The University of British Columbia

Administrator

Education, Government & Non-Profit
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline.
  • Minimum three years of related experience or equivalent education and experience.
  • Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills.
  • Commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Responsibilities

  • Oversee all administrative functions for the Department of Linguistics.
  • Manage a $4.5 million budget, ensuring compliance and accuracy.
  • Coordinate human resources management for faculty and staff.
  • Develop and implement strategic plans to enhance productivity.
  • Administer departmental facilities and infrastructure.

Benefits

  • Support for continuing education and professional development.
  • Access to university resources and facilities.
  • Collaborative work environment with diverse teams.
  • Opportunity to influence strategic decisions in a dynamic department.
Full Job Description
Staff - Non Union

Job Category
M&P - AAPS

Job Profile
AAPS Salaried - Administration, Level B

Job Title
Administrator

Department
Faculty | Department of Linguistics

Compensation Range
$7,158.42 - $10,292.25 CAD Monthly
The Compensation Range is the span between the minimum and maximum base salary for a position. The midpoint of the range is approximately halfway between the minimum and the maximum and represents an employee that possesses full job knowledge, qualifications and experience for the position. In the normal course, employees will be hired, transferred or promoted between the minimum and midpoint of the salary range for a job.

Posting End Date
September 30, 2026

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the Posting End Date.

Job End Date
Ongoing

Job Description Summary

The Administrator is responsible for the effective management of all administration functions of the Department of Linguistics in the Faculty of Arts and the joint Master of Data Science (Computational Linguistics) program between the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Science. The Administrator's responsibilities include strategic planning and direction, developing, implementing and co-ordinating all academic and non-academic activities with principal involvement in administrative, financial, human resources, information technology and spatial matters. The Administrator provides operational leadership in developing and implementing strategic plans and changes to enhance productivity and in streamlining business processes. The Administrator oversees the management of a $4.5 million + budget including GPOF, fee for service, specific purpose, endowment funds and research accounts. The Department operates out of three locations: Totem Field Studios which houses faculty and staff offices, as well as elicitation labs, meeting space, and a library; Stores Road where eleven research labs are located; and Buchanan Tower where faculty and advising offices are located.

Organizational Status

The Department of Linguistics currently has 20 tenure-track faculty members, plus additional lecturers, visiting faculty and sessional instructors, approximately 40 graduate students and approximately 300 undergraduate students. Approximately 3,000 students enroll annually in courses offered by the Department. The Department also offers a summer camp program for over 300 children. The position reports to the Department Head on all matters on a regular basis. The position has supervisory responsibility for all staff in the department. Support staff (CUPE 2950, 2278 and M&P) report to the incumbent. The incumbent interacts with faculty members, students, staff, general public and suppliers, the President's Office, Dean's and departmental offices of the Faculty of Arts, Faculty Relations, Human Resources and Finance.

Work Performed

Budget and Financial Management

- Develops and oversees policies and procedures related to financial management

- Develops, recommends and implements budgets to achieve goals and priorities established by the Department and the MDS-CL program

- Prepares budget submissions, forecasts, summaries and reports for internal and external agencies; recommends reallocations

- Manages the Linguistics Department budget of $4.5 million including GPOF, Fee for Service, and Specific Purpose,

- Monitors and authorizes financial transactions ensuring compliance with University and granting agency policy, budget and accounting constraints. This includes expenses and purchases, transfers, cash receipts and cost recoveries

- Assists faculty members with the administration and budgeting of research grants, including salary awards and foreign grants, paying and processing of the Compliance Fee for visiting faculty

- Prepares forecasts and submits reports/recommendations to the Head of Linguistics and the Director of the MDS-CL program on administration of research grants and contracts

- Directs and oversees reconciliation of monthly and annual statements, payroll and benefit statements; investigates and reports on anomalies and errors.

