Description The Resilient Energy Technology and Infrastructure (RETI) Consortium at West Virginia University is currently accepting applications for a Chief Operations Officer.
About the OpportunityWest Virginia University seeks a Chief Operations Officer (COO) to lead the day-to-day operations of the Resilient Energy Technology and Infrastructure (RETI) Consortium, a National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engine focused on advancing industrial grid resilience and energy efficiency across West Virginia and western Pennsylvania. Reporting to the consortium's Chief Executive Officer, the COO will translate strategic direction into operational execution, ensuring disciplined delivery of milestones, the integrity of consortium data and metrics, and timely, accurate reporting to the National Science Foundation and other funders.
The COO will lead the operational backbone of a roughly $175 million federally and privately funded initiative that unites more than 60 partners - including two state governments, industry leaders, workforce organizations, capital providers, and academic institutions. The position oversees the Director of Communications and the consortium's Business Directors responsible for accounting, financial management, and award administration. The successful candidate will combine deep project management expertise, strong organizational capabilities, and outstanding communication skills with the ability to operate effectively in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment. The COO will also provide support to the CEO as a chief of staff, staffing meetings when needed and representing the RETI consortium in public settings when the CEO is otherwise engaged.
What You'll Do- Operational Leadership and Day-to-Day Management
- Lead the day-to-day operations of the consortium, ensuring that work across functional areas is coordinated, on schedule, and aligned with strategic priorities.
- Establish and maintain operating cadences, including leadership team meetings, milestone reviews, partner coordination forums, and cross-functional planning sessions.
- Design, implement, and continuously improve operational processes, systems, and tools that allow a small executive team to manage a complex consortium with discipline and efficiency.
- Drive accountability for milestone delivery across the consortium, escalating risks and barriers to the CEO and resolving operational issues swiftly.
- Translate the CEO's strategic direction into clear, measurable operational plans with defined ownership, timelines, and dependencies.
- Project Management and Portfolio Execution
- Establish a unified project and portfolio management framework spanning research, technology translation, workforce development, and partner engagement activities.
- Maintain integrated project plans, dependency maps, and risk registers that provide leadership with a clear picture of consortium progress and exposures.
- Oversee program management staff and embedded project leads to ensure consistent execution standards across the consortium.
- Apply structured project management methodologies (e.g., stage-gate, agile, milestone-based execution) appropriate to a federal innovation initiative.
- Data, Metrics, and Performance Management
- Establish and maintain the consortium's performance measurement framework, including key performance indicators tied to NSF Engines outcomes (e.g., job creation, startup formation, technology deployment, regional economic impact).
- Oversee the collection, validation, analysis, and reporting of consortium data across technical, workforce, commercialization, and community impact dimensions.
- Build dashboards and reporting systems that provide real-time visibility into consortium performance for the CEO, leadership team, board, and external stakeholders.
- Translate raw program data into actionable insights that inform strategic decisions, course corrections, and continuous improvement.
- NSF Reporting and Federal Compliance
- Work with the CEO for the preparation, review, and timely submission of all required NSF reports, including annual and quarterly progress reports, milestone reports, financial reports, and ad hoc requests from the program office.
- Serve as a secondary (back up to the CEO) operational point of contact with the NSF program office, ensuring responsive, accurate, and well-organized communication.
- Ensure compliance with NSF terms and conditions, federal cost principles (2 CFR 200), and applicable West Virginia University and sponsor policies.
- Coordinate audits, site visits, federal program reviews, and any required corrective action plans.
- Maintain a centralized knowledge base of consortium reports, policies, and compliance documentation.
- Financial and Business Operations Oversight
- Oversee the Business Directors responsible for accounting, financial management, subaward administration, procurement, and award close-out activities.
- Ensure accurate budgeting, forecasting, expenditure tracking, and financial reporting across the consortium's federal, state, industry, and philanthropic funds.
- Establish and maintain strong internal controls, segregation of duties, and financial integrity standards consistent with federal and university requirements.
- Partner with WVU sponsored programs administration, internal audit, and other institutional offices to ensure seamless financial and administrative operations.
- Communications Oversight
- Oversee the Director of Communications and the consortium's communications strategy across internal, partner, media, and policymaker audiences.
- Ensure consistent messaging, brand integrity, and quality across consortium publications, web presence, social media, and stakeholder communications.
- Support the CEO and senior leadership team in preparation for board meetings, congressional briefings, press engagements, and major partner convenings.
- Coordinate with WVU University Relations and partner communications teams to align messaging and amplify consortium impact.
- Team Leadership and Organizational Development
- Recruit, develop, evaluate, and retain a high-performing operations, business, and communications team.
- Foster a culture of accountability, transparency, collaboration, and continuous improvement across the consortium.
- Mentor direct reports and provide career development opportunities aligned with their professional growth and the consortium's evolving needs.
- Serve as a key partner to the CEO and other Chief Officers in shaping organizational culture, decision-making norms, and operational standards.
Qualifications- Bachelor's degree in business administration, public administration, operations management, engineering, or a related field.
- A minimum of ten (10) years of experience in the following:
- Progressively responsible operational leadership experience in a complex, multi-stakeholder organization.
- Any equivalent combination of related education and/or experience will be considered.
- All qualifications must be met by the time of employment.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities- Demonstrated track record successfully managing complex programs or portfolios with significant scope, multiple workstreams, and measurable outcomes.
- Proven expertise applying structured project management methodologies (e.g., PMI/PMBOK, agile, stage-gate, milestone-based execution) in operational settings.
- Demonstrated experience designing and managing data, metrics, and performance measurement systems that inform executive decision-making.
- Demonstrated experience with federal grant administration, sponsored programs reporting, or similar regulated environments, including familiarity with federal compliance and reporting requirements.
- Demonstrated experience overseeing financial and business operations, including budgeting, forecasting, and financial reporting at scale.
- Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to convey complex information clearly to executive, partner, and federal audiences.
- Demonstrated experience leading and developing cross-functional teams and direct reports, including senior individual contributors.
- Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills, with a record of operating effectively under deadlines and competing priorities.
Preferred Qualifications- Master's degree in Business Administration, Public Administration, Operations Management, Engineering Management, or a related discipline.
- Project Management Professional (PMP), Lean Six Sigma, or comparable project management certification.
- Experience administering NSF awards or other large federally and privately funded initiatives, including familiarity with the NSF Regional Innovation Engines program.
- Experience in energy, advanced manufacturing, research consortia, regional innovation ecosystems, or technology commercialization organizations.
- Experience overseeing a communications function, including strategic communications, media relations, and stakeholder engagement.
- Experience working at the intersection of academia, industry, and government.
- Familiarity with West Virginia, western Pennsylvania, or central Appalachia, or a demonstrated understanding of communities undergoing industrial transition.
- Experience implementing enterprise project, finance, or performance management systems (e.g., Smartsheet, Asana, Jira, Workday, Tableau, Power BI).
- Valid driver's license.
- This position is based in Morgantown, West Virginia, on the campus of West Virginia University. The role requires regular travel across West Virginia and western Pennsylvania to engage with consortium partners and operational sites, as well as periodic travel to Washington, D.C., and other locations to engage with federal agencies, partners, and funders. Standard executive working conditions apply, with the expectation of extended hours during key program milestones and reporting periods.
