Associate Director, Business Services & Corporate Education

San Diego State University Research Foundation • San Diego, CA

46d • $6,833 - $7,500 • Onsite

About The Position

The Associate Director, Small Business & Corporate Education provides strategic and operational leadership for SDSU’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC), corporate education initiatives, and related business programs. Reporting to the Executive Director of SDSU Career Services, the position oversees business advising, technical assistance, education, training, referrals, program delivery, and outcome tracking while ensuring performance against contractual and funding requirements.
The Associate Director develops cross-organizational partnerships, referral protocols, service standards, shared programming, and performance systems to meet small business needs. The position works closely with SDSU Career Services, ZIP Launchpad, Technology Transfer Center, Global Campus, Academic Affairs, the SBDC lead center, sister centers, and other partners to connect businesses with appropriate university and community resources.
Key SBDC focus areas include supporting innovative businesses, advancing job creation, and strengthening support for student-led businesses and student entrepreneurship. The Associate Director is accountable for program quality, compliance, partnerships, and measurable outcomes such as business formation, revenue growth, access to capital, contracting activity, and job creation.
The Associate Director will help establish SDSU as an active partner within the SBDC network serving San Diego and Imperial Counties, identify opportunities to expand the university’s presence, pursue new business development and grant funding opportunities, and align existing and emerging initiatives with university goals and priorities. Through campus and community partnerships, this work will strengthen entrepreneurial career pathways and create new opportunities for education, business growth, workforce development, and economic mobility.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree and/or equivalent training and administration work experience involving study, analysis, and/or evaluation leading to the development or improvement of administrative policies, procedures, practices, or programs.
• Five years of progressively responsible experience in office or administrative environment
• Knowledge of small business development, entrepreneurship, business advising, and economic development principles.
• Knowledge of SBDC, SBA, university, grant, and contractual compliance requirements.
• Skill in designing, launching, managing, and continuously improving complex programs and service models.
• Skill in providing individualized business advising and translating client needs into actionable strategies.
• Skill in recruiting, onboarding, coordinating, supervising, and evaluating consultants and subject-matter experts.
• Skill in building and maintaining partnerships with businesses, government agencies, educational institutions, and community organizations.
• Skill in interpreting performance data and using metrics to improve programs and achieve contracted outcomes.
• Skill in managing budgets, expenditures, contracts, invoicing, and grant-related reporting.
• Ability to identify emerging business, workforce, technology, and market trends and translate them into new programming opportunities.
• Ability to manage competing priorities, deadlines, resources, and contractual requirements.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working with the start-up, small business, entrepreneurship, and community-based ecosystems across San Diego and Imperial Counties.
• Demonstrated ability to provide regional leadership and coordinate programs, services, resources, and partnerships across multiple organizations.
• Experience with grant writing, fundraising, business development, revenue generation, or other strategies that support program growth and sustainability.

