Senior Director, Organizational Excellence (TERM)

Vanderbilt University•Nashville, TN

About The Position

The Senior Director, Organizational Excellence (TERM) serves as the Division of Communications and Marketing’s lead for operational efficiency and innovation—providing the structure, governance, and momentum to turn promising concepts into scalable solutions. By combining creative ideation with disciplined testing, this role enables the organization to learn fast, adapt quickly, and scale what works. The Senior Director drives continuous improvement and operational maturity across the division, optimizing end-to-end processes, refining workflows, building internal capabilities, and ensuring the strategic use of systems and data. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer of Communications and Marketing and overseeing a team which includes project management, vendor management, and data and analytics functions, the person in this role ensures that MarComm’s people, processes and platforms work together seamlessly to deliver high-impact marketing and communications outcomes. A skilled communicator and change leader, the Senior Director will champion governance models and workflow frameworks that enable the division to operate with remarkable efficiency, while driving adoption of best practices, scaling operational standards and fostering a culture of efficiency, agility and innovation. NOTE: A Term position is a staff position that exists for a period longer than six months but is not expected to last beyond one year. Although a position may exist for a specified or indefinite period, staff who accept term positions are not guaranteed employment for the entire period; they are employed for indefinite periods within the limit of the appointment. There are no guarantees of continued employment, either within the term or when the term ends. About the Work Unit: The Communications and Marketing team at Vanderbilt is a dynamic and deeply collaborative group. The division, with all of its departments and sub-teams, serves as the institution-wide center of excellence for communications and marketing, developing and executing strategies that inform, engage and inspire others to participate in Vanderbilt University’s global academic and research mission. The division is a key strategic adviser and partner for other divisions in the university, providing comprehensive plans and thoughtful analysis on messaging opportunities and constraints. The Communications and Marketing team continuously seeks innovative solutions to new and emerging challenges in order to deliver results at scale to advance the larger mission, values and priorities of the university.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or commensurate experience is required.
Minimum of 12 years of directly relevant experience is required
Broad management knowledge and experience leading a team is required.
Demonstrated ability to apply systems thinking to align university strategy with unit-level execution.
Adept at anticipating long-term and complex implications to inform strategic foresight.
Skilled in sensemaking, translating ambiguity into actionable insights.
Leverages business acumen to drive value through innovation and adaptability in changing circumstances.
Proven record of initiating timely actions that move priorities forward.
Leads with operational discipline by instilling structured, repeatable workflows that ensure high standards of quality and accuracy.
Maintains a strong focus on reliability and attention to detail in all aspects of delivery.
Recognized for building inclusive, trust-based relationships across complex university ecosystems.
Excels at developing partnerships and navigating institutional structures and cultures to achieve shared goals.
Committed to coaching and empowering individuals through timely, constructive feedback and support.
Experienced in making sound, agile decisions under pressure, grounded in ethical stewardship.
Applies data-informed thinking to guide strategies and operations, while confidently navigating ambiguity and complexity.
Strong ability to influence, advocate, and align stakeholders around collective goals.
Brings clarity and resilience to change leadership and consistently demonstrates executive presence through calm, authentic leadership in high-stakes situations.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or commensurate experience is preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead process improvement initiatives that enhance the efficiency, quality, and scalability of MarComm operations.
Optimize the use and adoption of project and work management systems, ensuring best practices and alignment across teams.
Establish and maintain operational frameworks, governance models, and workflow standards to enable consistent execution and delivery.
Identify and eliminate bottlenecks, streamline workflows, and improve cross-team coordination and project delivery.
Develop and oversee operational metrics, dashboards, and after-action reporting to monitor performance, capacity, and continuous improvement.
Champion operational discipline, high performance, and a culture of continuous improvement across the department.
Drive innovative solutions to operational challenges, including resource allocation, campaign execution, and cross-functional collaboration.
Pilot, evaluate, and scale new processes and operating models that enhance MarComm’s ability to deliver results and adapt.
Serve as a strategic thought partner to senior leadership in reimagining how MarComm delivers value to the institution and its stakeholders.
Collaborate with leads across MarComm to identify and activate opportunities for innovation.
Monitor emerging trends in marketing operations, creative production, digital communications, and brand management to maintain a forward-thinking posture.
Design and manage early-stage experiments and proofs of concept with clear criteria for success and timelines.
Cultivate a test-and-learn environment in partnership with internal teams and external vendors.
Track innovation outcomes and translate insights into strategies for scale, iteration, or retirement.
Foster a culture of innovation through repeatable experimentation, shared best practices, and capability-building efforts.
Lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive training and professional development strategy for the MarComm team.
Oversee programs that strengthen marketing, communications, operational, leadership, and strategic skills across all levels.
Identify capability gaps and implement initiatives that support collaboration, innovation, and execution.
Partner with leadership to define core competencies and career pathways aligned with MarComm’s strategic goals.
Design and facilitate onboarding, workshops, learning series, and team development experiences that reinforce excellence and growth.
Build a community of practice that encourages knowledge sharing, innovation, accountability, and high performance.
Build and lead a data and insights function that supports operational decision-making, campaign effectiveness, and strategic planning.
Oversee the collection, integration, and analysis of data across marketing campaigns, digital platforms, operations, and engagement channels.
Develop dashboards, KPIs, and reporting frameworks that deliver actionable insights to leadership and teams.
Ensure data governance, quality control, and privacy compliance across all data initiatives.
Translate insights into strategic decisions, process improvements, and innovation opportunities.
Serve as a senior advisor on how to use data to enhance storytelling, optimize resources, and measure impact.