Associate Dean, Strategic Business Operations and Planning

Cal Poly Pomona • Pomona, CA

23h • $11,652 - $13,084 • Onsite

About The Position

The College of Professional and Global Education (CPGE) at Cal Poly Pomona extends learning opportunities beyond traditional campus boundaries and schedules, serving adult learners, working professionals, and international partners seeking to advance skills, explore new career pathways, and engage in lifelong learning. CPGE designs and delivers self-support graduate programs, professional and workforce development certificates, Open University offerings, and online education that respond to evolving economic, technological, and workforce needs. Operating as a dynamic, partnership-driven enterprise, CPGE collaborates closely with academic colleges, industry, community organizations, and global institutions to support workforce development, economic mobility, and regional and global engagement.

Requirements

• Master's Degree - business administration, finance, accounting, public administration, higher education administration or a closely related field.
• A minimum of three years of administrative (management level) leadership experience
• Progressively responsible leadership experience in higher education or a comparably complex organization, with demonstrated accountability for enterprise-level business operations, financial management, and strategic planning.
• Experience leading, supervising, and evaluating professional staff across multiple functional areas, including finance, enrollment services, operations, information technology, and/or human resources.
• Substantial experience managing complex, multi-source budgets, including self-support, auxiliary, foundation, grant, or contract funding, with responsibility for forecasting, reporting, and compliance.
• Proven ability to exercise independent judgment and delegated authority in policy interpretation, risk assessment, and executive decision support.
• Demonstrated success in data-informed planning and analysis, including the development or use of dashboards, financial models, enrollment projections, and performance metrics.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, and leadership skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with academic leaders, administrators, central offices, and external partners in a diverse institutional environment
• Advanced knowledge of higher education financial management, including budget development, forecasting, cost accounting, internal controls, and audit readiness.
• Working knowledge of enrollment management principles for graduate, professional, and non-credit programs, including pipeline analysis, capacity planning, and pricing considerations.
• Knowledge of human resources practices and labor relations in a public higher education context, including support of HEERA managers and compliance with collective bargaining agreements.
• Ability to analyze complex quantitative and qualitative data and translate findings into clear, actionable recommendations for senior leadership.
• Strong systems-thinking skills, with the ability to align people, processes, technology, and policy to achieve strategic outcomes.
• Ability to communicate complex financial, enrollment, and operational information clearly and effectively to diverse internal and external stakeholders, including senior leadership and campus partners.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across functional units, academic partners, and central administrative offices to coordinate workflows and achieve shared institutional goals.

