Program Manager, Persistence Operations

Arizona State University•Scottsdale, AZ

1d•$67,000 - $86,900•Hybrid

About The Position

ASU EdPlus is seeking a Program Manager, Persistence Operations, to join their Operations team. This role focuses on leading the execution, integration, and continuous improvement of initiatives that drive early-term student success and persistence across ASU Online. The Program Manager will operationalize persistence as a coordinated, data-informed system aimed at influencing student behaviors, reducing early attrition risk, and improving continuation from pre-enrollment through the first term. This involves extensive collaboration across EdPlus teams and ASU partners to align efforts, identify opportunities, and ensure collective progress toward measurable student success outcomes. The role includes identifying and driving interventions across the early student journey, such as orientation and ASU 101, to improve retention, reduce drop/withdrawal rates, and strengthen student momentum by translating data, research, and cross-functional insights into scalable solutions.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree and five (5) years of experience appropriate to the area of assignment/field; OR, Any equivalent combination of experience and/or training from which comparable knowledge, skills and abilities have been achieved.
Must be able to reliably commute to Scottsdale AZ.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree or higher in a related field.
Demonstrated strong ability to connect strategy to execution in complex, cross-functional environments.
Experience with student success, persistence initiatives, or higher education operations.
Demonstrated ability to interpret data and translate insights into actionable interventions.
Evidence of systems thinking to identify root causes across interconnected experiences.
Demonstrated strong operational ownership and ability to manage ambiguity.
Experience influencing without direct authority across multiple stakeholders.
Demonstrated strong written and verbal communication skills.
Evidence of familiarity with digital learning environments (e.g., Canvas) and student systems.

Responsibilities

Drive persistence strategy and execution, defining and operationalizing key persistence priorities across the early student lifecycle.
Identify and address primary drivers of early attrition (e.g., course intensity, lack of engagement, unclear expectations).
Design and implement interventions that improve continuation and reduce drop/withdrawal rates.
Align persistence efforts with institutional goals and priorities.
Contribute to pilot programs and scaled initiatives focused on improving retention outcomes.
Own persistence data, insights, and performance tracking, including defining and monitoring key persistence indicators (Orientation → course start conversion, Week 1 engagement, Early assignment submission, Drop/withdrawal patterns).
Partner with Action Lab and analytics teams to identify risk signals and predictive indicators.
Regularly analyze and synthesize data across multiple initiatives impacting student success.
Connect early-term behaviors to downstream outcomes (retention, progression, completion).
Translate data into actionable recommendations and interventions.
Share insights proactively with stakeholders to inform decision-making.
Move beyond participation metrics to outcome-driven performance measurement.
Design and implement behavior-driven student success interventions, applying behaviorally informed design (nudges, timing, sequencing) to influence student decision-making.
Reduce friction and cognitive overload at key student decision points.
Test and iterate on interventions using data and experimentation.
Prioritize high-impact actions over content-heavy approaches.
Identify and address systemic gaps impacting persistence by evaluating breakdowns across the student journey and misalignment across academic, support, and onboarding experiences.
Recommend structural, design, or process changes to improve student outcomes.
Differentiate between quick wins and larger strategic opportunities.
Elevate insights and recommendations to leadership with clear impact and tradeoffs.
Lead cross-functional alignment around persistence outcomes by partnering with EdPlus teams (Enrollment, Student Success, Instructional Design, Marketing, Technology, Action Lab) and ASU stakeholders.
Align multiple groups toward shared persistence and early-term success goals.
Ensure clarity of roles, responsibilities, and ownership across initiatives.
Drive coordination across teams to ensure initiatives move forward effectively.
Facilitate conversations to address risks, dependencies, and competing priorities.
Maintain visibility on progress and ensure work is advancing toward defined success measures.
Support shared accountability for student outcomes without directly owning all implementation.
Integrate onboarding as a targeted persistence lever, positioning onboarding (e.g., orientation, ASU 101) as a component of a broader persistence strategy.
Ensure onboarding experiences are designed to drive key early-term behaviors.
Identify gaps, redundancies, or misalignment within onboarding experiences that impact persistence.
Align onboarding touchpoints with critical early-term milestones.
Ensure onboarding contributes to readiness, clarity, and early momentum.
Improve systems, workflows, and scalability of persistence efforts by streamlining processes that support persistence initiatives.
Reduce reliance on manual tracking and disconnected tools.
Partner with technology and data teams to improve systems integration.
Recommend scalable solutions that support long-term growth.
Retire low-impact or duplicative processes.
Lead persistence-focused communication strategies by establishing regular communication cadences across stakeholders.
Translate data and insights into clear, actionable updates for cross-functional teams and leadership.
Develop targeted communications that drive critical student actions.
Ensure messaging reduces confusion and supports decision-making at key moments.
Align communications across teams to reinforce consistent expectations.
Refine messaging continuously based on performance data and student feedback.
Assume or coordinate other duties or projects as assigned or directed.