Project Manager, Strategic Planning

Department

ARD Office of Campaign Management

About the Department

Alumni Relations and Development (ARD) engages alumni (~220k), current students, parents and friends of the University through intellectual, professional and social activities on campus, around the world and online. ARD raises $600 Million annually to support faculty and researchers, practitioners and patients, and students and programs across the University. Our work supports priorities in every division, school, department, and institute.

The Strategic Planning function in ARD propels operational excellence and supports enterprise-wide alignment to help us meet—and exceed—our fundraising goals. Acting as a vital bridge between vision and execution, this function brings clarity to priorities, mobilizes cross-functional partners, and keeps complex initiatives on track. With a sharp focus on delivering practical strategies and strengthening core operations, Strategic Planning ensures that ARD not only performs at a high level today, but is also positioned for long-term, sustainable success.

Job Summary

This position uses best practices and knowledge of non-technical (not information technology or construction related) projects from conception to completion. Assembles teams and develops detailed work plans, schedules, project estimates, resource plans, and status reports while being the point of contact for those projects.

This role provides strategic and operational support to senior leaders by developing briefing materials, synthesizing data, and managing key initiatives that drive organizational priorities forward. It involves translating strategic plans into actionable projects, overseeing timelines and deliverables, and ensuring alignment across departments. The position requires strong project management, analytical, and communication skills to inform decision-making and support collaboration across diverse stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Enables senior leaders to advance strategic priorities by preparing agendas, briefing documents, talking points, synthesizing inputs, and drafting summaries and recommendations.
• Translates strategic plan and leadership priorities into proposed initiatives, projects, or programs aimed at growing organizational capacity and driving results.
• Coordinates and manages timelines, workstreams, deliverables, and stakeholders for major strategic initiatives.
• Develops project charters, workplans, and status reports to maintain transparency and accountability.
• Tracks progress against goals and flags risks or interdependencies requiring escalation.
• Maintains a strong understanding of the priorities of ARD leaders and demonstrates the ability to speak to and recommend strategies to advance those priorities.
• Supports senior leaders in evaluating strategic priorities, resource implications, and success metrics.
• Ensures alignment between departmental/unit plans and institutional-level strategies.
• Conducts benchmarking, landscape scans, and stakeholder interviews to inform strategic decisions.
• Analyzes internal data to assess current state and identify opportunities for improvement or growth.
• Develops presentations and reports that communicate complex findings and recommendations in a clear and actionable way.
• Coordinates meetings, retreats, and workshops with leaders, staff, and external partners.
• Builds relationships across departments to foster alignment and collaboration.
• Contributes to change management efforts through communications, training, and engagement strategies.
• Brings a strong project management mindset, with the ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously and deliver results on time.
• Communicates effectively in written and verbal formats, with experience preparing materials for executive audiences.
• Demonstrates sound judgment, discretion, and attention to detail.
• Tracks progress, conducts analysis, and prepares for and facilitates project meetings to ensure departmental objectives are met.
• Serves as a resource for the project team, providing analytical guidance and interpreting complex project issues to support informed decision-making.
• Works somewhat independently to develop detailed work plans, schedules, project estimates, resource plans, and status reports. Assembles and leads a project team, assigns individual responsibilities, identifies appropriate resources needed, and develops schedules to ensure timely completion of projects.
• Is responsible for tracking progress, conducting analysis, as well as preparing for and facilitating project meetings.
• Performs other related duties as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or