Strategic Operations Director, Transformation Office - Glassboro - Rowan University

Description

Strategic Operations Director, Transformation Office – Rowan University

Job no: 501279
Work type: Regular Full-Time
Location: Glassboro, New Jersey
Categories: Managerial

Overview

The Strategic Operations Directors in the Transformation Office serve as leaders, program champions, project managers, advisors, and problem-solvers for Rowan University's highest-priority initiatives. Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Growth, this role manages sensitive, high-impact projects from design through implementation, balancing tactical execution with strategic influence.

We are seeking to hire a team to bring a unique mix of strengths in project management, change management, stakeholder engagement, financial and data analysis, quality improvement, and strategic communication. This high-visibility position is ideal for candidates with consulting experience or those looking to advance a career in strategy and organizational transformation.

Transformation Office

The Transformation Office is a new, high-impact unit within the University President's Office created to help Rowan achieve its most important goals. We work directly with the President, Cabinet, faculty, staff, and students to turn great ideas into sustainable, measurable results.

Our team partners with leaders across academic, administrative, and operational areas to co-design and implement initiatives that advance Rowan's four pillars: affordability, access, quality, and economic impact. We take a disciplined approach to execution, grounded in data-driven analysis, collaborative problem-solving, and change management best practices.

Every initiative is student-centered, focused on improving the learning experience, expanding opportunities, and strengthening the systems that help students succeed. Faculty and staff are essential partners; we work alongside them to remove barriers, improve processes, and enhance the resources they rely on to do their work.

The Transformation Office is not an oversight body. We serve as a connector, facilitator, and capacity-builder, helping divisions across Rowan achieve shared goals while respecting the expertise and perspectives of our campus community.

This Role Involves

• Strategic Impact: Direct involvement with initiatives that shape Rowan's trajectory for the next decade.
• Executive Access: Regular engagement with the President, Chancellor, and senior leadership.
• Curiosity and Drive: Opportunities to tackle complex problems, ask better questions, and push for greater value.
• Complex Challenges: Projects span operational, academic, financial, and technology domains.
• Career Trajectory: Builds a portfolio of high-profile accomplishments valued by university leaders, consulting firms, and corporate strategy teams.

Primary Responsibilities

• Manage assigned initiatives, including scope, schedules, deliverables, and risk management.
• Conduct process mapping and gap analysis to identify opportunities for efficiency, growth, and service improvement.
• Partner with IT, procurement, finance, and operations to design and implement enterprise-wide solutions.
• Facilitate cross-functional working sessions, often with Cabinet-level leaders, to remove barriers and maintain momentum.
• Develop and execute stakeholder engagement and communication plans for both operational teams and executive audiences.
• Prepare executive-ready presentations, dashboards, and business cases for senior leadership.
• Support Transformation Office meetings by preparing materials, running presentations, and managing follow-up actions.
• Lead quality assurance reviews of initiative deliverables, ensuring clarity, accuracy, and usability.
• Support training, readiness, and adoption activities for new processes, systems, or policies.
• Monitor post-implementation adoption and performance, recommend adjustments, and capture lessons learned for continuous improvement.
• Maintain strict confidentiality when handling strategy, financial models, personnel data, and other sensitive information.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in business, public administration, analytics, or a related field.
• Proven background in operational transformation projects such as procurement optimization, enterprise system rollouts, data infrastructure, workflow redesign, space planning, or organizational change management.
• Experience building and interpreting financial models to evaluate business cases, ROI, and strategic decisions.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex, sensitive projects requiring cross-functional collaboration.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to structure, validate, and interpret complex datasets.
• Proficiency with project management and data visualization tools.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with a track record of producing executive-ready materials.
• Pragmatic problem-solver mindset, balancing detail with outcomes.
• Curiosity to deliver greater value and push for continuous improvement.
• Ability to work effectively in a high-paced, collaborative environment.
• Discretion and judgment when handling confidential information.
• Commitment to Rowan's values of affordability, access, quality, and economic impact.

Preferred

• More than 5 years of experience in consulting, project management, strategic planning, business analysis, or a related role, with exposure to senior leadership or C-suite communication.
• Master's degree in business, public administration, or related discipline.
• Formal training or certification in project or change management.
• Experience in higher education or another large, complex organization undergoing transformation.
• Familiarity with Lean, Six Sigma, or other process improvement methodologies.
• Experience with financial planning, budgeting, or cost-benefit analysis in consulting or large organizations.

Salary Range

In compliance with The State of New Jersey's Pay Transparency Act, the annual base salary range for this position is $115,000 to $135,000. When extending any salary offer, Rowan University considers many factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, work experience, education, training, key skills, internal equity, as well as market and other organizational considerations.

Benefits Summary

For eligible employees, benefits include: comprehensive NJ State health, dental and retirement benefits, extensive accrued time off/paid holidays, and tuition reimbursement for employee, spouse, and dependents to attend Rowan University, Glassboro. (Tuition reimbursement will apply to undergraduate degrees only for spouse and dependents).

Advertised: Feb Eastern Standard Time
Applications close: Feb :55 PM Eastern Standard Time

Non-Discrimination at Rowan University

Rowan University is committed to creating a welcoming environment for all employees. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ethnicity, race, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, (dis)ability status, military status, and other NJ protected classes. Rowan University does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its educational programs and activities, including employment as required by Title IX. Rowan is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for individuals with (dis)abilities.

To request reasonable accommodation, contact Christy Mroz, Administrative Assistant, , Rowan strongly encourages applicants from underrepresented groups to apply.

Pursuant to Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and supporting regulations, Rowan does not discriminate on the basis of sex in the education programs or activities that it operates; this extends to admission and employment. Inquiries about the application of Title IX and its supporting regulations may be directed to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, or to the University's Title IX Coordinator, Office of Student Equity & Compliance, Rowan University, Hawthorne Hall, Suite 312, 201 Mullica Hill Rd, Glassboro, NJ 08028, ,

For information on the Title IX Sexual Harassment/Sexual Assault policy and grievance procedures, please click here.

Note on STEM-OPT Employment: Please note that STEM OPT employment is not permitted at Rowan University. To be eligible for a STEM OPT extension, the student's employer must be registered in E-Verify and must use the system to verify all new employees. While Rowan University is registered in the E-Verify system, the University does not use the system to verify all new employees, only those that are working on a Federal Contract. This means that Rowan does not permit individuals to work at the University using a STEM OPT Employment Authorization Document as proof of US Work Authorization.

Rowan University is subject to the residency requirements of the NJ First Act (N.J.S.A. 52:14-7, P.L. 2011, Chapter 70). Any person hired to a non-exempt position shall either have their principal residence in New Jersey or have one (1) year from the date of employment to establish, and then maintain, principal residence in the State of New Jersey. Any person hired to an exempt position shall either have their principal residence in New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, or New York or have ninety (90) days from the date of employment to establish, then maintain, principal residence in the State of New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, or New York.