Executive Director of Operations and Academic Support

National Louis University•Chicago, IL

About The Position

The Executive Director of Operations and Academic Support serves as a key member of the Dean’s Leadership Team, providing strategic leadership, governance, and operational oversight for the college’s academic and administrative functions. The position is responsible for aligning data-informed decision-making, resource allocation, and operational execution with the college and university strategic plans. Working in close partnership with the Dean, school directors, and university stakeholders, the role ensures accountability for shared outcomes related to academic quality, faculty effectiveness, student success, and financial sustainability. This position leads college-wide planning, budgeting, and operational systems, including enrollment and financial analytics, course scheduling and staffing, faculty onboarding and development, and facilities coordination. It establishes clear processes, performance expectations, and progress monitoring to ensure efficient operations, continuous improvement, and compliance with institutional policies. As a central connector across academic departments and administrative units, the role drives cross-functional collaboration, resolves complex faculty and student issues, oversees multiple strategic projects, and ensures timely communication and execution of priorities that advance the academic mission of the college.

Requirements

Doctoral Degree, in Education, Higher Education Leadership, Educational Leadership, Business/Public Administration, or related field.
Minimum of 10 years of experience leading multi-project portfolios using standard project-management practices (roadmaps, risks, KPIs) preferably within a college or school environment, including experience leading academic teams to drive educational outcomes for diverse learners.
At least 5 years of experience in strategic and innovative academic program design, and delivery of instruction in blended and online modalities; direct experience functioning as an academic support liaison with curriculum/LXD/LITS or equivalent on course development priorities and modality decisions.
Minimum of 7 years of leadership experience in academic support, student success, or higher-ed academic administration including demonstrated experience partnering with faculty and/or academic leadership.
5 years of experience using data analytics to inform decisions related to program revenue, margins, and enrollment, with demonstrated ability to translate insights into actionable operational and academic recommendations, including oversight of budget planning and effective resource management.
At least 3 years of teaching experience including experience with (and a passion for) teaching a highly diverse student body.
Strategic Planning and Execution: Demonstrates exceptional strategic vision and planning by analyzing organizational strengths, market trends, and industry dynamics to develop and implement long-term strategies that align with institutional mission and goals. Translates vision into actionable plans with measurable outcomes, optimizes financial and operational performance, fosters cross-departmental collaboration, leads teams through innovation and change, and ensures the integration of initiatives and programs within the broader organizational framework.
Organizational Awareness: Demonstrates strong organizational awareness and professionalism by navigating formal and informal communication channels effectively, understanding internal dynamics and unwritten norms, and selecting appropriate strategies to achieve objectives.
Data Informed Practice and Analytics: Applies analytical skills and data literacy to inform decisions, improve outcomes, and support continuous improvement. Collects, interprets, and manages educational and operational data to identify trends, guide interventions, and evaluate program effectiveness. Uses data to support curriculum development, faculty coaching, student success, and / or institutional compliance.
Team Leadership: Connects team goals and daily work to broader organizational strategy. Communicates vision, allocates resources effectively, and ensures clarity of purpose across roles.

Responsibilities

Assures the effective collection, analysis, and use of data to inform and document programs' revenue, margins, and enrollment, and allocates resources effectively for academic improvement efforts. Maintain program quality by overseeing and guiding program improvements and revisions in collaboration with the dean and in consideration of the NCE budget.
Leads the development of NCE’s strategic plan in alignment with the NLU strategic plan. Oversee the development of each school's strategic plan in alignment with NCE's strategic plan. Develop a plan for progress monitoring.
Designs and delivers structured professional development for new faculty through comprehensive onboarding and mentoring programs, with clear expectations, accountability measures, and shared responsibility for faculty effectiveness, student success, and institutional outcomes.
Provides strategic system and processes oversight for course scheduling and staffing, working in consultation with the school directors on teaching assignments for full-time faculty as well as adjunct faculty assignments. Optimizes workflows and automates reports where possible. Assures accurate records of faculty load/overload.
Develops relationships and assists with maintaining or improving lines of communication with academic departments and with other college operations personnel to facilitate the academic mission. Gathers and reports relevant information or data on a timely basis.
Provides strategic oversight and leads the processes of budget planning and management to ensure that resources are allocated and managed effectively to support strategic initiatives and academic needs of the college. This includes management of the contracts system.
Resolves faculty and student conflicts, complaints, and disciplinary issues based upon current college level and university level policies and procedures.
Ensures communication between NCE, LXD/LITS, and NLU Administration to facilitate the decisions of which courses will be addressed each year by course development, the level of the development, and the modality. Effectively communicates timelines and drives the completion of all approved projects. Distribute OERs to Chairs.
Serves on various university committees or participates in/manages project teams as needed. Leads and monitors multiple projects simultaneously to track progress, resolve risks/issues, and ensure timely completion of projects. Effectively uses project management tools to ensure a structured and consistent approach to all projects.
Serves as college liaison for facilities management, including but not limited to oversight of office assignments and ensuring that facilities use is optimized to support teaching and learning and other College functions.