ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX

Established in 1976, the University of Phoenix (UOPX) was founded to provide educational access to underserved populations, particularly working adult populations.  In the 40 years since, it has become one of the largest private, accredited universities in North America, continuing to champion non-traditional students – working learners whose more formal, post-secondary education has been interrupted by personal or work obligations or military service. In so doing, the University has focused on creating innovative models for higher education to better meet the needs of its target populations.  The University of Phoenix is committed to providing the opportunity for higher education to anyone with the capacity and willingness to achieve its benefits.  Since its inception, the University’s goal is to enable students to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to achieve their professional goals, to improve the productivity of their organizations, and to provide leadership and service to their communities.  University revenues for FY2017 were $1.2 billion.

University of Phoenix is innovating to help working adults move efficiently from education to careers in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant and engaging courses, and interactive learning can help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. University of Phoenix serves a diverse student population of over 100,000 (66 percent female and 34 percent male), offering associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs (more than 100 degree programs and more than 50 certificate programs) in 26 markets across the U.S. as well as online throughout the world. The University’s average class size is 15:1 with the average student age at 35, with 68 percent of those self-reporting as having dependent family members. In addition, the University has nearly one million alumni. 

At the heart of the University of Phoenix’s success are its approximately 10,000 committed faculty members.  University faculty members have advanced degrees and real-world experience that bridges the gap between theory and practice—helping students apply what they learn in class one day to their job the next. 

On February 1, 2017, the parent company of the University of Phoenix, Apollo Education Group, Inc. (formerly a publicly-traded company) was acquired by a consortium of investors including Apollo Global Management, LLC and The Vistria Group, LLC.

As a roadmap for success, the University relies on eight broad, high-level objectives that provide a clear direction for day-to-day operations, actions and initiatives:

• Achieve 2018 Annual Operating Plan (AOP).
• Stabilize overall new student enrollment while increasing enrollment in our targeted growth programs and against our defined high-quality segments.
• Deliver high quality, differentiated, rigorous and relevant academic programs that meet and exceed needs of students and employers.
• Ensure compliance with HLC and all programmatic accreditation while building world class, comprehensive assessment programs of all aspects of student experience and outcomes.
• Continue to improve our operating efficiency and effectiveness while maintaining or enhancing student experience and faculty performance.
• Improve student retention and academic success while stemming organic decline via investments in the marketing and enrollment and retention functions. 
• Develop and execute a plan to advance the University’s reputation and brand as a world class University dedicated to academic success of adult learners.
• Build a high-performance culture through employees who are engaged, aligned to common objectives and accountable for outcomes.

POSITION SUMMARY

Reporting to the President, the Chief Information Officer will be a highly-regarded and dynamic leader with solid business, technology, and leadership credentials. The ideal candidate will be a visionary leader, highly collaborative, with the ability to ascertain and confront the tremendous opportunities and critical challenges facing UOPX during their business transformation.

The Chief Information Officer is a key strategic leader who will provide the Information Technology vision, strategy and operating plan in support of the University’s business objectives.  S/he must be an excellent communicator at all levels of the organization to be successful and will bring deep experience and success  in establishing highly effective and efficient IT governance and data security programs as part of their overall IT strategy.

S/he will hold full accountability for satisfying the University’s business needs by ensuring the Information Technology department’s effectiveness and quality in achieving or exceeding established goals and objectives and in delivering technology services to the business, its campuses, its partners, and above all, to its students.  The Chief Information Officer will lead technology initiatives that enable and support key milestones throughout the student’s educational journey, building a set of differentiated capabilities that improve the overall student experience.  

Specific responsibilities include:

• Provide dynamic, visionary leadership to create a differentiated value proposition, leading to revenue and EBITDA growth.
• Stabilize and improve EBITDA.
• Provide expert counsel and guidance to the executive team on information technology and its impact across the full range of business strategy, programs, products and services, and operations issues.
• Develop short-and long-term Information Technology vision and strategic plans based on the University’s business strategies, goals, plans, market opportunities, and operating requirements. In close partnership with the executive team, seek funding for IT initiatives that have strategic value and attractive rates of return. Conduct ongoing strategic sourcing to identify the most cost effective, efficient and appropriate utilization of internal, contracted and outsourced IT functions including systems, infrastructure and network operations, maintenance and support.
• Provide effective management of the University’s portfolio of systems and projects. Institute and enforce appropriate Information Technology governance, policies, processes, systems and technology portfolio/lifecycle management, project management/PMO, development standards and methodologies.
• Create an IT Architecture for the University that prioritizes Software-as-a-Service and relevant cloud technologies above COTS and internally developed software for relevant functions. Drive selection, acquisition, adoption and instantiation of SaaS and other cloud technologies as appropriate, in partnership with business organizations.
• Direct the definition, architecture, acquisition, development, implementation and support of systems which enable and drive business objectives by providing:
  • expedient, efficient, accurate and secure information and transaction flow for all operational functions and competitive multi-channel management;
  • systems that deliver extraordinary customer service, intimacy and loyalty;
  • insightful and timely customer, market and business intelligence that enables effective business decision-making;
  • applications that sustain cost effective and efficient internal business operations and administrative functions;
• Drive and facilitate Information Technology-based support for compliance with all regulatory and statutory requirements.
• Maintain knowledge of current and emerging information technologies, and voice and data communications. Identify appropriate technology for Information Technology initiatives, and where appropriate, produce technology-driven innovation to further facilitate business objectives.
• Ensure performance to all related elements – cost, schedule and budget – as they relate to the existing plan and forecast; continuously improve unit cost performance while introducing new Information Technology capability and innovation.
• Direct the continuous and secure operation, administration and maintenance of the University’s computing and networking infrastructure, including development of Security, Privacy, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Plans. Establish and meet Service Level Objectives and Operating Level Objectives for all relevant systems, functions and platforms. Partner with relevant vendors to measure SLAs and OLAs, and hold vendors accountable through contractual obligation to appropriate performance.
• Drive transformation of the University’s technology infrastructure through leadership of a cloud migration, enabling the University to close all internal data centers by FYE20.
• Hire, develop, appraise, reward, and retain a highly qualified IT professional staff. Motivate and mentor IT management and staff.  Lead by example through appropriate participation and involvement in, and oversight of all IT activities.  Plan and provide continuity and succession for all IT management and critical positions. 
• Utilize excellent communication, networking, interpersonal, and stakeholder management skills to lead collaboratively and achieve results.
• Develop and implement the budget, goals and objectives in accordance and alignment with established University standards, goals, and objectives.  Ensure budget goals are met on an annual basis.

