Manager, Accreditation and Strategic Initiatives, Edwards School of Business

Primary Purpose: The Manager of Accreditation and Strategic Initiatives provides strategic leadership in accreditation and memberships, assurance of learning, program development, and strategic initiatives, ensuring that the Edwards School of Business sustains excellence, engages in continuous improvement, and aligns with both institutional goals and international standards.
Nature of Work: Reporting to the Associate Dean, Strategy & Professional Programs this position works closely with the School’s senior leadership team, providing strategic support and guidance on matters related to accreditations and memberships (including, but not limited to, AACSB, PRME, professional associations, etc.), assurance of learning, and special strategic projects.

The work involves aspects of strategic planning, project management, in-depth research into emerging trends and best practices, detailed analysis and reporting of data, as well as the oversight and implementation of tasks associated with academic programming  and assurance of learning. The need for accuracy in both collecting and interpreting data is significant.

There is a high volume of work in a fast-paced environment frequently driven by competing project deadlines. The incumbent will work collaboratively with the Dean’s Office, undergraduate and graduate programs, academic departments, and a wide variety of USask and external stakeholders. In addition, the incumbent is expected to act as a resource to support faculty, staff and students with respect to accreditation (AACSB, PRME, etc.) standards and requirements and university and college processes and governance procedures.

The work is unstructured and priorities may shift based on environmental considerations. The position will be driven by critical deadlines and requires the management of competing interests. The work requires a high level or organization, adapting to continuous improvement, and shifting priorities. The individual in this position is required to frequently exercise independent judgement when making decisions while also being able to work collaboratively with faculty, academic leaders, other institutional units, and external stakeholders. The incumbent must be proactive in the collection and distribution of information, be able to communicate well, and have credibility for their expertise.

Working in partnership with academic leaders (particularly Associate Deans and Department Heads) and faculty/instructors, this position works to identify needs, build relationships, and provide course and curriculum development support within Edwards in order to enable the design and development of innovative and effective academic programs, curricula, and courses and thereby ultimately improve the quality of student learning experiences at Edwards. This position is also responsible for recommending, developing, and implementing new and revised academic initiatives in order to advance the strategic direction of the School.  Once new academic priorities and initiatives are established, the incumbent must work collaboratively  to tranistion the initative to the operational units.
Accountabilities

Accreditations and Memberships:

• Coordinate and manage prcesses related to accreditations and memberships, including data collection, analysis, and reporting; preparation and indexing of materials and evidence (e.g., AoL measures, databases, online platforms, international surveys); and input from internal and external stakeholders across the School and Institution.
• Manage an accreditation communications plan to engage key stakeholders across the School and University in accreditation processes.
• Attend conferences and seminars to stay current on accreditation and membership requirements, while building networks with peers, institutions, and professional organizations.

Assurance of Learning:

• Manage the Assurance of Learning process, including the collection and analysis of direct and indirect measures for each of the learning goals and enabling competencies, analyzing assessment results and producing reports, and liaising with the AoL Committee, Associate Deans, and program directors/chairs.
• Gather extensive program information, provide research and report writing to support academic programming proposals.
• Support high-level academic governance processes, including administrative and logistical support, for all academic programs offered by the Edwards School of Business. This includes ensuring compliance with college and university academic policies, procedures, and processes.

Strategic Planning and Initatives:

• Facilitate strategic planning processes by providing strategic support to the Associate Dean, Strategy & Professional Programsin the creation, maintenance and review of the School’s strategic plan.
• Advise and collaborate with the leadership team in facilitating and developing strategic planning documents, contents, objectives, and targets for the School, departments, and units, aligning them with broader institutional goals;
• Curate, analyze, and present strategic data to inform decision-making and meet the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
• Enable evidence-based evaluation of progress by supporting the leadership team in monitoring growth, assessing outcomes, and aligning initiatives with the School’s strategic priorities.
• Support for emerging strategic initiatives as assigned. This would include analyzing, planning, project managing and executing the initative independantly or coordinating a team. The scope of the initatives could be wide ranging including teaching and learning curriculumn and research.

Leadership:

• Provide supervision and support for staff who are assigned to support on accreditation or strategic initiatives.
• Lead cross-functional initiatives and foster collaboration with Edwards colleagues across all levels of the organization, including those in more senior positions, aligning efforts and driving results.
• Ensure all stakeholders are consulted and supported on important matters affecting accreditation, strategic initiatives, and/or academic program governance.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Education: An undergraduate degree in a relevant field as it pertains to this position is required. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered. A Master’s degree in business, public administration or a related field is considered an asset.
Experience: A minimum of five to seven years of experience in a relevant post-secondary institution working within program administration is preferred. An equivalent combination of academic experience and preparation may be considered.
Skills:

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to quickly assess risk, impacts, and potential outcomes and act upon information received.
• Effective time management, organizational, problem solving and analytical skills.
• Ability to function effectively at a strategic administrative level.
• Ability to interact effectively with students, staff, faculty, campus and community stakeholders.
• Proven event planning skills and experience managing multiple projects simultaneously.
• Self-motivated with the ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Ability to work effectively in informal and formal teams with people from diverse communities, cultures and perspectives
• Contributes to a positive, diverse, and inclusive work and learning environment by actively engaging in mentoring, self-awareness learning opportunities, relationship building, and communication, etc.
• Proficient working knowledge of Microsoft Office programs as well as databases and reporting software.