Director - Business Strategy and Solutions

Working Title: Director – Business Strategy and Solutions
Department: Finance  

Job Summary

The Associate Vice President for Finance is seeking an inaugural Director of Business Strategy and Solutions to build and lead a new team (new department) that will provide internal business and financial consulting and implementation services to the university community.  As a member of the Finance Leadership Team, this role will focus on building an internal consulting capability to help units solve complex business and financial problems; identify new revenue opportunities and new service delivery models and capabilities; provide business and financial advisory services on complex issues; and lead/assist with the implementation of solutions to support the mission activities of the university.  Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Finance (AVPF), this position will support both the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (EVPCFO) and the Associate Vice President for Finance. 

The Director will:

Develop collaborative relationships with university leaders and stakeholders across campus to identify opportunities for impact in support of the mission of the institution and to build an internal brand for a new high-performing capability. 


Design an intake and portfolio management process in collaboration with the EVPCFO, the AVP for Finance, and university stakeholders to ensure the team is working on the most important initiatives.

Work with senior leadership across Business & Finance to identify, assess, and define new projects. Work with internal clients in central administrative units and in schools and campus units to define scope, strategy & methodology, project plans/timelines, consulting deliverables and manage the client relationship for internal consulting engagements. For internal projects led by external consultants, work with internal clients to scope and initiate external engagements to ensure projects are set up for success and leverage the internal consulting team where possible/appropriate.

Build, develop, and lead a small to mid-size team of creative and high-performing subject matter experts with strong consulting, project leadership, and project management skills to drive university-wide efforts. 
Coordinate development of performance and operational metrics to establish project goals. Manage, organize, and monitor projects within a project portfolio that aligns to Business & Finance (B&F) and the university’s strategic goals.    Assist project managers with the development of project workplans, the monitoring of project progress, and the timely identification and resolution of issues.  In some cases, larger projects could be supplemented with support from other departments within the university so the Director will need to periodically balance between direct and matrix authority. Partner with unit leaders to conduct assessments of various units, operations, and practices.  Support implementation of strategic initiatives of defined scope. Coordinate and build partnerships with any external consultants that might be utilized on projects.

Create and implement methodologies that will identify root cause and first principles, develop customer-centric and high-impact solutions, build a case for change, enable key university stakeholders and leaders to make informed decisions when contemplating changes, and implement solutions – through collaboration and consensus building.

Create a project / program management framework to ensure initiatives have a clear and agreed-upon scope, defined timelines, assigned resources and appropriate points at which progress and next steps are reviewed.

Develop a business case process to analyze initiatives for impact to the university community, quantitative and qualitative benefits and the requirement of human, financial and technology resources.

Design a process that enables university leadership to review the portfolio of contemplated, planned and active initiatives. 

Develop implementation plans, including resource assessments and budgets, and execute on plans to budget and to defined performance expectations.

Work with Financial Planning and Analysis to integrate solutions into budgets and forecasts. 

Successful candidates will have the following skills and experience:  

Consulting experience in strategy, financial analysis, operations, transformation, or strategic initiatives.  Experience in building and leading a high-performing team and managing a portfolio of complex projects.   Experience managing third-party teams and contractors Demonstrated success in leading high-impact strategy and operations engagements Ability to quickly build and maintain collaborative working relationships  Excellent oral and written communication skills Strong influence and persuasion skills Strong presentation skills An ability to operate independently and to build relationships based on trust with key stakeholders Ability to work across functions in a highly decentralized operating environment and to drive change with a consensus-building approach  

Required Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree 8+ years of relevant work experience in progressively higher roles 

Desired Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in accounting, business, economics, finance or other business-related area Master’s degree in Business Administration Higher Education experience

Interested candidates should submit their resume and cover letter on the UM Careers website at 

https://careers.umich.edu/

Job # 213822