, prioritize, and deliver continuous process improvement.
This position is an integral part of the Financial Systems Transformation (FST) Program's implementation of Oracle Cloud to replace the University's legacy financial system. In particular, the Director of Operational Excellence will lead development and implementation of a sustainable team infrastructure that will work closely with the FST team to manage additional implementations after the initial go-live. Operational Excellence will act as the key point of coordination between the technical post go-live support team housed in IT Services, functional leadership, the Support Center, and the Training COE to organize seamless Oracle support for campus stakeholders. As part of its mission, Operational Excellence will be tasked with communicating between the Oracle Support group and ensuring current work and new initiatives best meet institutional goals for excellence in client service and user experience. Additionally, the Operational Excellence team will lead ERP governance, including enhancement and defect prioritization.
The ideal candidate will have experience gaining consensus and making recommendations across academic and administrative functions at a research-intensive institution. Over time, this position will need to build in-depth knowledge of the University of Chicago's practices, processes, and data sources to best bring parties together to solve problems and to remove barriers impeding progress.
Responsibilities
Embraces, advocates for, and establishes a foundation for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
Leads strategic transformational initiatives to implement improved processes, software tools, and communication that promote operational excellence and efficiency across finance and administrative functions.
Develops and manages a team focused on quality delivery of business services through the design, implementation, coordination, and evaluation of quality measurement and improvement projects, initiatives, and practices.
Acts as strategic intelligence champion by practicing evidence-based decision making and developing effective data management processes to ensure comprehensive end-to-end service delivery across functions.
Ensures functional units adopt culture of service and operational excellence, including COE structures and appropriate ongoing assessment of related goals/metrics.
Provides leadership in deploying effective presentation of key performance indicators, including dashboards, scorecards, self-service reporting, websites, and other digital media.
Collaborates on development of tools to provide user and leadership visibility on service delivery and other reportable components.
Convenes cross-functional experts to identify, prioritize, and plan for improvements in process, technology, and organizational design.
Develops estimates and cost allocations for proposed improvements.
Convenes diverse groups of administrative and academic stakeholders to solicit feedback, affirm priorities, and develop solutions; monitors service quality through various feedback mechanisms (e.g., surveys, focus groups) and synthesizes data..
Participates in assessment of new software releases and updates to determine new functionalities that may align with business goals.
Oversees ERP governance, including enhancement and defect prioritization.
Manages employees by establishing annual performance goals, allocating resources, assessing annual performance, and determining individual merit, incentive and/or promotional increases.
Manages program operations and administrative functions which may include planning and scheduling, program evaluation, policy implementation, personnel administration, budget, marketing, fundraising and proposal development.
Performs other related work as needed.
Minimum Qualifications
Education:
Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.
--- Work Experience:
Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 7+ years of work experience in a related job discipline.
--- Certifications:
---
Preferred Qualifications
Education:
Graduate degree in management, public policy, or related field.
Experience:
Demonstrated ability to define, deliver, and measure improvement in a primary administrative or operational support function.
Demonstrated leadership of major projects/initiatives aimed at improving service quality, efficiency, and/or effectiveness.
Demonstrated supervisory/team leadership experience related to complex projects.
Working with multiple administrative or support functions within a complex organization
Working with diverse stakeholders in an academic or academic health setting
Certifications:
Certifications or education in project management (e.g., PMP) and/or process improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean).
Technical Skills or Knowledge:
Proficiency with analysis of financial, human capital, and business process data.
Understanding of service delivery design and management.
Proficiency with data visualization tools.
Preferred Competencies
Excellent written and oral communications skills; tailor communication to diverse audiences.
Foster consensus and promote alignment with others without direct reporting relationships.
Working Conditions
The position is a hybrid position with on-site needs aligned with job duties. The candidate should expect to be on-site to meet with internal clients or lead/attend key meetings, an average of 1-4 days per month.
Application Documents
Resume/CV (required)
Cover Letter (required)
When applying, the document(s) MUSTbe uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.
Job Family
Administration & Management
Role Impact
People Manager
FLSA Status
Exempt
Pay Frequency
Monthly
Scheduled Weekly Hours
37.5
Benefits Eligible
Yes
Drug Test Required
No
Health Screen Required
No
Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required
No
Posting Statement
The University of Chicago is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity/Disabled/Veterans and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.
Staff Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.
We seek a diverse pool of applicants who wish to join an academic community that places the highest value on rigorous inquiry and encourages a diversity of perspectives, experiences, groups of individuals, and ideas to inform and stimulate intellectual challenge, engagement, and exchange.
All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.
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