Lead Coordinator, Academic Administration in Ottawa

About the Faculty of Social Sciences

The FSS comprises nine departments, schools and institutes, which offer undergraduate, masters and doctoral programs in both English and French. With its 10,000 students, 260 full-time professors, and wide array of programs and research centres, the Faculty of Social Sciences plays a key role at the heart of the University of Ottawa. Its graduate students are supervised by excellent researchers and undertake cutting-edge research in the Faculty’s masters and Ph.D. programs. Along with its complement of about 100 administrative employees, the faculty is proud to provide a collaborative working environment that inspires new ideas, encourages creative ingenuity, and promotes excellence.

Position Purpose

Administers, coordinates and evaluates the operational delivery and continuous improvement of specialized programs within the School of Psychology. Develops, implements and maintains administrative processes and communication strategies that support program objectives and ensure efficient service delivery. Fosters effective stakeholder engagement and ensures compliance with institutional policies, regulatory requirements and established standards. Provides operational coordination for day-to-day program activities, supports program leadership in planning and decision-making, and contributes to the ongoing success, quality and growth of the School’s specialized program offerings.

In this role, your responsibilities will include:

• Operations and Program Administration: Leads and coordinates administrative operations that support the effective delivery of program activities and initiatives. Develops, implements and continuously improves workflows, procedures and operational practices to enhance efficiency, service quality and student experience. Supports the development and implementation of new programs, partnerships, and strategic initiatives. Serves as a resource to internal and external stakeholders on program requirements and processes and ensures that operational activities comply with institutional policies, program objectives and applicable regulatory requirements.
• Student Services and Academic Administration: Advises and supports students, faculty and staff regarding academic policies, procedures and program requirements. Assesses student needs, interprets and applies academic regulations and resolves complex situations requiring sound judgement and policy application. Coordinates academic administrative processes and records management, collaborates with faculty and administrative partners to support student success and recommends improvement to services, procedures and practices that enhance the student experience.
• Stakeholder Engagement and Relationship Management: Develops, fosters and maintains effective working relationships with internal and external stakeholders and partners to support the planning, delivery and continuous improvement of program activities. Coordinates stakeholder communications, facilitates meetings and consultations and serves as a liaison between program leadership and partners. Exercises a high degree of diplomacy, discretion and judgement when handling sensitive or confidential information.
• Communication and Information Management: Develops, coordinates and evaluates communication strategies and information sharing activities that support program goals and stakeholder engagement. Creates and maintains communication material, in collaboration with the Faculty’s marketing and communications team. Ensures communications are accurate, accessible and appropriate to diverse audiences. Supports marketing, outreach, recruitment and engagement activities. Monitors the effectiveness of communication activities, recommending enhancements as required.
• Regulatory Compliance and Risk Management: Monitors and supports compliance with institutional, professional, ethical and regulatory requirements governing program activities. Ensures adherence to applicable policies, procedures and operational standards. Maintains records and documentation required for audits, accreditation, quality assurance and reporting purposes. Identifies operational risks and recommends mitigation strategies. Supports the implementation of changes arising from the evolving regulations, policies and organizational priorities.
• Financial and Resources Coordination: In collaboration with the Faculty’s finance team, coordinates and monitors financial and administrative processes that support program operations and resource management. Tracks expenditures and budget activities. Coordinates various financial and HR processes with the designated teams within the Faculty. Ensures all financial activities comply with institutional policies, procedures and accountability requirements.
• Project Coordination and Administration: Coordinates and oversees the implementation of projects, special initiatives and program enhancements within the School of Psychology. Maintains project plans, timelines, documentation, records and performance metrics. Coordinates activities among internal and external stakeholders. Identifies and resolves operational challenges and ensures projects and program activities are delivered efficiently, consistently and in alignment with established objectives timelines and quality standards.
• Event and Educational Activity Coordination: Plans and coordinates educational professional development and community engagement activities in support of program objectives. Oversees all event logistics in support of the delivery of workshops, seminars, webinars, conferences and special events. Evaluates outcomes and participant feedback and recommends improvements to ensure high-quality and engaging participant experience.

What you will bring:

• Undergraduate degree in public administration, business administration or a related field
• Minimum three years of progressive experience in program and academic administration
• Strong problem-solving skills and analytical ability
• Ability to make and implement decisions quickly
• Experience in coordinating multiple projects and competing priorities
• Experience interpreting and applying policies, procedures and regulations
• Experience developing reports and programming documentation
• Able to facilitate effective and diverse community consultations, programs, and initiatives
• Demonstrated ability to relate to and respect students and faculty with diverse backgrounds, experiences and identities in ways that build trust and confidence while meeting their unique needs
• Discretion, confidentiality, tact and diplomacy
• Strong communication skills, including experience with event organization, social media and creating content required to reach different stakeholder audiences
• Experience in an advising role and in customer service in an academic setting
• Able to work both independently
• Organizational and interpersonal skills, as well as good judgment
• Experience using computer systems (uoCampus, Talisma, Calculator, Document Manager, or similar systems) and applications and platforms such as Windows, word processing software, databases, spreadsheets, email and the Internet
• Bilingualism – French and English (spoken and written)

Key Competencies at uOttawa:

• Planning: Organize in time a series of actions or events in order to realize an objective or a project. Plan and organize own work and priorities in regular daily activities.
• Initiative: Demonstrate creativity and initiative to suggest improvements and encourage positive results. Is proactive and self-starting. Show availability and willingness to go above and beyond whenever it is possible.
• Client Service Orientation: Help or serve others to meet their needs. This implies anticipating and identifying the needs of internal and external clients and finding solutions on how to meet them.
• Teamwork and Cooperation: Cooperate and work well with other members of the team to reach common goal(s). Accept and give constructive feedback. Able to adjust own behaviour to reach the goals of the team.

The University of Ottawa embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We are passionate about our people and committed to employment equity. We foster a culture of respect, teamwork and inclusion, where collaboration, innovation, and creativity fuel our quest for research and teaching excellence.

While all qualified persons are invited to apply, we welcome applications from qualified Indigenous persons, racialized persons, persons with disabilities, women and LGBTQIA2S+ persons. The University is committed to creating and maintaining an accessible, barrier-free work environment. The University is also committed to working with applicants with disabilities requesting accommodation during the recruitment, assessment and selection processes. Applicants with disabilities may contact hrtalentmanagement@uottawa.ca to communicate the accommodation need. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.