Director, Enrollment Operations & Systems

Position Summary

The Director, Enrollment Operations and Systems is part of the Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) unit in the Owen Graduate School of Management (OGSM) at Vanderbilt University and is a leader responsible for the strategy, implementation, and management of technology, processes, and operational workflows for all enrollment functions across all full-time and part-time degree programs, as well as pre-college initiatives. This role is critical in ensuring efficient and effective enrollment practices, with a focus on optimizing the admissions software Slate CRM and other associated technical systems. The Director will also develop standard operating procedures, enhance collaboration with Vanderbilt University Enrollment Affairs (UEA) divisions and other departments, analyze operational data, and provide mentorship to the enrollment operations team. As a leader within the OGSM, the Director of Enrollment Operations and Systems plays a pivotal role shaping the operational framework of OGSM’s enrollment management functions, ensuring that all systems and processes are aligned with institutional goals. This position reports to the Associate Dean for Strategic Enrollment Management.

About The Work Unit

The Owen Graduate School of Management (OGSM) is a professional school at Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee, focused on graduate-level business education. OGSM’s mission is to create opportunities for its faculty, staff, and students to discover, grow, and thrive in business and beyond. OGSM recognizes discovery in traditional forms, such as scholarly research, intellectual curiosity, and curricular learning. But it also celebrates discovery unique to the human experience, that is, the art of becoming, which is lived through a desire to connect with others, to find meaning in work and relationships, and to create something new. OGSM sees transformation as foundational.

The Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM) unit is a dedicated team within OGSM focused on optimizing the recruitment, selection, aiding, onboarding, and enrollment of students throughout their academic journey. The SEM unit employs data-driven strategies that align enrollment practices with OGSM’s reputational ambitions, revenue goals, and academic mission.

Key Functions And Expected Performance

• Strategic Leadership: Develop and drive a comprehensive strategy for enrollment operations, aligning technology and processes with the overall mission and goals of the Owen Graduate School of Management.
• Proactive Communication: Be a leader in promoting a culture that features consistent, effective, and positive communication that achieves extraordinary results.
• Technology Management: Design, implement, maintain, and optimize the Slate CRM (and associated) systems, including updates, upgrades, and enhancements to ensure that all admissions and enrollment processes are streamlined and efficient.
• Process Development: Create and implement standard operating procedures for recruitment, application, and enrollment processes to enhance student experience and improve operational efficiency. Demonstrate expertise on all processes to better understand the needs of internal and external stakeholders. Continually apply critical thinking and creativity in efforts to improve processes revolving around workflows, rules, portals, configurable joins queries, reports, forms, and comm flows to help stakeholders achieve their goals.
• Data Oversight: Manage all processes for data importing and exporting, data integrity, data consolidation, data retention, and application data management for quality assurance and control. Ensure all Slate activities align with institutional data governance, privacy, and data protection standards. Promote a culture of data literacy, responsible data handling, and data-driven decision-making practices across the organization.
• Data Analysis: Develop and maintain reporting tools inside and outside of the Slate CRM to analyze recruitment and enrollment data and metrics to assess workflow efficiency and effectiveness. Use insights gained to inform decision-making and implement process improvements.
• Collaboration: Maintain strong working relationships within OGSM, across UEA and external vendors to ensure seamless integration of systems and processes and the flow of data related to admissions and enrollment activities. Be a “problem solver” and take the initiative to identify what’s not working or could be done more efficiently and provide recommendations. Work positively with internal and external partners to identify “win-win” solutions.
• Team Management: Lead and mentor the enrollment operations team, providing guidance and professional development opportunities to foster a positive and energetic work environment.
• User Support and Training: Responsible for all establishing processes related to user support and ongoing training for the Slate CRM system. Act as a resource for all staff that have needs revolving around the Slate CRM system.
• Continuous Improvement: Stay informed of industry best practices and emerging technologies in enrollment management as well as new enhancements and product releases from Technolutions (Slate CRM) to continuously enhance operational workflows and enrollment management strategies. Attend professional development conferences to stay ahead of the latest trends, enhancements, and products.
• Performance Measurement: Collaborate with the Associate Dean for Strategic Enrollment Management to develop Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) related to enrollment operational efficiency across all programs, analyzing data to measure effectiveness and inform continuous improvement strategies.
  
  

Supervisory Relationships

This role entails direct supervisory responsibilities for both full-time and part-time staff members. This position reports to the Associate Dean for Strategic Enrollment Management.

Education And Certifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
  
  

Experience And Skills

• Experience: Minimum of 8 years of experience in admissions, enrollment management, or a related field, with at least 3 years in a leadership role.
• Technical Skills: Expert knowledge of Technolutions Slate CRM including portals, workflows, and configurable joins. Demonstrated experience with admissions software (Slate preferred), SIS (PeopleSoft preferred), MS Office Word and Excel in particular, Adobe, and proficiency in data analysis and reporting tools. Working familiarity with querying language and syntax (e.g., HTML, CSS, or SQL) as well as an understanding of data integration concepts.
• Project Management: Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage and prioritize multiple concurrent initiatives while ensuring timely completion of objectives.
• Interpersonal Skills: Excellent communication and collaborative skills, enabling effective partnerships with diverse stakeholders at all levels of the organization. Must possess patient and positive demeanor and be adept at leading and adapting to organizational changes to stay competitive in the industry.
• Leadership and Mentoring Skills: A proven track record of recruiting, managing, mentoring, and inspiring a highly skilled technical team that can consistently achieve organizational objectives.
• Analytical Skills: Ability to design, produce, track, analyze and interpret statistical data for on-going decision-making. Must demonstrate an ability to address challenging problems utilizing concise, agile, and systems-based thinking to create effective, yet scalable solutions.
• Networking: Established network within the higher education landscape, particularly in graduate management education, is a plus.