Executive Director, Integrated Strategy and Planning

Staff - Non Union

Job Category
M&P - AAPS

Job Profile
AAPS Salaried - Administration, Level G

Job Title
Executive Director, Integrated Strategy and Planning

Department
Leadership | Dean's Office | Faculty of Applied Science

Compensation Range
$11,364.67 - $17,733.42 CAD Monthly

The Compensation Range is the span between the minimum and maximum base salary for a position. The midpoint of the range is approximately halfway between the minimum and the maximum and represents an employee that possesses full job knowledge, qualifications and experience for the position. In the normal course, employees will be hired, transferred or promoted between the minimum and midpoint of the salary range for a job.

Posting End Date
March 23, 2024

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the Posting End Date above.

Job End Date

This position is expected to be filled by promotion/reassignment and is included here to inform you of its vacancy at the University.

At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career. 

Job Summary

The Executive Director (E.D.), Integrated Strategy & Planning is a senior leadership role that will provide the vision and direction on the development, implementation and assessment of effective strategic planning for the Faculty of Applied Science. The ED will lead the integration, communication and execution of complex and high impact initiatives to advance the mission of Applied Science. With a commitment to operational and organizational effectiveness, the position leads enhanced data-informed decision making, market-informed strategic planning, and community-engaged continuous improvement for the Faculty across both campuses.

This position works closely with and acts as a senior advisor to the Dean of Applied Science by providing strategic leadership, long-term planning of necessary resources required to implement appropriate systems and processes required by the Faculty to fulfill its academic mandate. As a senior advisor to the Dean, this position is responsible for providing leadership to a portfolio of Directors and other senior leaders in the Faculty to ensure integration of strategic priorities across portfolios, research centres, Departments and Schools.

The ED is expected to cultivate and foster strategic relationships with key individuals and stakeholders, both internal and external to the Faculty and University; including APSC faculty/staff senior leadership, students and student leadership bodies (UBC-V and UBC-O), University leadership and external stakeholders; including Dean’s Advisory Council, alumni, donors, research and strategic partners. The ED works collaboratively across the Faculty and University to foster the academic mandate and provide strong analytical, facilitative, and a broad perspective to support capacity building and best practice. The ability to foster strong working relationships and partnerships is integral to the success of the Faculty’s strategic vision and direction and works to maintain the Faculty and University’s reputations as global leaders in teaching, research, and innovation.

The ED will ensure the smooth ideation, communication, integration, and execution of inter-and intra- campus priorities such that the Faculty can emerge as a role model for the University community for what it means to be one University with two campuses. This position requires a deep understanding of the complexity of the Faculty that represents a variety of professional programs, including engineering, nursing, community planning and architecture, all with unique needs, student populations, and programs. The ability to apply this knowledge to strategic goals and planning is integral to ensuring success across the Faculty.

Organizational Status
This position reports directly to the Dean of Applied Science and to the Director of the School of Engineering, who is the Dean’s delegate on the Okanagan campus. With the joint support of the Dean and Director, the position works closely with their respective leadership teams to move strategic priorities forward on and across both campuses. This position will also work closely with the Associate Deans, Heads/Directors of the Faculty units, and Senior Administrators. As a member of the Faculty’s Senior Management Team, the Executive Director collaborates with all members by leading and/or providing advice and support for all significant issues related to strategic initiatives and organization effectiveness of the Faculty. The position will also work collaboratively with academic and administrative leaders across and outside UBC as a representative of the Faculty in achieving institutional goals.
Work Performed

This position plays a variety of roles on behalf of the Dean and Director; ensuring that their vision, strategy, priorities, and objectives are understood, supported, advanced, and integrated across both campuses. Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

Strategic Leadership

• Leads the development of strategic initiatives that are complex in scope, impact, and diversity of stakeholders with significant long-term importance and consequence to the Faculty. This includes establishing external and international strategic partnerships
• Elevates Applied Science’s strategic plan, vision, values, and goals; ensuring alignment with overall UBC strategic plans. Develops action-oriented strategies to embed and operationalize the vision, values, and goals of the Faculty across both campuses
• Provides ongoing and tactical advising to the Dean on issues and subject matter that requires considerable sensitivity, discretion, and judgment. Acts as a confidential advisor and thought partner to the Dean.
• Drives decision-making that creates medium and long-term improvement through leading project planning, problem solving and solution orientation. Develops and leads the execution of identified goals, priorities and objectives.
• Leads and oversees the development of resource allocation in support of the academic and administrative units ensuring integration of the Dean’s strategic goals and initiatives with the goals of the Faculty’s Departments and Schools. Provides direction to and advises senior leadership and external stakeholders to complete expected project outcomes; working closely with Department Heads, School Directors, Program Chairs and other leadership teams to execute cross-functional projects, as required.
• Oversees the development and implementation of strategic APSC academic programs and activities that are significant in scope, impact, and long-term consequence and are integrated with the Faculty’s strategic vision, values and goals. Duties include, but are not limited to: Developing business cases, including financial models for effective resource allocation. Overseeing and advising on UBC and government processes required based on scope and nature of the project. Developing memos and documents for government and the Provost Office. Identifying resources and linking stakeholders with key UBC units that can provide resources Developing strategies to address challenges. Developing implementation plans and identifying critical dependencies for effective rollout. Managing internal communications for any change management support and to ensure effective implementation
• Fosters relationships with key stakeholders to enhance alignment and integration of the Faculty’s strategic activities with other Faculties and units on both campuses. This is accomplished by liaising with the Office of the President, the Offices of the Vice-Presidents, the Office of the Provost, University Counsel, the Deans of the Faculties and other internal and external groups as required
• Negotiates and monitors affiliation agreements with academic institutions and partners in concert with the Dean, and authorizes agreements with service provides on behalf of the Faculty in key areas of responsibility.
• Investigates, analyzes and makes recommendations to the Dean and APSC leadership regarding important strategic and policy issues.
• Leads, directs, and monitors the overall work effort of the Strategic Initiatives & Planning within the Faculty.
• Represents or leads the Faculty of Applied Science on various University steering, advisory or working committees.

Organizational Effectiveness

• Responsible for ensuring the integration of strategic priorities to a team of portfolio Directors, management staff and support staff; providing mentorship, coaching, and feedback. Working with Directors to provide insight to the Dean’s vision and ensure alignment of initiatives across portfolios.
• Oversees the development and implementation of strategic initiatives across the Faculty by participating in working groups, acting as an advisor on complex, high-level strategic priorities and providing invaluable knowledge to ensure alignment with strategic priorities at the University, Faculty, and Department/School level.
• Provides leadership for the creation, socialization and deployment of high-level change strategy, communication plans and change methodologies for transformative initiatives; advocates and builds the organizational approach to change and transition efforts to ensure identified goals are fully achieved
• Engages and coaches senior leaders and key stakeholders through change initiatives to support their role as change sponsors and leaders
• Develops and executes strategies to manage impacts, risks and inter-dependencies within the Faculty and across the University, paying special attention to the varied perspectives represented by Applied Science
• Performs other duties as required

Consequence of Error/Judgement
Works withing broad mandates. Work is reviewed in terms of fulfillment of mandates and achievement of executive goals
Supervision Received
Works under the overall direction of the Dean and Faculty leadership team in line with the Faculty’s strategic plans. Under broad direction, works independently, applying established strategic priorities and principles and exercising considerable independent judgement and initiative in the application of concepts and implementation of strategies and initiatives, and in addressing complex matters. Keeps the Dean well informed of actions through reports and discussions. Some strategies, initiatives and projects will be independently managed and may be subject to final review only.
Supervision Given
This position directly manages Senior Managers within the Strategic Initiatives and Dean’s Office Executive Administration team and is responsible for leading and overseeing administration and strategic initiatives led projects and work.
Minimum Qualifications
- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own

- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

Master’s degree and/or PhD in a relevant discipline. Minimum of 9 years experience or the equivalent combination of education and experience.

Extensive knowledge of the University and Faculty’s academic environments and culture, including the academic programs in the Schools and Departments. The incumbent is expected to:

• Have experience planning and effectively executing on organization-wide Programs and projects with measurable short and long-term impact on organizational capabilities
• Demonstrated experience developing and leading strategic initiatives and best practices within a distributed organization with multiple stakeholders
• Have demonstrated success in effectively building relationships at all levels to engage and influence change
• Be a change leader to promote the development and integration of systems thinking, customer focus and use of improvement tools
• Demonstrated ability to innovate solutions to issues regarding financial and operational improvements and program development
• Possess business and administrative acumen to effectively work the balance or strategic vision and tactical implementation
• Be a hands-on leader who will roll up their sleeves and act as a player/coach when required
• Have extensive knowledge of policy development and implementation processes in universities, and the ability to manage projects and task forces, as required
• Strong leadership, interpersonal, oral and written communication and presentation skills