Project Director for Operational Excellence

Job Description

The University of Washington has an outstanding opportunity for a Project Director for Operational Excellence.

About this Opportunity

Reporting to the Senior Vice President for Finance, Planning & Budgeting, with a dotted line to the Vice President for Human Resources, the Project Director, Operational Excellence is responsible for enterprise leadership of a multi-year initiative to reduce unnecessary complexity in administrative work, strengthen service delivery and build more effective and sustainable ways of working across the University of Washington. The director translates executive vision into a coordinated transformation agenda, connecting the initial workstreams in Finance, Research Administration and Information Technology with executive sponsors, governance bodies and the external consulting partner. This role helps ensure that decisions draw on institutional expertise, account for employee and service impacts, and lead to improvements the University can sustain.

The director works primarily through influence, executive partnership and matrixed leadership, coordinating people who retain reporting relationships within their respective organizations. No direct reports are anticipated initially; direct supervision of project staff may be added as the initiative evolves.

This position is contingent on ongoing funding.

Key Responsibilities

• 35% Enterprise transformation leadership and integration. Lead day-to-day coordination across Finance, Research Administration and IT, translating executive priorities into an integrated transformation roadmap with clear milestones, dependencies and accountabilities. Participate in workstream meetings, resolve barriers and competing priorities, anticipate enterprise risks, and escalate issues requiring executive direction. Maintain an integrated view of progress and ensure workstream decisions advance the initiative’s broader objectives.
• 20% External consultant and vendor partnership. Lead the day-to-day consulting partnership, directing work with executive sponsors and workstream leaders. Set expectations for deliverables, sequencing, quality and integration; coordinate UW participation; review deliverables and facilitate feedback and decisions. Resolve gaps or misalignment and ensure knowledge, tools and recommendations transfer to UW, with University leaders retaining ownership of institutional decisions.
• 20% Employee centered design and change management. Partner with UWHR and functional leaders to identify workforce and service impacts early, including organizational design, roles, workload, skills, labor considerations and employee transitions. Integrate employee involvement, co-design, stakeholder engagement, communications and implementation readiness into the work. Support pilots and feedback loops, monitor readiness, and elevate risks to adoption and sustainability.
• 15% Executive advising and governance. Advise executive sponsors and governance leaders, translating complex information into clear choices, recommendations, risks and tradeoffs. Prepare executive briefings, decision materials, agendas and integrated updates. Track decisions and translate them into action, build relationships across academic and administrative units, and maintain feedback loops among leaders, workstream teams and affected stakeholders.
• 10% Measurement and sustainability. Partner with workstream leaders and the consultant to define success measures and establish baselines. Monitor implementation outcomes, service performance and employee experience; support post-implementation reviews and adjustments. Capture lessons for subsequent phases, establish clear ownership of new processes and service models, and support an integrated UW-owned roadmap for continued improvement.

Required Qualifications

To be considered for this opportunity your application must demonstrate you meet both the minimum qualifications and additional qualifications listed below. Equivalent education and/or experience may substitute for minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license, certification, and/or registration.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, public administration, organizational development, human resources, communications, project management or a related field.
• At least 10 years of progressively responsible experience leading complex, cross-functional projects, programs or organizational transformation efforts in a large, complex organization.

Applicants who do not meet these qualifications WILL NOT be forwarded to the Hiring Manager.

Additional Qualifications

• Demonstrated growth in leadership responsibility.
• Demonstrated experience leading work across multiple organizational functions and partnering effectively with senior-level stakeholders and executive leaders.
• Demonstrated success leading complex enterprise transformation in which significant outcomes were achieved through influence, executive partnership and matrixed leadership rather than direct organizational authority.
• Experience translating broad strategic objectives into integrated plans, decisions, milestones and accountabilities.
• Experience identifying and managing complex dependencies, risks and organizational impacts.
• Demonstrated understanding of organizational change and the human dimensions of large-scale transformation.
• Strong executive communication skills, including the ability to synthesize complex information and present clear recommendations, decisions and tradeoffs.
• Demonstrated ability to establish trusted working relationships with senior leaders, functional experts, project teams and employees.
• Strong judgment, discretion and ability to navigate ambiguity and competing priorities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading enterprise transformation, operational excellence, shared or integrated service design, administrative modernization or comparable large-scale organizational change; experience with process redesign, service design, organizational design or continuous improvement.
• Experience in a large public research university, academic medical center, public-sector organization or similarly complex institution; experience working across Finance, Research Administration, Information Technology and/or Human Resources.
• Experience partnering with external consulting firms on complex transformation initiatives.
• Experience developing and implementing change management strategies and engaging employees and stakeholders in human-centered design, co-design or similar participatory approaches; project or change management certification or comparable demonstrated expertise.
• Familiarity with labor relations and workforce considerations in a unionized environment.

Working Conditions

• Frequent interaction with executive leaders, project sponsors, consultants, functional leaders and employees across the University, including participation in meetings across multiple workstreams.
• Flexibility in work hours may be required to accommodate executive and project schedules.
• Occasional travel between UW locations may be required.
• Hybrid work schedule is subject to change based on department needs.

Application Requirement

This recruitment requires a cover letter. Applications that do not include a cover letter will not be forwarded to the hiring department.

Compensation, Benefits and Position Details

Pay Range Minimum: $200,004.00 annualPay Range Maximum: $250,008.00 annualOther Compensation: -Benefits: For information about benefits for this position, visit https://www.washington.edu/jobs/benefits-for-uw-staff/Shift: First Shift (United States of America)Temporary or Regular? This is a regular positionFTE (Full-Time Equivalent): 100.00%Union/Bargaining Unit: Not Applicable About the UW

Working at the University of Washington provides a unique opportunity to change lives – on our campuses, in our state and around the world.

UW employees bring their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills and dedication to building stronger minds and a healthier world. In return, they enjoy outstanding benefits, opportunities for professional growth and the chance to work in an environment known for its diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty.

Our Commitment

The University of Washington is committed to fostering an inclusive, respectful and welcoming community for all. As an equal opportunity employer, the University considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, citizenship, sex, pregnancy, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability, or veteran status consistent with UW Executive Order No. 81.

To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206-543-6450 or dso@uw.edu.

Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington state law.