About UMass Amherst
The flagship of the Commonwealth, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is a nationally ranked public land-grant research university that seeks to expand educational access, fuel innovation and creativity, and share and use its knowledge for the common good. Founded in 1863, UMass Amherst sits on nearly 1,450 acres in scenic Western Massachusetts and boasts state-of-the-art facilities for teaching, research, scholarship, and creative activity. The institution advances a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community where everyone feels connected and valued—and thrives, and offers a full range of undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees across 10 schools and colleges, and 100 undergraduate majors. We believe every member of our university community can contribute to our ongoing success by striving for the highest level of excellence as we seek breakthrough solutions to mounting environmental, social, economic, and technological challenges in our world.
Job Summary
The Senior Institutional Effectiveness (IE) Consultant plays a key role in advancing the University's strategic priorities by partnering with academic and administrative units to foster a culture of continuous improvement, evidence-based planning, and institutional learning. Reporting to the Deputy Chancellor for Institutional Effectiveness, this position supports the development, alignment, and implementation of strategic initiatives across campus. The Senior IE Consultant identifies opportunities for institutional enhancement, facilitates strategy development, supports the design of performance metrics, and promotes process improvement in support of institutional goals. The position contributes to building institutional capacity for data-informed planning, adaptive change, and strategic alignment across departments and programs.
Essential Functions
- Provides strategic consultation to assigned academic and administrative units on planning, improvement, and alignment with University priorities.
- Facilitates strategic planning efforts at the departmental and institutional levels, helping units define goals, assess capacity, and design initiatives for measurable impact.
- Guides units in developing and applying performance metrics and continuous improvement processes to monitor progress toward strategic objectives.
- Identifies opportunities to streamline and enhance institutional practices and workflows; makes recommendations grounded in data and continuous improvement methodologies.
- Uses data and analytics to assess institutional performance, support planning, and inform decision-making; translates findings into actionable insights for a variety of stakeholders.
- Leads or facilitates workshops, retreats, or training sessions to build capacity for strategic thinking and adaptive planning across campus.
- Develops and refines tools, templates, and guidance for planning, assessment, and continuous improvement efforts.
- Collaborates with OIE and campus leaders to align local efforts with broader institutional goals and priorities.
- Maintains currency with new technologies, processes and techniques for project management and be prepared to guide their introduction into the teams.
- Understands responsibilities with respect to conflicts of interest and behaves in ways consistent both with law and with university policy.
- Contributes toward creating a positive and respectful workplace defined by personal and professional competence, integrity, and collaboration.
Other Functions
- Performs other duties as assigned.
Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)
- Bachelor’s degree with at least six (6) years of experience in higher education administration, continuous improvement, program evaluation, strategic planning, or a related field.
- Proven ability to support planning and improvement initiatives in complex organizations.
- Strong leadership and interpersonal skills, with the ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams.
- A capacity for a high degree of independent action and initiative, including the ability to establish priorities and manage multiple complex efforts in a fast-paced environment.
- Experience working with university administrators and staff at various levels.
- Experience with interdisciplinary strategic initiatives.
- Excellent ability to analyze, summarize, and clearly present data and information in ways usable by stakeholders.
- Strong planning and facilitation skills, including the ability to engage stakeholders in meaningful discussion around strategy and improvement.
- Excellent communication and presentation skills, both written and verbal.
- High level of proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
- Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
- Willingness to take on new challenges and tasks as needed.
Preferred Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)
- Master's degree in business administration, higher education administration, or organizational development.
- Certification in Lean, Six Sigma (Green Belt, Black Belt), Prosci Certified Change Practitioner, PMP, Agile, or a related continuous improvement methodology.
- Proficiency with planning and collaboration tools (e.g., Monday.com, Trello, Asana).
- Experience working with strategic plan design, facilitation, and implementation.
- Knowledge of and experience with change management or continuous improvement.
- Experience with academic program evaluation.
- Strong understanding of continuous improvement methodologies.
- Experience optimizing academic initiatives in a higher-education environment (e.g., program reviews, center reviews, curriculum/instructional transformation, student support services).
- Experience in educational and/or survey research or data science.
Physical Demands/Working Conditions
- Typical office environment.
Additional Details
- Position reports to the Deputy Chancellor for Institutional Effectiveness.
- Success metrics include:
- Evidence of enhanced strategic alignment across units or initiatives.
- Demonstrated improvements in institutional processes, systems, or practices based on recommendations.
- Increased use of performance metrics and planning tools by campus partners.
- Stakeholder feedback indicating greater clarity, focus, and capacity for improvement within departments.
- Adoption and integration of continuous improvement practices across units.
- Contributions to institutional-level planning or strategy development initiatives.
Work Schedule
- Monday - Friday, 8:30 am - 5:00 pm with some work on weekends and evenings.
-
This position has the opportunity for a hybrid work schedule, which is defined by the University as an arrangement where an employee’s work is regularly performed at a location other than the campus workspace for a portion of the week. As this position is non-unit, it is subject to the terms and conditions of the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees Non-Unit (Professional) Employee Personnel Policy.
Salary Information
Salary Level 31
Exempt Hiring Ranges
Special Instructions to Applicants
Along with the application, please submit a resume. References will be checked at the finalist stage. Please be prepared to provide contact information for three (3) professional references. Applications will be reviewed on a continuous basis until the position is filled. Early submissions are encouraged.
The University of Massachusetts Amherst welcomes all qualified applicants and complies with all state and federal anti-discrimination laws.