- Assesses requirements and establishes priorities for purchase or upgrade of departmental equipment and manages inventory

Human Resources Management

Faculty

- Oversees the faculty and research grant funded recruitment and appointment processes

- Assists the Head in the process of negotiating contracts and agreements

- Coordinates the Promotions and Tenure, faculty leave application, and Merit & PSA processes

- Ensures faculty are properly resourced with respect to orientation, systems and course support

- Serves as a resource on immigration and employment policies and procedures and helps ensure adherence to both; coordinates immigration requirements for visiting researchers, students and faculty

- Coordinates the hiring of Sessional Instructors and supports faculty with the hiring of postdoctoral fellows, and graduate and undergraduate research assistants; advises on terms and rates of employment, clarifies UBC policies

- Prepares statistical material for internal and external use, i.e., faculty, reports, personnel information

Staff

- Manages unionized and non-unionized staff, additional short-term hires and Graduate Teaching Assistants

- Anticipates staffing needs and develops and maintains human resource strategies

- Provides leadership and guidance by developing and implementing sound performance management practices; interpreting and implementing various collective agreements (CUPE 2950, CUPE 116, CUPE 2278, M&P); ensuring departmental practices are consistent with Agreements and policies within the Faculty of Arts.

- Manages hiring, training, evaluating and terminating of clerical staff and supervises their day-to-day work; develops and updates position descriptions

- Establishes and implements human resource practices, policies and programs

- Promotes teamwork through staff meetings

- Manages position reclassifications for staff in the Department to ensure staffing levels support program needs

- Provides guidance to faculty and staff regarding employee relations and human resource issues

General

- Manages the Department's administrative records (paper and electronic). Ensures that they are accessible and held or culled according to the University's record retention schedules

Facilities and Infrastructure Management

- Administers departmental space including making recommendations on the allocation and reassignment of offices, labs and storage space

- Manages facilities and surrounding areas. Because of the Department's remote location on campus, it has unique needs with regards to parking, building and yard maintenance, and security

- Responsible for managing the maintenance, renewal and renovation plans for the Department's facilities and equipment, as well as for developing, implementing and maintaining usage policies and guidelines with appropriate technicians

- Authorizes the acquisition of all necessary supplies, equipment and services for the administrative functions of the Department.

- Responsible for ensuring that a Local Health and Safety committee is established as appropriate, reporting up to the Joint Health Safety Committee; responsible for ensuring that proper occupational health and safety guidelines are in place, reviewed monthly.

- Oversees the day-to-day decision-making on security, deliveries and emergency plans for facilities

- Authorizes keys and fob allocations to faculty, staff, and grad students

Communications

- Oversees recruitment material for the department, advising the Head on best practice in alignment with Faculty of Arts policy

- Interprets University, Faculty and Department administrative policies for faculty and staff, in particular their application to complex situations not clearly addressed in current policies

- Meets with the Dean and representatives of the Dean's office, in conjunction with the department Head, for issues related to budget and space

- Represents the Department on the Faculty of Arts Administrators Committee group, liaising regularly with other administrators and the Assistant Deans in Arts to share information and best business practices

- Represents the Department at ad hoc non-academic University meetings (e.g. Classroom Services)

- Updates Procedures Manual annually including drafting new administrative policies and procedures for review by Head and faculty within the unit

Consequence of Error/Judgement

Strong analytical skills and sound decision-making ability are essential. Accounting errors would have significant implications on the Department's ability to meet its financial obligations. Administration errors in human resource management and facilities management would negatively affect the Department's ability to carry out its research and teaching responsibilities.

Supervision Received

The Manager of Administration reports to the Head of Linguistics, but functions independently and autonomously with no managerial direction in assigned areas.

Supervision Given

The Manager is responsible for hiring, supervising, evaluating, disciplining and termination of clerical (CUPE) and management (M&P) staff.

Minimum Qualifications

Undergraduate degree in a relevant discipline. Minimum of three years of related experience or the equivalent combination of education and experience.

- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one's own

- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one's own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

Ability to analyze problems, identify key information and issues, and find effective solutions. Ability to review, analyze and synthesize complex information into summaries and reports. Tact and discretion. Ability to build cooperative relations with diverse persons, notably students, faculty and UBC staff. Excellent oral and written communication skills. Ability to prioritize and work effectively under pressure to meet deadlines. Demonstrated experience in financial budgeting, accounting and reports preferred. Knowledge of University financial systems preferred.

About The University of British Columbia

The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public research university with campuses in Vancouver and Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, UBC is British Columbia's oldest university. The university is ranked among the top 20 public universities worldwide and among the top three in Canada. UBC is a research-intensive university and has an annual research budget of over $600 million. The university offers over 200 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in a wide range of academic fields. UBC has a diverse student population, with over 65,000 students from over 160 countries.
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