Nice To Haves

• Doctoral degree in higher education administration, business administration, public administration, finance, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience leading or supporting revenue growth, enrollment expansion, or financial sustainability initiatives within a self-support, auxiliary, or entrepreneurial higher education environment.
• Experience within the CSU system or a comparable public higher education system, including familiarity with systemwide policies, executive orders, and shared governance environments.
• Direct experience with Professional and Continuing Education (PaCE), Extended Education, or other self-support academic units, including enrollment-driven revenue models.
• Experience supporting or partnering with academic units on cost recovery models, faculty compensation structures, or Letters of Agreement.
• Demonstrated experience leading or supporting organizational change, systems implementation, or operational transformation in response to growth, audit findings, or strategic initiatives.
• High level of discretion, professionalism, and integrity in handling sensitive financial, personnel, and institutional matters.
• Proficiency with enterprise systems and analytical tools commonly used in higher education, such as ERP systems, budget platforms, and reporting or visualization tools.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic counsel to the Dean on resource allocation, operational efficiencies, policy implications, and institutional improvement initiatives.
• Provide coordination and analytical support for CPGE’s strategic planning processes, under the Dean’s leadership, to align operational, budgetary, and enrollment objectives with institutional priorities.
• Exercise delegated authority to oversee the development and execution of annual and multi-year enrollment management strategies, including the establishment of college enrollment targets in collaboration with academic and administrative leadership.
• Direct the development and analysis of high-level financial, enrollment, and space utilization models to inform executive-level strategic planning and decision-making.
• Assess college-level operational and financial systems to identify risks, capacity constraints, and improvement opportunities, and recommend strategies to strengthen effectiveness, compliance, and sustainability.
• Ensure strategic alignment and coordination across core operational support functions (finance, enrollment services, technology, and related administrative services) to support the performance and sustainability of CPGE’s self-support programs.
• Advise the Dean on budget strategy, resource allocation, and financial planning for the college.
• Serve as CPGE’s administrative and financial officer, with broad responsibility, under Dean’s direction, for planning, managing and overseeing budgeting, accounting, and fiscal management activities of the college.
• Provide leadership for the management of multiple, complex funding sources, including CSU Operating Funds, self-support (PaCE) funds, Foundation and philanthropic funds, and workforce partnership–related funds, ensuring each is used strategically and for its intended purpose, including alignment with donor intent and funding restrictions.
• Lead the development of annual and multi-year financial plans and forecasts, integrating baseline, operating, and one-time resources to support strategic and enrollment-driven decision-making.
• Independently lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of financial planning, forecasting, reporting, and analytics tools, including dashboards and technology-enabled systems that support executive decision-making.
• Develop and deploy college-level tools, frameworks, and methods to assess and strengthen operational and financial effectiveness and provide guidance and capacity-building support to finance and operations staff across CPGE.
• Ensure college-wide compliance with applicable CSU, campus, state, and regulatory fiscal policies and reporting requirements across all funding sources.
• Provide high-level financial analysis, planning, and recommendations to the Dean to support strategic investments, enrollment-driven resource allocation, and long-term fiscal sustainability.
• Ensure financial reporting and analysis clearly articulate alignment between CPGE’s financial strategies, donor intent, workforce investments, and the college’s mission, vision, and strategic priorities to inform campus and system-level decision-making.
• Provide oversight for financial stewardship of grants, contracts, and externally funded programs to ensure alignment with sponsor requirements, reporting obligations, and college financial controls.
• Develop and maintain college-level fiscal policies, procedures, and standardized financial processes to promote accountability, resource stewardship, efficiency, and compliance.
• Exercise delegated authority over position and resource planning, ensuring alignment between staffing models, enrollment demand, and available financial resources.
• Serve as a subject-matter expert and advisor on complex self-support and auxiliary funding models, providing guidance to college leadership and partners on appropriate use, reporting, and compliance requirements.
• Plan, direct, and sustain college-wide financial performance, compliance, and internal control frameworks, ensuring consistent, auditable, and policy-aligned business practices.
• Oversee the development and oversight of cost-accounting–based budget models for self-support programs, including enrollment-sensitive forecasting, variance analysis, and monitoring of actuals versus budget.
• Direct the alignment and administration of faculty compensation structures, Letters of Agreement, and approval workflows to ensure consistency with CSU policy, institutional requirements, and sustainable program models.
• Establish and maintain data-informed partner cost-recovery, overhead, and fund-tracking methodologies, including required documentation and reporting to support transparency, accountability, and regulatory compliance and recommend updates to college-level financial policies and practices as needed.
• Ensure appropriate internal controls are designed and operating effectively to safeguard assets and support accurate, timely financial and managerial reporting.
• Provide executive oversight for audit readiness and required financial reporting, coordinating analyses, schedules, and documentation as necessary.
• Develop and oversee financial performance systems, dashboards, controls, and reporting routines that support data-informed decision-making, reserve stewardship, and regular reporting to senior leadership.
• Prepare and present periodic financial performance summaries and dashboards to the Dean and senior leadership, synthesizing complex financial data into actionable insights, including consolidated program- and unit-level performance trends.
• Provide college-level oversight and guidance of course and program scheduling activities to ensure alignment between enrollment strategy, instructional capacity, and resource utilization for self-support offerings, including Open University courses.
• Monitor and analyze enrollment performance, pipeline activity, and market trends to inform enrollment forecasting, capacity planning, and recruitment strategies, in coordination with Program Management and Partnership and Marketing and Communications offices, including use of market research and competitive insights.
• Provide strategic stewardship of Open University offerings, enrollment, integrating access, pricing, enrollment targets, and resource capacity to strengthen non-matriculated student pathways, optimize enrollment performance, and support CPGE’s self-support financial sustainability.
• Ensure enrollment targets, pricing assumptions, and capacity planning are aligned with financial models and resource planning for self-support programs and offerings, including alignment of enrollment strategies with marketing investments and outreach capacity.
• Serve as the college’s operational liaison with University Enrollment Management and Services and related campus partners to ensure alignment of CPGE enrollment strategies with campus-wide planning and policy frameworks.
• Plan and oversee college-level facilities and space planning, including long-range space needs, renovations, relocations, and health and safety compliance, to support CPGE instructional and administrative functions.
• Serve as the college’s senior operational liaison with Facilities Planning and Management to align CPGE priorities with university capital planning, space allocation, and facilities processes.
• Ensure operational continuity and risk mitigation through leadership of disaster preparedness, emergency response coordination, and business continuity planning for the college.
• Provide college-level operational oversight and coordination to ensure efficient day-to-day administrative operations, including the consistent implementation, monitoring, and continuous improvement of college policies, procedures, and operational practices.
• Support the development of multi-year facilities and space prioritization plans to respond to program growth, enrollment shifts, and operational needs.
• Monitor and interpret CPP, PaCE, CSU, State of California, and federal fiscal, operational, demographic, and policy trends that impact college-wide budget, planning, and strategic priorities; ensure ongoing compliance within assigned areas.
• Provide college-level operational leadership and coordination for human resources practices, supporting unit-level HEERA managers in organizational structure and personnel planning, recruitment, onboarding, performance management, and workforce planning.
• Serve as the college’s primary HR liaison, working in partnership with University Personnel and Labor Relations to support compliant and consistent implementation of employment laws, collective bargaining agreements, and CSU and campus policies.
• Advise and support unit leadership on position planning, position descriptions, performance evaluation frameworks, professional development, and organizational alignment, without supplanting unit-level supervisory authority.
• Conduct strategic, college-level assessments of staffing capacity, position alignment, and organizational structure to identify gaps and project future workforce needs based on enrollment demand, operational complexity, and anticipated growth.
• Provide executive oversight and coordination for CPGE’s information technology needs and priorities, working in partnership with central IT to ensure secure, reliable, and strategically aligned technology solutions that support college operations and growth.
• Lead college-level data strategy and analytical functions, including identification of data needs, interpretation of reports, and development of management analyses to support executive decision-making.

Benefits

• The California State University (CSU) system is a network of twenty-three public universities providing access to a quality education through the support of California taxpayers.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager