Senior Director, University Systems

Company: University of Chicago
Location: Chicago
Posted on: April 1, 2026

Job Description:

Department OPS ITS - Enterprise Applications and Services About the Department IT Services at the University of Chicago delivers secure, reliable, and innovative technology solutions that enable excellence in research, teaching, and operations. The Enterprise Applications and Services team partners with academic divisions and administrative units to implement modern platforms, advance data-informed decision making, and continuously improve the digital experience for students, faculty, staff, alumni, and partners. Job Summary The Director for University Systems provides strategic and operational leadership for a portfolio of enterprise applications and shared services that support the student lifecycle, administrative operations, research administration, and alumni engagement. The Director leads and develops a multi-disciplinary team of 20 IT professionals; partners closely with Campus and Student Life, Enrollment and Student Success, Alumni Relations and Development, Financial Services, and University Research Administration; and ensures that platforms are reliable, secure, user-centered, and aligned to institutional priorities. The Director drives organizational transformation through modern delivery practices (Agile, DevOps/CI-CD, cloud-forward architectures), champions data governance and integration standards, and fosters a culture of service, learning, and inclusion. Responsibilities Provides vision and technical leadership for an ecosystem spanning ERP/HCM, student information, CRM/admissions, research administration, advancement; prioritizing reliability, cybersecurity, scalability, and user experience. Establishes annual roadmaps and service level agreements (SLAs) for each platform in partnership with product owners; manages capacity, funding, and risk to deliver outcomes on time and within budget. Adopts and matures Agile and DevOps practices (CI/CD, automated testing, infrastructure as code) to increase delivery speed and quality while reducing technical debt. Leads operational excellence across incident, problem, change, and release management for the applications in their portfolio; ensures disaster recovery and business continuity plans are current and tested. Builds, mentors, and retains a diverse, high-performing organization with clear goals, career paths, and continuous learning in cloud, integration, data engineering, AI, and security. Cultivates a culture of accountability, inclusion, and collaboration that supports the mission of the University and IT Services. Executes disciplined vendor and contract management, negotiates SLAs, tracks performance, and manages renewals and compliance with University policies and regulations. Serves as primary technology partner to Campus and Student Life, Enrollment and Student Success including Admissions/Financial Aid, Alumni Relations and Development, and University Research Administration. Strengthens trust and transparency with regular communication, shared scorecards, and joint roadmap reviews; ensures governance bodies can prioritize work based on institutional value. Collaborates closely with distributed IT leaders, data stewards, and faculty/administrative stakeholders to align architectures, data standards, and service expectations. Oversees portfolio intake, estimation, and execution across projects and products; applies benefits-realization practices and reports progress through KPIs and OKRs. Identifies and removes impediments to delivery; escalates and resolves issues that threaten scope, schedule, budget, security, or value. Contributes to responsible AI enablement in administrative applications, accessibility compliance, and continuous service improvement initiatives, including identifying and evaluating AI capabilities within business applications and processes to enhance user experience and operational efficiency. Develops departmental plans and direction for academic technology applications, initiatives, and services. Provides fiscal and budgetary oversight for the department. Advises internal and external stakeholders as a department liaison. Maintains appropriate internal, inter-institutional, and vendor relationships. Performs other related work as needed. Minimum Qualifications Education: Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field. Work Experience: Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 10 years of work experience in a related job discipline. Certifications: Preferred Qualifications Education: Master’s degree in a related field. Experience: Background in a Research 1 (R1) university or comparably complex environment. Project management leadership delivering large-scale enterprise systems implementations and modernization programs. Hands-on experience advancing master data management, API-first integration, and business intelligence/analytics. Certifications: PMP, ITIL Foundation (or higher), SAFe/Agile certifications, or similar credentials. Technical Skills or Knowledge: Technical depth with a knowledge of cloud platforms (AWS/Azure) and SaaS migration initiatives, enterprise integration (APIs, messaging), identity and access management (SSO/MFA), data modeling and governance, and modern web technologies. Skilled in vendor management across managed services, Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), Integration as a Service (IaaS), and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) support models, ensuring performance alignment, cost optimization, SLA adherence, and strategic partnership management. Preferred Competencies Talent leadership - attract, develop, and retain top talent; foster psychological safety and inclusive excellence. Change leadership - lead organizational transformation; drive adoption through communication, training, and enablement. Financial stewardship: plan and manage operating/capital budgets; understand total cost of ownership and value realization. Relationship management - collaborate across divisions with diplomacy and transparency, influence without authority. Strategic communication - convey complex technical topics to non-technical audiences; write clear business cases and executive updates. Customer focus - design services around user needs and measurable outcomes; maintaining high service quality and continuous improvement. Program/portfolio discipline - prioritize, sequence, and deliver complex initiatives with clear success metrics and benefits realization. Knowledge of educational data standards and regulations. Working Conditions Standard office environment with hybrid work flexibility as approved. Occasional evening/weekend work to support major releases, incident response, or cutovers. Extensive use of computers and standard office equipment. Application Documents Resume/CV (required) When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application. Job Family Information Technology Role Impact People Manager Scheduled Weekly Hours 37.5 Drug Test Required No Health Screen Required No Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required No Pay Rate Type Salary ? FLSA Status Exempt ? Pay Range $186,000.00 - $201,000.00 The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting. Benefits Eligible Yes The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook . Posting Statement The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination. Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form. All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position. The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at: http://securityreport.uchicago.edu . Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

Keywords: University of Chicago, Rockford , Senior Director, University Systems, IT / Software / Systems , Chicago, Illinois