The Assistant Director of Technology and Data is a key position within the Career Center at Vanderbilt University. This role is responsible for leading important data initiatives including collection and reporting, managing, and improving aligned systems, reporting on key metrics as defined by leadership, and ensuring the Career Center is well-equipped to make data-informed decisions.

Reporting directly to the Director of Operations and Strategy, the Assistant Director of Technology and Data, will work closely with all Career Center teams including Student and Scholar Engagement, External Partner Engagement, and Career Center Innovations. This role will work closely with the Career Center leadership team to align on measuring and reporting on Career Center objectives and key results (OKRs). From a divisional perspective, the Assistant Director of Technology and Data will work closely with the Associate Director of Data Analytics and Systems to increase alignment on CAE-wide data initiatives and systems. This role will support the Associate Director of Data Analytics and Systems to ensure the Career Center’s data activities align with CAE’s data strategy and the institutional data strategy overall. Outside of CAE, this role will partner with the Office of Data and Strategic Analytics, Vanderbilt Information Technology and the Office of Process and Solution Implementations. This role will be responsible for staying up to date on institutional resources and training related to the University’s overall data strategy.

About the Work Unit:

Launched in fall 2021 under the leadership of the new Vice Provost for Career Advancement and Engagement & Executive Director of the Evans Family Career Center, the Office of Career Advancement and Engagement (CAE), centrally supported within the Provost’s Office, drives radical campus-wide collaboration by integrating career advancement activities into the broader VU student experience.

The new CAE division is comprised of three key areas:

Career Center - serves undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral scholars while continuing to support career and professional coaching of recent graduates (0-2 years) after graduation

Corporate Partnerships – fosters enhanced employer and alumni engagement and facilitates high-impact corporate partnerships

VU Network – oversees a network of regional hubs that promote activity and engagement with Vanderbilt’s growing community of students, alumni, parents, faculty and partnership corporations

The new CAE office offers enhanced career advancement services to connect the wide variety of academic programs and experiences to student career development. In addition, the office reimagines the link between corporate relations and corporate partnerships to generate greater career opportunities and outcomes for students and alumni. Further, the CAE office is currently laying the groundwork for the VU Network Hub, a national engagement program that identifies and stands-up regional hubs to facilitate activity and community interaction for Vanderbilt students, alumni, parents, faculty and partnership corporations.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Project management, data systems, and applications:

• Develop and enhance standardized data tools to support Career Center data related to student engagement and outcomes.
• Manage the integration of data from multiple systems and platforms including Handshake, Suitable, and other Career Center platforms into functional reporting and visibility via Tableau.
• Lead Career Center involvement with large-scale implementations of systems and applications, working with partners across the university and externally to coordinate resources needed to execute projects, manage data and implement software.
• Partner with CAE-Associate Director of Data Analytics and Systems to support data sharing of Career Center initiatives for broader CAE data systems.
• Partner with Vanderbilt DSA on refining, collecting, and supporting First Destination Data for undergraduate student outcomes.
• Employ effective change management strategies to ensure systems implementations deliver value, remembering that all technology change projects are more about people than about technology.
• Identify and troubleshoot obstacles that arise and escalate as appropriate.
  

Data collection and management

• Design and administers surveys related to career center strategic initiatives (e.g., satisfaction with programming and engagement, learning outcomes, etc.).
• Document processes for data collection and use, seeking efficiencies where possible but also developing documentation to protect data integrity and transparency.
• Foster a collaborative environment.
• Ensure that underlying data for performance dashboards and reports is accurate and consistent with enterprise systems (data quality and integrity).

Reporting, analysis, and metrics

• Support colleagues across the Career Center in the implementation and ongoing management of the Center’s strategic goals and priorities.
• Create and implement tools for data tracking and reporting of OKRs for Career Center initiatives.
• Responsible for managing the design, development and implementation of key performance reports and dashboards.
• Consult with Career Center leaders to assess requirements and understand data and reporting needs.
  

Analytic Support and Technology Vendor Management

• Liaise with contract vendors, serving as point of contact for questions or follow-up after contract establishment.
• Receive technical updates from vendors and share updates accordingly with Career Center staff and leadership.

Supervisory Relationships:

• This position does not have supervisory responsibilities, it reports administratively and functionally to the Director of Operations and Strategy.

Education and Certifications:

• A Bachelor’s degree or a program certificate (e.g. Data Analytics Bootcamp certificate), in a related field from an accredited institution of higher education is necessary.
• A Master’s degree or other advanced degree is preferred.

Qualifications:

• At least five years of comparable experience is necessary.
• Experience in project management is necessary.
• Excellent organizational and planning skills are necessary.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to interact with individuals across the university and externally is necessary.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and adaptability are necessary.
• Career management platform experience is necessary, Handshake experience is preferred.
• Proficiency in Tableau and/or other BI software tools as well as standard Office tools is necessary.
• Advanced knowledge of Tableau, R, Qualtrics, and Excel (writing Macros, V-lookups, regression, pivot tables) is necessary.
• Experience designing, conducting, and analyzing surveys is preferred.
• Knowledge of data collection and retrieval methods for quality assurance, performance and outcome measures is necessary.
• Strategic thinker who is detail-oriented and has a passion for generating actionable insights from data trends is strongly preferred.
• A high degree of curiosity and self-motivated to find creative solutions and ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment is necessary.
• Superior time management skills with the ability to manage multiple, complex projects efficiently and effectively with quick turn-around is necessary.
• Superior verbal and written communication skills, and the ability to articulate and present information to various and diverse audiences is necessary.
• Demonstrated experience working on issues of equity and inclusion, including racial and economic justice is necessary.
• Demonstrated ability to handle high level sensitive and confidential information is necessary.

Commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

At Vanderbilt University, we are intentional about and assume accountability for fostering advancement and respect for equity, diversity, and inclusion for all students, faculty, and staff. Our commitment to diversity makes us who we are. We have created a community that celebrates differences and lets individuality thrive. As part of this commitment, we actively value diversity in our workplace and learning environments as we seek to take advantage of the rich backgrounds and abilities of everyone. The diverse voices of Vanderbilt represent an invaluable resource for the University in its efforts to fulfill its mission and strive to be an example of excellence in higher education.

Vanderbilt University is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Please note, all candidates selected for an offer of employment are subject to pre-employment background checks, which may include but are not limited to, based on the role for which they have been selected: criminal history, education verification, social media review, motor vehicle records, credit history, and professional license verification.