Director of Career Communities - Career Development Center

Suffolk University is a private, urban university located in the heart of downtown Boston. Our college green is the Boston Common and we are steps from dozens of historic sites including the Old State House, Faneuil Hall, City Hall and the Massachusetts State House. We have no real boundaries to our campus—Boston and Suffolk blend together.

Suffolk has been committed to creating an exceptional learning experience since 1906. Our vision is to be recognized as a dynamic institution that fosters engaged learning, rigorous scholarship, innovative thinking, and community collaboration across disciplines. We will ensure that Suffolk graduates are versatile and prepared for modern society and the new world market. We will provide rich curricula, experiential learning opportunities and professional mentoring through increased collaboration with alumni and community partners. We will recruit, mentor, and support a diverse faculty of teacher-scholars who are passionately committed to preparing our students to be leaders in the global community. We will inspire investment in a Suffolk community that is built on ethical, forward-thinking leadership, teamwork, and cooperation.

We compete for the best talent. We are an equal opportunity employer committed to a diverse community. We are actively seeking applicants from groups that might be under-represented because of race/color, gender, religion, real or perceived disability, national origin or LGBTQ status. As part of our commitment we encourage you to complete the demographic portion of the application in addition to submitting your cover letter and resume/CV as it will assist us in targeting our recruitment efforts.

Please note that Suffolk University conducts background checks as a condition of employment.

We are also committed to the well-being of our employees. Our terrific benefits package for benefits-eligible positions include, but are not limited to:

• Generous paid time-off programs and commitment to work-life balance
• Tuition free course benefits in the College of Arts and Sciences and in the Sawyer Business School for employees with additional tuition benefits for spouses, domestic partners, and children
• Top-notch well-being care available through Harvard Pilgrim Medical/Delta Dental and a Flexible Spending Account
• Pre-tax commuter benefit
• Employee Assistance Program that provides employees and their family members with initial assessment, referrals and short-term counseling for personal and work challenges
• Discounted home and auto insurance

Description

Suffolk University, a prominent private institution situated in the heart of downtown Boston, seeks a creative, intellectually curious, entrepreneurial and transformational leader for the position of Director of Career Communities in the Center for Career Education and Professional Development. The Suffolk 2025 strategic plan calls for a bold reimagining and significant expansion of the Career Center. Over the course of the 2020/2021 academic year the Center will grow to include a Career Exploration team focused on university-wide career education initiatives, a team overseeing industry-specific Career Communities, and a team dedicated to Center operations, data, technology, and communications. It is an exciting time to join the Suffolk Career Center and to shape these new units and job roles.

This individual will lead the Career Communities strand of the Center for Career Exploration and Professional Development (CEPD). This strand is comprised of individuals responsible building robust, inclusive, highly-visible and engaging “career communities” around particular industries, and connecting students, alumni, faculty, and employers within that community with the goal of building strong networks and advancing Suffolk students’ career outcomes. The Director will coordinate a strategic action plan for this group that is in alignment with their counterpart in the Career Exploration strand, the vision of the CEPD, and the Suffolk University 2025 strategic plan. They will work with other university leaders in Alumni Relations and colleges to align and embed the CEPD’s work within the overall university ecosystem.

Primary/Principal Responsibilities:


• Supervises a team of Asst/Assoc Directors charged with building and supporting industry-specific “career communities” and conducting employer development within those industries; responsible for hiring, developing, and evaluating these staff members.
• Provides guidance and leadership to staff, including training, staff evaluation (includes merit consideration), professional development, and related personnel matters.
• Proposes short- and long-range operating plans, including budgets, programs and services, personnel, technology/other equipment, and space.
• Leads the Career Community team through developing and executing a strategic vision for engaging faculty, students, alums, and employers within each of the career communities, and for aligning all of these efforts with the foundational goal of enhancing students’ career outcomes. Supports and encourages bold and innovative actions in these areas.
• Works with Associate Provost to establish measurable targets and standard operating procedures for this new team, incentivize team to meet goals, and help correct when goals are not met
• Collaborates with Director of Career Exploration to ensure consistent standards and new methodologies are being incorporated into the student-facing work of the CEPD
• Works with team to construct monthly outcomes reports for the Associate Provost, reporting on key metrics and KPIs that are central to the CEPD strategic plan and the Suffolk 2025 strategic plan.
• Closely coordinates communication with deans, department chairs, and other faculty to ensure that the career services department is meeting the needs and desires of the academic colleges and departments, within the limitations imposed by the size of the staff and financial support provided by the university.
• Addresses alumni groups, parents, faculty, student organizations, and other administrators on career-related issues. Makes concerted effort to develop new partnerships with parents and faculty.
• Meet regularly with the Grad and Undergrad Associate Deans of both CAS and SBS to ensure the Career Communities are inclusive of as many students and faculty as possible.
• Communicate with Alumni Relations to coordinate strategic efforts around employer engagement
• Provide updates to Associate Provost and Provost about how the Career Communities have aided in student retention efforts


Requirements/Qualifications:


• Master’s degree with at least five years of experience in career services, employer relations, college recruiting, or similar area.
• Knowledge of strategic planning and assessment practices, and implementation protocols.
• Demonstrated knowledge about professional pathways of diverse college majors
• Demonstrated understanding of broad employment trends and markets globally, as well as in Boston and other major metropolitan areas nationwide.
• Collaborative, creative, innovative, and outgoing spirit; comfortable with change, ambiguity, and risk in fast-paced environment.
• Applied knowledge of career and student development theory, including approaches to specific student populations.
• Excellent written communication, public speaking and listening skills.
• Experience and proficiency using technology and social media for purposes of communication, promotion, and information-gathering; experience with career management technology.
• Demonstrated commitment to quality customer service including professional appearance, demeanor, and comportment; and a high level of responsiveness and care.
• Some travel required locally/regionally to hiring organizations and conferences.


Suffolk University is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer. The University is dedicated to the goal of building a diverse and inclusive faculty and staff that reflect the broad range of human experience who contribute to the robust exchange of ideas on campus, and who are committed to teaching and working in a diverse environment. We strongly encourage applications from groups historically marginalized or underrepresented because of race/color, gender, religious creed, disability, national origin, veteran status or LGBTQ status. Suffolk University is especially interested in candidates who, through their training, service and experience, will contribute to the diversity and excellence of the University community.