Responsibilities

• Design, launch, maintain, and continually improve service models, including intake, needs assessment, referral, service planning, advising workflows, training calendars, and service pathways, ensuring programming aligns with Lead SBDC Center priorities, SBDC network requirements, and SDSU goals and priorities.
• Develop and maintain the operating infrastructure for programming, including scheduling systems, documentation practices, marketing and communications, and mobile or community-based service delivery across San Diego and Imperial Counties.
• Integrate technology, digital tools, and emerging technologies into service delivery, outreach, and engagement strategies to continuously connect with the business community, expand access to resources, and improve the effectiveness and scalability of programming.
• Coordinate program development with relevant SDSU units and external partners to ensure services support institutional priorities, small business needs, student and alumni opportunities, and entrepreneurial career pathways.
• Document policies, procedures, curriculum, service standards, and tracking tools to promote consistency, compliance, continuity, and sustained institutional knowledge.
• Provide direct, individualized business advising to SBDC clients, helping pre-venture and established businesses assess needs, address challenges, identify opportunities, and develop strategies that support business formation, growth, sustainability, and measurable economic outcomes.
• Develop and deliver workshops, seminars, training programs, and other educational offerings responsive to small business needs, SBDC priorities, emerging industry trends, and areas of professional expertise.
• Coordinate advising and training activities across consultants, subject-matter experts, campus partners, and external professionals to ensure clients receive relevant, high-quality technical assistance and education.
• Serve as a coordinator for corporate education activities, working with Global Campus, Academic Affairs, Career Services, and other SDSU units to connect businesses and professionals with existing university programs, certificates, training, and continuing education opportunities.
• Identify opportunities to develop or expand business-facing services based on employer needs, market trends, emerging technologies, workforce priorities, and opportunities to strengthen entrepreneurial career pathways.
• Assess consultant and subject-matter expertise needs across the San Diego and Imperial SBDC Network and maintain a qualified consultant bench that addresses service, industry, language, and geographic needs.
• Recruit, vet, onboard, and contract consultants in accordance with SDSURF, university, and SBDC requirements, including vendor setup, documentation, insurance, conflicts of interest, and executed agreements.
• Assign consultants based on client and program needs; monitor performance, client feedback, service quality, and utilization; and decide on coaching, recognition, renewal, and reassignment.
• Oversee consultant documentation, use of required client management systems, confidentiality standards, invoicing, payment processes, and expenditures to ensure services are properly documented and financially accountable.
• Expand the SBDC’s expertise through SDSU faculty and staff, professionals, trainees, mentors, and advisory networks, while supervising and developing assigned program contractors, staff, and student assistants.
• Serve as the center’s lead for compliance with SBA, State of California, Lead SBDC Center, SDSURF, university, and funding-partner requirements, including confidentiality, conflicts of interest, client eligibility, consultant qualifications, and applicable program standards.
• Oversee required client management, intake, reporting, and survey systems as the official systems of record; maintain appropriate access and training, establish data-entry standards and timelines, and implement new reporting requirements as they are introduced.
• Manage progress toward contracted milestones, performance measures, and economic outcomes, adjusting staffing, consultant capacity, programming, and outreach as needed to achieve annual targets.
• Oversee grant and program budgets, expenditures, invoicing, and required quarterly and annual reporting across applicable funding streams, ensuring timely and accurate fulfillment of contractual and cooperative agreement requirements.
• Maintain accurate, complete, and audit-ready client records, case notes, economic impact documentation, and outcome verification through regular quality review; lead preparation for audits, monitoring visits, site reviews, and accreditation activities and incorporate findings into continuous improvement.
• Represent and advocate for the SDSU SBDC and small business community with the SBA, chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, lenders, investor groups, industry associations, workforce boards, educational institutions, community organizations, and business and industry advocacy groups.
• Lead business development, client recruitment, and outreach strategies, including marketing campaigns, referral pipelines, community engagement, targeted outreach, and efforts to expand services across San Diego and Imperial Counties.
• Identify and pursue grants, contracts, sponsorships, partnerships, and other new ventures that strengthen business development, diversify revenue, and help ensure the long-term sustainability and growth of the program.
• Collaborate closely with the ZIP Launchpad, Technology Transfer Center, Global Campus, Academic Affairs, SDSU Imperial Valley, and other campus units to explore partnerships and initiatives that advance SBDC objectives and university goals and priorities.
• Explore opportunities to expand SDSU’s footprint in small business development, innovation, technology, corporate education, and entrepreneurial career pathways through new partnerships, programs, and business-facing initiatives.
• Other Duties as Assigned

Benefits

• Consistent with California law and federal civil rights laws, SDSU Research Foundation provides equal opportunity in employment without unlawful discrimination or preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin or any other categories protected by federal or state law.
• Employment decisions are based on an individual’s qualifications as they relate to the job under consideration.
• Our commitment to equal opportunity means ensuring that every employee has equal access to resources and support.

What This Job Offers

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