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Operations Manager
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Position Number: 5951293
Location: Boulder, CO
Position Type: Administrative Vice Presidents

Operations Manager

Requisition Number: 61684
Location: Boulder Colorado
Employment Type: University Staff
Schedule: Full Time
Posting Close Date: 06-Feb-2025
Date Posted:

Job Summary

The Department of Chemistry is encouraging applications for the Operations Manager position! This position will apply knowledge, principles, rules, regulations, policies, precedents, and other guidelines specific to the College of Arts and Sciences, the University of Colorado Boulder, and the State of Colorado to analyze needs, resolve problems, answer questions, and provide information to faculty and staff in Chemistry and in the College of Arts and Sciences. The manager will advise on technical issues and ensure timely and effective delivery of services. The person in this position must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be able to successfully manage multiple self-directed projects that may, at times, have contending priorities. Thus, the individual in this position must have a strong administrative background and excellent skills in business administration, fiscal, and personnel management.

The Operations Manager is responsible for ensuring that the administrative processes and procedures within the Department of Chemistry meet the needs of internal and external partners. This position reports to the Director of Finance and Business Operations, supervises the Human Resources Coordinator, the Graduate Program Administrator, and the Undergraduate Program Coordinator, and works collaboratively with the Finance and Accounting Manager to achieve operational excellence. Operational management includes implementing and reviewing all administrative processes that impact our research and educational programs. Areas of responsibility include information/task management, program management, personnel management, data analysis, and reporting management. Responsible for implementing changes to current practices and working with other managers and the Director on documenting processes and working with the HR Coordinator to develop onboarding procedures for all administrative, instructional, research staff, and faculty. Provides backup support to the Graduate Program Administrator, Undergraduate Program Coordinator, and Human Resources Coordinator as needed. Works closely with the Director and the College of Arts & Sciences to ensure university, administrative, and reporting target dates are met.
The University of Colorado Boulder is committed to building a culturally diverse community of faculty, staff, and students dedicated to contributing to an inclusive campus environment. We are an Equal Opportunity employer, including veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Who We Are

The Department of Chemistry at the University of Colorado Boulder is internationally recognized for its specialized research and education in the study of matter, energy, and the interaction between them. The behavior of atoms, molecules, and ions determines the sort of world we live in, our shapes and sizes, and even how we feel on a given day. Chemists who understand these phenomena are well-equipped to tackle problems faced by our modern society.

What Your Key Responsibilities Will Be

Personnel Management and Supervision

Staff Management:

Manage and supervise the Graduate Programs Administrator, Undergraduate Program Coordinator, and Human Resources Coordinator and indirectly manages Departmental Student Assistants and program assistants.
Responsible for hiring, training, leave approval, performance management, evaluations, and disciplinary actions involving direct reports. '
Review work for accuracy as needed and ensure target dates are met.

Faculty Affairs Management:

Manages faculty administrative processes to ensure target dates are met for Post-tenure review, faculty merit review, sabbatical requests, leaves of absence, conflict of interest management, course buyouts, etc.
Be responsible for the document preparation efforts for faculty and senior instructor recruitment, reappointment, tenure, and promotion.
Assist the Director in ensuring the annual faculty reporting process, Faculty Report of Professional Activities (FRPA), is completed for all faculty by the required date.
Human Resources Management:
Perform equity pay comparisons as needed and at the time of hires.
Ensure visa processing time is kept to a minimum by developing and implementing a transparent process that CHEM staff follow.
Create and maintain an onboarding resource library for departmental, staff, students, and faculty.
Establish standardized processes for maintaining and storing personnel records.

Payroll:

Lead Finance HR and Graduate program efforts to perform monthly and semester/speedtype payroll reconciliations.
Track all changes and follow-up.
Identify the root cause of payroll errors and put mitigation strategies in place.
Review payroll funding sources to ensure appointments align with university policy (gift funds, non-research funds, Fellowships, etc.).

Appointment Management:

Be responsible for appointment creation and management process.
Possess knowledge of all types of appointments for students, faculty, and staff including stipends, fellowships, regular, temporary, varying percent FTE etc., and ensure university policies are followed for creating, transferring, and ending appointments.
Continuously improve accuracy and speed of appointment processing, hiring, and termination processes for faculty students, and staff.
Collaborate with Campus and individuals to complete the Annual Leave certification process for all employees within Chemistry.
Work with the Human Resources Service Center, the College, campus HR, and the Benefits Office to collaborate on future improvements and solutions.

