Director, Program Strategy & Operations - CMU Online

Carnegie Mellon University•Pittsburgh, PA

About The Position

CMU Online seeks a strategic program leader to manage a growing portfolio of more than 10 online graduate programs across multiple schools and colleges. The Director independently leads program strategy and operations to support an exceptional student experience, maintain program quality and reputation, and meet retention and revenue goals. The role develops scalable strategies, systems, and processes and works across academic departments and university services to manage the complexity of a central unit supporting programs across the university. The Director leads student lifecycle operations, including onboarding, communications, retention strategy, complex student cases, and cross-functional issue resolution. They also lead the operational planning and implementation of multiple new online programs annually, coordinating with academic departments, university administrative units, technology teams, and other partners. The position supervises program management staff, establishes program metrics, communicates performance and risks to senior leadership, maintains comprehensive operational documentation, and drives process improvements and risk mitigation. The role calls for deep higher education program-management and student-services experience, strong analytical and strategic abilities, sound judgment in complex situations, effective people leadership, and exceptional communication and collaboration skills. A bachelor's degree is required; a master's degree is preferred. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States without CMU sponsorship. A successful pre-employment background check is required.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree required; a combination of education and relevant experience demonstrating comparable knowledge may be considered.
Minimum of 7–10 years of progressive experience in higher education program management, student services, academic operations, or a related area.
Significant experience in higher education.
Deep knowledge and experience in university program management, student services, academic operations, and policies affecting students throughout the enrollment lifecycle.
Ability to independently create and manage scalable systems, processes, and practices that support program growth and student success.
Demonstrated ability to manage complex student lifecycle operations across multiple programs while maintaining accuracy, consistency, and a high-quality student experience.
Experience leading interdisciplinary collaboration across academic departments, administrative units, and external partners, including resolving issues involving competing priorities and differing requirements.
Strong analytical skills and commitment to data-driven decision-making, including establishing metrics, identifying trends and risks, and translating findings into recommendations.
Exceptional judgment in complex situations, balancing policy, student needs, institutional risk, consistency, and equity.
Strong leadership and people-management skills, including setting expectations, coaching and developing staff, managing performance, and building an effective team.
Strong critical-thinking and problem-solving skills, including evaluating alternatives and implementing solutions amid ambiguity or competing priorities.
Exceptional written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to build trust, influence stakeholders, present complex information, and represent the university professionally.
Must be legally authorized to work in the United States; CMU will not sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa.
Successful pre-employment background check.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree.
10–12 years of progressive experience in higher education program management, student services, academic operations, or a related area.

Responsibilities

Direct strategy and operations for CMU Online’s portfolio of more than 10 online graduate programs across multiple academic departments.
Manage complex student needs, academic requirements, and operational standards to support program delivery, student outcomes, and portfolio growth.
Evaluate operational challenges and exception cases, exercise independent judgment, and determine appropriate courses of action.
Serve as the principal subject matter expert on university-wide and CMU Online policies and processes, program curricula, and academic requirements.
Identify operational risks, gaps, and opportunities and lead solutions that improve efficiency, consistency, accuracy, and scalability.
Lead coordination across schools, colleges, academic departments, university administrative units, and CMU Online staff.
Develop and maintain working relationships with university partners, including the Registrar’s Office, Student Financial Services, Financial Aid, Computing Services, the Student Academic Success Center, and Graduate Student Affairs.
Lead resolution of complex cross-functional issues and represent CMU Online in committees, working groups, and stakeholder meetings.
Collaborate with marketing and recruiting leadership on program operations, enrollment planning, student communications, and new program implementation.
Direct student success and retention strategy and oversee onboarding for approximately 300 new students across multiple programs and annual start dates.
Oversee visibility into the student lifecycle, identify pending actions and risks, and coordinate interventions with academic departments.
Oversee timely, accurate, and actionable student communications and determine resolutions for complex student cases.
Lead operational planning and implementation of multiple new online programs annually, including assessing requirements, dependencies, risks, and resources.
Establish repeatable frameworks, processes, and documentation for new program implementation.
Hire, train, coach, and manage program management staff; provide direction on complex or escalated situations and prioritize team capacity.
Establish and oversee student and program metrics, use data to identify trends and risks, and communicate performance and recommendations to senior leadership.
Maintain comprehensive documentation for program operations, student lifecycle processes, policies, workflows, procedures, calendars, reports, and projects.
Lead initiatives to automate, streamline, and improve processes through technology, system enhancements, and redesigned workflows.
Identify and mitigate operational risks and ensure accuracy, consistency, compliance, and service as the portfolio grows.