Associate Director, Digital Operations

• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Salary Range: $66,000 - $85,000

Position Summary

Columbia College is a renowned undergraduate liberal arts college within Columbia University, a world-class research university in the city of New York. Columbia College is distinguished by its unparalleled Core Curriculum, which introduces students to great works of literature, philosophy, history, science, and the arts. The College offers an unmatched educational experience with access to distinguished faculty, exceptional research facilities, and unlimited opportunities for intellectual growth and exploration throughout New York City and around the world. The College is deeply committed to its students - the most diverse student body in the Ivy League - and to actively investigating the difficult questions of what inclusion means, how diversity is fully realized, and the role each member of our community must play to help shape a society that continues to bend toward justice.

Reporting to the Director of Strategic Communications, the Associate Director will oversee operations and lead digital projects across a wide portfolio College web properties and a variety of digital platforms - including calendaring, event management, and Salesforce platforms. Supporting both campus and alumni-focused initiatives, this role will liaise between members of the communications, marketing, events, and editorial group and central information technology teams (Columbia College IT & Columbia University IT) - in addition to serving as a point of contact with 3rd party vendors as needed.

The incumbent will be tasked with advising leadership on digital strategy, digital operations, and systems innovation to help enhance the digital experience across student and alumni journeys. The ideal candidate will have a strong understanding of integrated communications tactics, web optimization/SEO, content management, and digital analytics, as well as demonstrated project management skills.

*Hybrid position based in Morningside Heights campus.*

Responsibilities

• Manage several College website properties - supporting multiple audiences and offices, from content distribution to functionality, design, and analytics in partnership with the Director of Strategic Communications and CCIT web services.
• Execute digital initiatives and projects from development through launch and ongoing maintenance while working as part of cross-functional and collaborative teams.
• Support the development and integration of consumer relationship marketing (CRM) tools into the Colleges communications processes and systems.
• Lead analysis and ideation sessions around new initiatives with digital functions to pressure test ideas and gain appropriate buy-in.
• Collaborate with College and partner units to better understand their functional needs and how those translate to web platforms and/or other digital tools.
• Optimize website content for discovery, shareability, and conversion, in partnership with the Editorial team web services.
• In collaboration with CCIT, fine-tune UX, design, and architecture across key platforms by analyzing data from a variety of sources; identify trends and insights to inform tactical decision that help meet digital campaign objectives.
• Monitor and report on digital performance, including ad hoc analysis as needed.
• Manage the Assistant Director of Digital Communications, providing day-to-day guidance and oversight, and coaching opportunities.
• Share digital best practices with relevant colleagues.
• Stay up-to-date on latest trends and best practices within the higher education, EdTech, and digital communications spaces.
• Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required
• Minimum of 3 years of relevant experience
• Possesses a strong understanding and tactical knowledge of digital communications disciplines that engage audiences and convey critical information
• Highly organized & proactive self-starter with a strong ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Demonstrated experience managing CMS websites and related development projects
• Adept & detail-oriented project manager who keeps team members informed and ensures that all deliverables are completed in a timely manner
• Agile, resilient, and adaptable to change; experiments and adapts to win; questions the status quo; works with a 'start-up' mentality to test, iterate, and scale initiatives
• Strong interpersonal skills; ability to lead cross-functionally and build relationships internally and externally
• Strong analytical skills combined with a high level of creativity and strategic vision
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, able to lead and motivate others

Preferred Qualifications

• Strong functional knowledge and comfort working across a variety of digital platforms and software, including: Drupal (or equivalent CMS platform), SEO management, Google Analytics, Asana (or equivalent project management tool), Adobe Suite, Salesforce / Marketing Cloud (Pardot or equivalent), Google Workspace and office suite.
• A deep-rooted interest and passion for higher education a plus

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.