Associate Dean for Technology Strategy and Solutions

Duke Careers•Durham, NC

4d•Hybrid

About The Position

As the Associate Dean for Technology Strategy and Solutions, you will play a pivotal leadership role within Trinity College of Arts & Sciences at Duke University. You will serve as a trusted strategic partner to academic and administrative leaders, helping to shape how technology supports teaching, research, and operations across one of Duke’s largest and most complex schools. This role operates in a highly collaborative, matrixed environment, requiring you to build partnerships with faculty, staff, Duke’s Office of Information Technology (OIT), Libraries, and university-wide stakeholders to ensure technology solutions are sustainable, scalable, and aligned with Trinity’s mission. This is a senior leadership opportunity for someone who thrives at the intersection of strategy, collaboration, and innovation. You will lead through influence, helping Trinity modernize legacy systems, strengthen data and analytics capabilities, and coordinate technology investments that support academic excellence and operational effectiveness.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in information systems, computer science, business administration, public administration, higher education administration, or a related field.
Substantial progressively responsible experience in technology strategy, enterprise systems, operational improvement, business systems analysis, data analytics, project management, or related areas, preferably in higher education or another complex institutional environment.
Coordinating complex cross-functional technology initiatives involving multiple stakeholders and service providers.
Leading or supporting technology modernization and systems transition efforts.
Working collaboratively across technical and non-technical environments.
Translating operational requirements into technology-related solutions and implementation plans.
Managing technology-related budgets, investments, or operational resources.
Navigating decentralized or highly matrixed organizational environments.
Experience navigating complex institutional environments and leading cross-functional initiatives through collaboration and influence is strongly preferred.
Demonstrated ability to build collaborative partnerships across organizational and functional boundaries.
Ability to collaborate effectively with faculty, researchers, and university partners supporting research and academic technology services.
Ability to manage multiple priorities and initiatives in a decentralized and highly matrixed environment.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences.
Knowledge of enterprise systems, institutional data environments, systems integration concepts, technology governance, and operational process improvement practices.
Ability to exercise sound judgment, discretion, and confidentiality in handling sensitive institutional information.
Ability to lead through influence, collaboration, and relationship management rather than direct operational authority.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree preferred.
Experience supporting or coordinating technology services related to faculty research, scholarly activity, academic computing, or data-intensive research environments preferred.
Understanding of technology needs associated with faculty research, scholarly activity, academic computing, and data-intensive research environments preferred.
Understanding of higher education administrative operations, academic technologies, and institutional governance structures preferred.
Knowledge of emerging practices in AI-enabled administrative tools, enterprise data environments, and digital transformation strategies preferred.

Responsibilities

Partner with school leadership to develop and advance technology strategies aligned with Trinity’s academic, administrative, operational, and research priorities.
Advise leaders on technology modernization, enterprise systems, digital strategy, and technology-enabled process improvement.
Anticipate emerging faculty and program needs related to research computing, data-intensive scholarship, and digital research tools.
Represent Trinity in university-wide technology planning, governance, and collaborative initiatives.
Serve as Trinity’s primary liaison with Duke’s Office of Information Technology and other university technology organizations.
Serve as a member of Duke’s IT Council, collaborating closely with Duke OIT and technology leaders across the university’s schools and administrative units to ensure technology investments, solutions, and service delivery align with institutional architecture, cybersecurity, infrastructure, data, and operational standards.
Coordinate delivery and prioritization of technology services supporting academic, administrative, and operational functions.
Translate business and operational needs into coordinated technology solutions across distributed university teams.
Partner with faculty, departments, Libraries, and research computing groups to support evolving research and academic technology needs.
Lead assessment and prioritization of legacy systems, decentralized applications, and locally developed tools.
Identify operational risks associated with unsupported systems and coordinate transition and mitigation strategies.
Reduce technical debt and improve system sustainability through modernization and workflow redesign.
Coordinate implementation of enterprise systems, shared services, and locally supported solutions.
Partner with school and university leaders to improve access to data, reporting, dashboards, and analytics.
Support data-informed decision-making across finance, academic administration, facilities, and school operations.
Participate in governance discussions related to data management, AI governance, cybersecurity, and technology policy.
Promote sound data governance, data quality, and consistent reporting practices.
Oversee Trinity’s technology investment portfolio, including lifecycle planning, software and licensing expenditures, and prioritization of initiatives.
Manage technology-related budgets, vendor relationships, and contracts as assigned.
Ensure solutions align with university standards, security requirements, and operational best practices.
Build strong relationships with faculty, administrators, and university partners.
Lead communication and change management efforts tied to technology initiatives and organizational change.
Monitor emerging trends in higher education technology, analytics, AI-enabled tools, and digital transformation.