Program Management:

Ensure that our academic and programmatic programs have the resources to remain effective.
Monitor program budgets and expenses.
Provide operational support for our Undergraduate and Graduate Programs.
Work with the Faculty Director, Associate Chairs, Teaching support staff, and respective Committee Chairs to meet target dates, reporting requirements, and financial commitments.
Assist and supervise the Undergraduate Program Coordinator in the communication and distribution of undergraduate scholarships and processing the financial forms to ensure the distribution of fellowships/scholarships/prizes.
Assess available funding and track expenses each semester to ensure full utilization of our undergraduate fellowship funds.
Assist in ensuring that the fall, spring and summer course, recitation and laboratory schedules prepared by the Chair are devoid of errors and submitted in the course scheduling system accurately and timely.
Serve as the Department Operational Lead for Committee Chairs.
Obtain reports necessary for review, assist with scheduling meetings, etc.
Continuously update the intranet site and archive resources as needed. Establish editor profiles and set expectations for editors, contributors, and users.
Develop and implement a plan for staff to document processes. Establish biannual reviews of all processes and a means to continually update files.
Provide backup assistance for administrative team members as needed.
Assist the Department Chair and Director with various projects and reporting. Work with Service Centers, the building manager, and other non-administrative support staff to ensure the departments' needs are met.
Orchestrate departmental program review process and visit.
Lead teams in planning for Departmental events.
Be responsible for the Chemistry department website.

Operations Optimization and Project Management:

The Operations Manager is responsible for building and maintaining efficient and effective processes that apply standard methodologies and follow University policies and guidelines. These processes will be documented, maintained, and reviewed on a continual basis to ensure departmental and College needs are met.
Be responsible for and optimize the departmental task management system.
Use a task management system to ensure requests are handled and tracked for all administrative staff.
Works with Chair, Director, and the Finance and Accounting Manager to ensure tasks that involve multiple staff and CU systems are processed smoothly and collaboratively to meet expectations.
Measure task handling performance, and help reassign requests as needed to meet task completion dates.
Responsible for administrative document storage and retention.
Work with the Chair and Director to establish document storage protocols and timelines for all departmental documents.
Manage departmental efforts to convert to paperless operations and document storage. Structure electronic document storage to support staff collaboration and conform to data security requirements.
Work with the Chair and Director on updating the donor information site.
Automate reporting where possible and provide reports to faculty and staff as needed. Assess the department's ability to meet the needs of faculty, staff, and students and propose/plan/implement changes to continuously improve effectiveness.
Examples include financial reporting, systems access, training, task management, communication channel effectiveness, etc.
Work in partnership with the Finance and Accounting Manager to ensure smooth integration of personnel and program management with finance (payroll, awards, scholarships, budgets, reconciliations, etc.).
Assist the Director with budget planning as it pertains to operational expenses and planning.
Assist the Building Proctor and Finance and Accounting Manager with tracking and managing resources as they pertain to operations (computers, copiers, furniture, etc.)

Project Management:

Assess project needs, identify resources, assemble project team, and manage project progress.
Projects may include transition to a different system or process, event planning, joint program coordination, etc.
Lead department reporting efforts for ACS, internal and external entities in coordination with the Chair and Director.

Other:

Other duties as assigned that support the Department of Chemistry and its operations.

What You Should Know

This position offers a hybrid work environment requiring 3 days on campus each week.

What We Can Offer

The starting salary for this position is $76,600-80,000 annually.

Benefits

The University of Colorado offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit and ECO Pass. The University of Colorado Boulder is one of the largest employers in Boulder County and offers an inspiring higher education environment. Learn more about the University of Colorado Boulder.

Be Statements

Be adaptable. Be collaborative. Be Boulder.

What We Require

Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and experience may substitute.
2+ years of job-related experience.
2+ years of supervisory experience.
2+ years of Human Resources, payroll, or other related experience.

What You Will Need

Excellent customer service.
Excellent written and oral communication skills.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and interpersonal problem-solving skills.
A high degree of professionalism and ability to maintain confidentiality.
Ability to work effectively in a working environment with multiple interruptions.
Ability to build and maintain positive and cooperative working relationships.
Ability to work independently and as a member of a team. Organizational skills and ability to manage multiple complex priorities.
Proficiency using Microsoft Suite, Word, and Excel.
Proven track record to proactively analyze issues in such a way as to foresee possible problems or concerns that may arise, and to develop possible solutions and initiate related action with little close supervision.
Solid understanding of complex human resources information and management systems in a regulatory framework.
Proven track record of communicating effectively and building and maintaining relationships at all levels of the organization.

Special Instructions

To apply, please submit the following materials:

A current resume.
A cover letter that specifically tells us how your background and experience align with the requirements, qualifications, and responsibilities of the position.

We may request references at a later time. Please apply by February 6th, 2025 for consideration. Note: Application materials will not be accepted via email. For consideration, please apply through CU Boulder Jobs.
In compliance with the Colorado Job Application Fairness Act, in any materials you submit, you may redact or remove age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.

To apply, visit https://jobs.colorado.edu/jobs/JobDetail/Operations-Manager/61684