Special Project Manager

The Department of Surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC (KSOM) is committed to advancing patient care, education, and research in support of USC’s mission to improve the health and quality of life of individuals and communities. Our department supports a large and diverse faculty, staff, trainees, and learners across multiple clinical divisions and programs.

We are seeking a full-time Special Projects Manager to provide comprehensive experienced administrative and managerial support to the Department of Surgery. This role is essential to the smooth daily operation of the department and supports leadership, faculty, and staff through effective coordination, organization, and customer service.

The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, dependable, service-minded, and thrives in a fast-paced academic and healthcare environment.

Job Accountabilities

Supervision and Management

• Supervises Department and Division administrative assistants
• Manages special projects on behalf of Department Administrator.

Administration

• Provides general administrative leadership and management to Department and Divisions.
• Plans, coordinates, schedules and organizes project activities to meet School and Department objectives.
• Researches, gathers, organizes and summarizes data for special projects related to Department, KSOM and Keck Medicine of USC operations.

Operations & Coordination

• Assists with basic data gathering, tracking, and recordkeeping related to departmental operations and budgets.
• Creates and maintains complex spreadsheets, logs, charts, and databases.

Customer Service & Communication

• Serves as a primary point of contact for faculty, staff, students, and visitors.
• Provides general information related to departmental procedures and university policies, escalating issues as appropriate.

Performs other duties as assigned. The university reserves the right to modify duties and responsibilities as business needs change.

Required Qualifications

• Strong work ethic; dependable and reliable.
• Experience in a complex medical or academic development setting encouraged.
• Excellent communication skills – both written and verbal.
• Comfortable interfacing with highest level of university leadership and university supporters/volunteers.
• Demonstrated affinity for diplomacy and the ability to cultivate and maintain relationships at all levels.
• Practices a high level of integrity and honesty in maintaining confidentiality.
• Ability to multi-task effectively and demonstrate strong organizational skills.
• Sound judgment and decision making
• A cooperative and team-oriented attitude

Preferred Qualifications

• Masters degree with administrative and managerial experience, preferably in a large organization.
• Experience working in an academic, research, or healthcare setting.

Work Schedule & Location

• Scheduled hours: 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• This position is hybrid, with required on-site presence at the USC Health Sciences Campus in Los Angeles, CA on scheduled days.
• Work hours and on-site requirements are subject to change.

The hourly rate range for this position is $90,000 - $105,000. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.