Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives, Batten Institute at Darden School of Business

The Batten Institute at the Darden School of Business seeks a Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives to join its team. The Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives is a senior member of the Batten Institute leadership team who advances the Institute’s (and Darden’s) mission of inspiring purpose-driven innovative leaders who will change the world. This position is key to shaping the future vision of the Institute and executing against it. The Senior Director develops and drives mission-critical programs by engaging a broad coalition of Darden staff, faculty, students, and alumni across initiatives (some existing, some net new) spanning the areas of entrepreneurship, innovation and technology. Preference for this position is Charlottesville, VA. Candidates in the Washington, DC Metro area and the San Francisco Bay Area may also be considered.

The Senior Director reports directly to the Batten Institute Executive Director and collaborates closely with the larger Institute team to drive key strategic initiatives.

Primary stakeholders and related responsibilities include:

Alumni & Students

• Runs point on initiatives to invigorate and sustain a strong Darden alumni community in the stated focus areas, and galvanizes a robust network to support current students and fellow alumni.
  
• Helps manage the Batten Alumni Advisory Council and the prestigious Batten Scholar program, inclusive of Batten Scholar alumni. Creates mechanisms for longitudinal outcome tracking.
  
• Helps shape the student experience across all MBA formats through experiential learning programs in the area of innovation, offering unique opportunities to skill-build and network and with leaders and potential collaborators. Programs may include ecosystem development and immersions, workshops, boot camps, speaker series, projects, courses, internships/fellowships and student club-driven activities.
  
• Supports students 1:1 around their specific needs in career/startup development and networking.
  

Faculty

• Supports Darden faculty through strategic planning and outreach for course speakers, conference panelists and guests, and writing opportunities.
  
• Helps faculty to bridge theory with practice by creating programmatic touchpoints with leaders of tech companies, early-stage ventures, and VC firms. Critically, this role will be a main driver of ensuring Darden carves out a sustained thought leader position in the world of business academia and beyond. Content creation responsibilities are centered on translation of research to mainstream audiences in service of promoting the Batten and larger Darden brands, and may also include cases and other teaching materials.
  
• Engages the Batten Faculty Fellows, advancing their research agendas and professional brands insofar as it furthers the Institute’s mission.
  

The Broader Darden Enterprise

• Develops strong partnerships with a range of stakeholders is essential to success in this role. Is a visible face to the Institute, partnering with colleagues in the Darden offices of Communications & Marketing, Admissions, Alumni Engagement, Alumni Career Services, Career Services; as well as the Dean’s Office and other centers of excellence (Mayo Center for Asset Management; Institute for Business in Society; Center for Global Initiatives), in order to strategize on and deliver top-notch programs, communications, events and engagement opportunities for students, faculty, staff and alumni.
  
• Works across Grounds in partnership with other units-notably UVA DC/Northern Virginia, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the School of Data Science-to advance the Institute’s goals.
  
• Maintains a partnership with the Darden Foundation and the UVA Alumni Association, representing and engaging alumni entrepreneurs, innovators and technologists.
  

Education and Professional Experience:

• Master’s degree with at least ten years of relevant experience.
  
• Collaborative team player who can work and communicate effectively, respectfully, and professionally with students, faculty, staff, and other important Darden enterprise stakeholders.
  
• Demonstrated results for achieving metrics-driven goals through systemic development with educational or similar organizations.
  
• Ability to push through strategic initiatives and ensure successful execution against plans and objectives.
  
• Ability to translate thoughts and directives from several areas into a cohesive plan of action.
  
• Ability to be a self-starter, owning a vision and driving results.
  
• Ability to manage budget processes and procedures.
  
• Excellent communication skills, especially written.
  
• Belief in the mission of the Batten Institute and Darden School, and passion for the University of Virginia.
  

To Apply:

Apply online at https://uva.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/UVAJobs search for requisition R0042437. Internal applicants must apply through their UVA Workday profile. Complete the application, and upload the following Required materials:

• Resume
  
• Cover letter detailing your interest in the position
  

***Please note that you MUST upload ALL REQUIRED DOCUMENTS into the CV/Resume box, into which multiple documents can be uploaded. Applications that do not contain all of the required documents will not receive full consideration.***

For this position, the selected candidate will need to complete the required background checks prior to the start date of the position.

This position will remain open until filled.

Questions regarding the application process should be directed to Marcus Rozier, Academic Recruiter, at hjv5vm@virginia.edu .

COVID Vaccination Requirement and Guidelines

Please visitthe UVA COVID-19 Job Requirements and Guidelines webpageprior to applying for current information regarding vaccination requirementsandguidelines for employment at UVA.

The University of Virginia, i ncluding the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspectives and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.