Program Manager, Penn Institute for Urban Research (2 year Limited Term)

University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Program Manager, Penn Institute for Urban Research (2 year Limited Term)

Job Profile Title

Manager B, Academic Affairs

Job Description Summary

The Program Manager will oversee and execute programs of critical importance to Penn IUR. These include grant and gift funded international and domestic projects requiring research, program design, and the production of high-level expert convenings and publications for diverse audiences. The Program Manager will work directly with Penn IUR’s faculty co-directors to produce research and deliver programs that advance the Institute’s strategic direction. The Program Manager will oversee two project streams that are critical to Penn IUR’s core knowledge themes – one at the core of Penn IUR’s international work and one pivotal to its domestic research.

On the international front, the Program Manager will be responsible for supporting the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) Global Commission on Urban SDG Finance, co-chaired by the mayors of Paris (Anne Hidalgo) and Rio de Janeiro (Eduardo Paes), and economist Jeffrey Sachs. Penn IUR serves as secretariat, providing direction for the Commission, facilitating its 100 members and six task forces, and producing the Commission’s findings. The Program Manager will be instrumental in maintaining relationships with grantors and securing new grant funding.

The second project stream focuses on Penn IUR’s long-standing research on the evolving role of anchor institutions in urban places throughout the U.S. Penn IUR has secured gift and grant funding for a multi-year program that includes case study research, stakeholder engagement, peer-to-peer exchange, publications of findings and policy recommendations, largely centered around the "Penn as an Anchor Institution" initiative. Penn IUR is a long-standing leader in this area of research; the Program Manager will be critical to ensuring that Penn IUR continues to advance this issue of growing importance.

In each of these areas, the Program Manager will be responsible for ensuring Penn IUR meets its deliverables by engaging in such activities as, but not limited to, acting as project lead contact; conducting quantitative and qualitative research; writing reports for expert audiences as well as general public; convening partners in high-level meetings, global forums, and expert exchanges; managing part-time professional and student workers; tracking project budgets; and collaborating with Penn IUR’s communications team to disseminate key findings and achievements.

** Please note that this is term position with a target end date of 4/28/28. 

Job Description

Job Responsibilities

• Establish and oversee processes by which to manage the Global Commission on Urban SDG Finance and the anchor institution program by creating project plans and budgets
• Conduct research as ne