Chief of Staff and Strategy - School of Public Health

The University of Minnesota is a world-class research university and one of the largest in the United States. Founded in 1851 as a land-grant university, the school now encompasses more than 55,000 students and nearly 27,000 employees on five campuses across Minnesota. With an annual operating budget of $4.5 billion, the University generates an economic impact of $8.6 billion on the Minnesota economy.

Located on the banks of the Mississippi River, the University’s Twin Cities campus is surrounded by the vibrant Twin Cities metropolitan community, known for its thriving arts, dining, and outdoor recreation culture.

The School of Public Health (SPH) improves the health and well-being of populations and communities worldwide by bringing innovative research, learning, and concrete actions to today’s biggest health challenges. SPH includes four academic divisions and 23 internationally recognized centers and is home to roughly 1,025 students, 130 tenured/tenure-track and contract faculty, and 450 staff.

SPH is a research powerhouse: 

• First in research funding per capita at UMN
• Second most extensive research portfolio at the UMN
• Second most NIH funding among UMN schools and colleges
• $137.6M in research grants and contracts in fiscal year 2022
• $1.1M average grant funding per faculty member
• Ranked sixth for public schools of public health by the U.S. News & World Report

SPH offers more than 20 leading master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs. U.S. News & World Report ranks its Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program second and its Biostatistics program ninth.

SPH is committed to antiracism and anti-oppression. We welcome you to join us in our pursuit of building equity and driving justice. 

• Oversee the SPH Communications team and create executive-level and crisis communications including talks, speeches, reports, and presentations that appropriately reflect the dean’s voice, tone, and goals.
• Serve as senior advisor to the dean, particularly on the development and execution of strategic priorities to advance the goals and objectives of the school.
• Serve as a liaison with academic and administrative leaders throughout the University, and ensure the dean is well-informed about general SPH and University issues, providing accurate and objective information, perspectives, and recommendations to the dean.
• Direct the dean’s executive assistant in managing and organizing the dean’s schedule and priorities efficiently.
• Coordinate and finalize arrangements for the dean's speaking engagements.
• Oversee the development of special reports, briefings, letters, presentations, remarks, and other communication materials for internal and external engagement as needed in collaboration with the Communications team. 
• Support and sustain a culture of service, professionalism, and continuous improvement in the dean's office.
• Connect the school with the broader University through communication, implementation of initiatives, alignment, and active engagement in University priorities. Effectively represent organizational needs, challenges, and opportunities at the University level as needed.
• Oversee internal and external communication plans.

• Lead and advance a broad set of strategic initiatives, partnerships, and projects of the dean and the school from inception to evaluation. Monitor progress and ensure alignment with the university’s goals.
• Partner with other senior leaders to establish the scope, schedule, and resources for strategic initiatives.
• Build and manage project teams to actively drive projects to completion, including a diverse array of stakeholders from a variety of offices. Ensure team members understand their responsibilities and meet deadlines and competing priorities are managed effectively.
• Create standards, cadence, and controls for project documentation and workflow.
• Act as a point of contact between the dean and other members of the senior leadership team, staff, students, and other stakeholders related to strategic initiatives. Address concerns, facilitate communication, and contribute to building a positive and collaborative work environment.
• Drive change initiatives to embed principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and antiracism into operations workflows and practices.
• Ensure that operational objectives support and contribute to the overall DEI vision of the organization.

• Identify new opportunities to improve effectiveness in SPH operations in areas such as administrative staffing structures, communication and marketing strategies, enrollment management, continuing education, and other strategic priorities and administrative functions. Set operational business strategies.
• Advise the dean on strategies that optimize operational capabilities in support of their vision for academic, research, public health practice, and community engagement.  
• Lead the development and implementation of projects and initiatives with a forward-thinking and capacity-building approach.  
• Meet routinely with SPH's CFO to review budget development. Coordinate regular budget planning meetings with the dean and CFO to enhance strategy and effectiveness-building with regards to resource management, allocations, and investment in accordance with the school’s strategic plan, enrollment patterns, and opportunities for growth. 
• Work with the CFO and dean on the fiscal strategies in the annual compact process. Manage the annual assessment, analysis, and submission of SPH’s metrics to the University’s strategic planning process.
• Meet regularly with and convene operational leaders in the college to enhance communication and coordination of shared activities and increase operational effectiveness. 
• Work with Finance department to allocate budget and resources for DEI initiatives within operations. Advocate for resources in training that support DEI goals and priorities.
• Collaborate with the DEI office on setting priorities, defining objectives, and designing action plans to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.

• Serve as chief of staff and strategy, coordinating all aspects of SPH operations and management. Provide leadership for dean's office staff and foster a professional, positive, inclusive, team-oriented working environment. Anticipate, plan, and manage the daily and strategic administrative operations of the dean's office; investigate and resolve administrative problems. 
• Build and nurture relationships to serve as a resource and point of contact for the university administrators, faculty, staff, students, and other key constituents to resolve complex issues and help move forward strategic priorities. 
• Manage all aspects of daily unit operations, including policy and procedure development and implementation. Determine and allocate resources by monitoring staff duties and adjusting workloads as needed. Develop an annual calendar, set deadlines and priorities. Initiate, identify and manage projects.

• Bachelor’s degree and 10 years of experience in administrative and management positions
• Effective leadership and organizational, managerial, and conflict management skills
• Prior oversight of administration and operations, strategic planning, and budget management
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise sound judgment, initiative, and diplomacy
• Commitment to building a culture that respects and embraces DEI; ability to work effectively with individuals from diverse communities and cultures
• Excellent communications skills including verbal, written, and listening; ability to interact effectively and establish collaborative working relationships with people at all levels of the organization and external constituencies
• Excellent computer skills including experience interpreting and analyzing data and providing consultation

• Master’s degree in public health, higher education administration, business, or a related field
• Experience developing and leading complex public policy agendas in a public, higher education, or health care environment
• Knowledge of strategic management concepts, business practices, and principles
• Familiarity with the University of Minnesota or comparable institution
• Understanding of and appreciation for the mission, structure and complexity of academic public health and the vital importance of public health in the context of public higher education

Salary range: $145,000-185,000 annually, depending on qualifications, experience, and internal equity

Work arrangements: The University of Minnesota endorses a Work. With Flexibility. approach, and we offer a flexible work environment that meets the needs of the students, faculty, staff, and partners we serve. This position will have a hybrid work option with a minimum of 4 days on campus. 

Onsite location: 
Mayo Memorial Building
420 Delaware St. SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455

Benefits: As a Professional and Administrative (P&A) employee, you’ll enjoy a comprehensive benefits package with low-cost health coverage, professional development opportunities, and retirement plan with 10% employer contribution. (See our benefits page for more information.) 

Applicants must submit a cover letter and resume. To ensure full consideration, submit your materials by May 21, 2024.

Apply here

Nominations may be directed to the Talent Acquisition Consultant Mallory Stewart (potex001@umn.edu). Review of nominations and applications for the position will commence immediately and continue until the position is filled. 

Note: The previous priority consideration date of May 28 has been changed to May 21.