Senior Operations Manager - Graduate Housing

Rice University•Houston, TX

42d•$85,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Operations Manager for the Housing and Dining Department at Rice University is a highly visible leadership role responsible for overseeing and enhancing the operational efficiency of housing and dining services. This position plays a crucial part in ensuring a seamless and high-quality experience for residents and diners within the university community. The Senior Operations Manager will lead initiatives, manage staff, and collaborate with various stakeholders to uphold the department's standards of excellence. This position entails overseeing hospitality operations, including food service and housing, for 3+ assigned colleges and 1-2 serveries totaling approximately 400,000-600,000 sq. ft. or student apartments. With an additional focus on leadership for summer conference programs and support for H&D administration, the Senior Operations Manager ensures the delivery of high-quality tenant and guest services through effective communication, strategic planning, oversight, and monitoring of work process systems. Delivers high-quality tenant and guest services through excellent communication, planning, and oversight. Develops annual operating budgets and makes recommendations for maintenance and capital improvement projects. This position is considered essential during a campus emergency. The incumbent in this position is expected to report to campus, provide the essential services designated, and work under the overall direction of the Crisis Management Team for the duration of a campus emergency.

Requirements

Associate's Degree
4+ years of related experience
Strong interpersonal skills, effective communication, time management, and ability to handle multiple priorities in a timely manner

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's Degree
Eight years of related experience, with at least five years in a senior leadership role
Proven organizational and problem-solving skills
Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe, Google Suite
Strong leadership and people management skills with a commitment to building and maintaining a customer service-oriented organization
Ability to conduct/lead meetings and train personnel
Exceptional interpersonal skills, including the ability to work well with others, exercise a professional demeanor, and demonstrate tact and courtesy
Effective time management and prioritization abilities
Exhibit a high degree of emotional intelligence while dealing with conflicts

Responsibilities

Property and Facility Operations: Oversees the daily operation of student apartment communities and residential colleges, ensuring a well-maintained, safe, and service-oriented living environment consistent with multifamily housing standards
Resident Experience: Implements systems and processes to deliver consistent, high-quality resident experiences comparable to professional apartment management - focusing on responsiveness, preventative maintenance, and community engagement
Leasing and Occupancy Coordination: Supports assignments, transitions, and inspections within apartment-style housing; partners with Housing Administration to manage occupancy data and coordinate resident communications
Vendor and Contractor Oversight: Works closely with vendors, property service providers, and external maintenance partners to maintain service quality and value.
Capital Renewal Planning: Identifies and prioritizes projects to sustain long-term facility health, comfort, and compliance across multifamily and student housing assets
Maintaining Communication: Establishes and maintains ongoing contact and communication with college leadership, students, staff, stakeholders, vendors, and other campus and community partners. Efficiently coordinates activities among maintenance trades, external vendors, and residents to ensure seamless collaboration and execution of tasks
Staff Oversight: Monitors the work of custodial, maintenance, grounds staff, and student interns - approximately 100 staff and RAs - ensuring high standards of service.
Summer Housing Operations: Manages operations related to summer housing and conference programs, ensuring smooth and efficient processes and tenant and guest services. This includes planning, contracting, and executing services related to summer groups averaging 2,000 participants, while managing summer renovation projects
Quality Assurance: Solicits feedback from residents and implements ongoing adjustments to ensure continual improvement and satisfaction. Implements rigorous quality assurance measures for external vendors to ensure delivery of high-quality products and services
Leadership and Vision: Provides strong leadership and vision, and fosters high staff morale with a focus on common goals aligned with the university's mission of supporting undergraduate and graduate education and growth. Articulates action plans that foster a shared understanding and commitment among staff
Staff Management: Recruits, trains, and supervises all staff under direct supervision, including Operations Managers and Hospitality staff. Prioritizes staff development through multifaceted training programs, integrating workshops, seminars, and online resources. Regularly evaluates and adjusts initiatives to ensure alignment with organizational goals, fostering a dynamic and skilled workforce, while taking corrective action when needed
Administrative Management: Directs and manages administrative functions, ensuring the smooth coordination and efficiency of departmental operations. Handles office processes, personnel documentation, and communication systems, such as IO systems and invoices, timekeeping systems, work order management, and human resources documentation
Budget Management: Works closely with the finance team to develop and manage budgets, making data-driven recommendations for resource allocation and optimization. Collaborates with college leadership on support and project funding. Monitors payroll for all staff and temp agencies, while maintaining budget guidelines. Makes recommendations on staff merit increases. Budget amount approximately $6M
Environmental Practices: Oversees the implementation of plans and strategies for environmentally safe housing
Process Analysis and Improvement: Analyzes internal processes, recommends, develops, and implements standard operating procedures and guideline changes to enhance overall operations
External Stakeholder Contacts: Coordinates with campus stakeholders to execute operational strategies, including general counsel, risk management, human resources, student support services, facilities and capital planning, sustainability, dean of graduate studies, athletics, and other campus partners
Additional Responsibilities: Performs all other duties as assigned
Supervises a combined staff of housing personnel, temporary workers, student interns, and Ras
Monitors work and behavior, and may give direction to custodial, maintenance, managers, administrative staff, and Ras
Functions as a liaison to direct supervisors
Enforces safety rules and regulations, investigates accidents and incidents, and completes accident/incident reports
Prepares yearly staff performance appraisals
Engages in strategic planning and provides direction toward departmental and university goals