QUALIFICATIONS            

• At least 15 years of proven business-related IT experience.
• 10 years successfully operating as a senior level information technology executive
• Experience in leading the technology needs of a company through a material business transformation. Deep experience as an executive partner in the development and implementation of strategic plans.
• Significant business/IT management experience, preferably in a multi-location business environment with a strong background in real-time systems. Multi-channel experience – to include both offline and online business needs – is an advantage.
• Significant experience with advanced technologies including virtualization and cloud computing for solution delivery, is required. Extensive experience with Software-as-a-Service products, processes, governance and vendors is required. Clear understanding and experience of hybrid cloud (public/private/colocation) cloud infrastructure is required, including architecture, governance, management and monitoring.
• An outstanding record of professional experience and accomplishment, with a reputation for increasing productivity and growth at a major enterprise, including global business perspective and experience working with global IT partners.
• The ability to thrive in a dynamic environment, excellent leadership abilities and management skills with a proven record of strategic planning, functional transformation, productivity and process improvement, change management, and budget and resource management.
• A proven history of developing employee potential consistent with the demand characteristics inherent in the business and related IT strategy.
• Well versed in all aspects of software and supporting hardware and networking, and be a proven leader in applying technology in a mission-critical systems environment, with considerable experience in initiating enterprise-wide technological changes to improve business processes.
• Senior leadership experience in large University, or a complex professional services business.
• Demonstrated ability to execute on strategic imperatives for an organization budget of at least $100 million. Strong business acumen and marketplace credibility.
• Proven ability to assess a portfolio of businesses of varying size and complexity and know which levers to pull to grow most optimally.
• Track records of successful results in a highly matrixed environment. Demonstrated experience effectively leading and influencing non-direct reports. A record of leading teams and working with peers and internal customers through consensus, persuasion, and transparency.

EDUCATION

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited higher education institution is required.  Master’s degree preferred.

COMPENSATION

The selected candidate will receive an attractive compensation package consisting of base salary, bonus and equity, along with a comprehensive benefits plan.

DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW

The Technology Organization is responsible for all technologies and for providing the vision and direction of Information Technology to support the University’s strategy to achieve its strategic and business objectives. It delivers technology services to the business, its campuses, its partners, and students. The UOP Technology organization is comprised of seven verticals; Infrastructure, Information Security, Applications Engineering, Technology Portfolio Management and Strategic Operations, Cloud and Core Services, Enterprise Project management Office and Academic Technologies

• Technology Portfolio Management and Strategic Operations (TPMSO): This team is responsible for providing financial stewardship and oversight for Technology, business request management, core and legacy system support and enhancement, application usability, strategic planning, and core operational services and technologies.
• Applications Engineering (AE): This team is responsible for Software Engineering, all phases of the software development life cycle and support of applications and platforms supporting the University of Phoenix in the areas of Financial Aid systems, Document Scanning and Archiving (Documentum), Oracle and related Financials systems, HR systems and the Unified Communication Platform (Genesys) as well as the Student Relationship Management Platform (Salesforce.) 
• Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO): This team is responsible for managing a variety of projects, programs and portfolios through the full project lifecycle, supporting the company’s educational vision. It is also responsible of the strategic student self-service / Marketing enablement initiatives and operational projects using appropriate program management or business process improvement methods to achieve project objectives that support UOP’s strategy.
• Academic Technologies: This team is responsible for all academic-related technologies utilized by the University of Phoenix. This includes but is not limited to the student information system (OSIRIS and WorkBenches), classroom technologies (New Classroom and Blackboard), and student and faculty portal (eCampus). This engineering team is made up of engineering, quality assurance and production support resources. The full portfolio of applications and services managed by this team exceeds over 200 different applications and services.
• Cloud and Core Services: This team is responsible for Cloud and Core Services for the organization which including Enterprise Architecture, Integration Platform Services which include integration consulting and application development. Data Analytics Platform Services (DAPS) and Software Automation.
• Information Security: This team is responsible for information security policy and the coordination of information security efforts across AEG and it’s institutions including UOP. It is also responsible for network, infrastructure, data and application security, security architecture, monitoring and policy enforcement. Lead security incident response, security risk assessment efforts and own enterprise wide cybersecurity awareness.
• Infrastructure/Data Center: This team is responsible for all data center maintenance and support including; hosting and cloud services for physical and virtual servers, IT operations services providing 24x7x365 support for infrastructure, databases, mission critical applications and services, Network and Telecom Services provides end-to-end voice and data network and telecommunications services that span the entire life-cycle including engineering, deployment, and Tier 3 support.  , Infrastructure Tools, the tools platform currently supported include the HP suite of products, SPLUNK, NetScout, NetMRI and Microsoft System Center, and Service Management facilitating and providing governance for various best practice processes.   

For information, contact:

Adam Smith

Senior Director, Human Resources

(602) 557-1349 (office)

Adam.smithHR@phoenix.edu