Position Summary

The Senior Director, Institutional Initiatives Portfolio Management, serves as the University PMO's lead implementation partner for initiatives sponsored by the President's Office, Provost's Office, and possibly other senior university leaders. While university leadership establishes strategic priorities, desired outcomes and determines what the institution seeks to accomplish, this role is responsible for helping define the plan and help determine how those priorities can be successfully implemented across the university. Working at the intersection of consulting, technology, process improvement, organizational change, and execution, the Senior Director partners with executive leaders to assess opportunities, help define implementation approaches, evaluate alternatives, and develop actionable plans. Through a consultative and facilitative approach, this role helps leaders understand the potential implications, benefits, risks, organizational impacts, resource requirements, and trade-offs associated with various implementation options, enabling informed decision-making. To help develop implementation recommendations and approaches, the Senior Director engages stakeholders across the university, researches leading practices, assesses how peer institutions and other organizations have addressed similar challenges, facilitates cross-functional discussions, and evaluates impacts across people, process, technology, governance, service delivery, and organizational structures. The role serves as a connector across the institution, bringing together expertise from Information Technology, Finance, Human Resources, schools, administrative units, and other functional areas to identify practical, sustainable solutions that align with the strategic objectives of the President and Provost Offices. A critical component of this role is partnering closely with peers across the PMO, including Change Management and Process Improvement leaders, to assess organizational readiness, business process implications, stakeholder impacts, adoption considerations, and opportunities for operational improvement. The Senior Director leverages these partnerships to ensure implementation recommendations address not only project delivery requirements but also the broader organizational changes necessary to achieve desired outcomes and sustain long-term value. The role also works closely with Information Technology leadership and university technical teams whenever initiatives involve technology-enabled solutions, systems, data, integrations, digital capabilities, or technology investments. In these situations, the Senior Director serves as the bridge between executive stakeholders and technology teams, ensuring solution options are fully evaluated, technology implications are understood, and implementation efforts remain coordinated and aligned with institutional technology standards and priorities. The Senior Director also assumes responsibility for overseeing the project and the desired outcomes for all approved projects coming from the President and Provost Offices. This includes leading a team of experienced project managers and partnering with PMO colleagues and university stakeholders to establish implementation plans, governance structures, priorities, timelines, and success measures. The role provides ongoing leadership throughout execution by managing risks, resolving issues, facilitating decision-making, coordinating stakeholders, monitoring progress, and ensuring leaders have visibility into status, challenges, dependencies, and expected outcomes. Success in this role requires a unique combination of consulting, facilitation, critical thinking, problem-solving, relationship management, and execution skills. The ideal candidate can effectively move between executive discussions about future-state possibilities and the practical realities of implementation, helping university leaders transform strategic priorities and vision into successful and sustainable outcomes and roadmaps.

Qualifications

Required Education:
Bachelor's Degree

Preferred Education:
Master's Degree

Required Experience:
10+ years of demonstrated experience leading a project management team or working in a consulting/PMO organization. Working in a complex matrix environment with stakeholders at various levels. Understanding of project management deliverables such as executive level presentations, status reporting, and managing project plans. Experience translating strategic vision and desired outcomes into actionable implementation plans.

Preferred Experience:
2+ years Experience working in higher education. and 7+ years Experience working in a consulting organization such as McKinsey, Deloitte, Accenture

Required Skills, Knowledge and Abilities:
Demonstrated skills in understanding core project management methodologies. Excellent analytical and problem solving skills. Excellent interpersonal, written and verbal skills. Excellent presentation skills. Ability to work with diverse teams to achieve objectives. Ability to build consensus among diverse constituencies. Ability to work effectively with technical and functional teams to achieve desired outcomes. Ability to communicate with stakeholders at all levels and ability to tailor the communication style accordingly. Develops information technology project solutions by formulating objectives; planning project life-cycle deliverables and resource availability and application; preparing installation and modification specifications; leading the exploration, evaluation, and design of technical solutions. Ability to communicate effectively with individuals at all levels. Excellent strategic planning and problem solving skills. Ability to function effectively in a fast-paced, high pressure environment and progress on multiple projects simultaneously.

Preferred Skills, Knowledge and Abilities:
Track record of successfully executing portfolio, program and project management, preferably having supported initiatives for Senior leadership in either higher ed, government or not for profit organization.

Additional Information

In compliance with NYC's Pay Transparency Act, the annual base salary range for this position is USD $220,000.00 to USD $260,000.00. New York University considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate's work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, as well as, market and organizational considerations when extending an offer. This pay range represents base pay only and excludes any additional items such as incentives, bonuses, clinical compensation, or other items.

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