IBAT College Dublin is Ireland's leading enterprise-focused third level institution. It provides a perfect blend of high quality undergraduate, postgraduate and professional education with a state-of-the-art learning environment in a range of subject areas including business, accounting, ICT and management. The college was established in 2004 in Swords, Co. Dublin, but has since opened a new campus (in 2011) in the heart of the city centre, Wellington Quay in Temple Bar. This modern, purpose built campus houses five floors of teaching and learning facilities including classrooms, an auditorium, IT labs, a library, an MBA debating chamber as well as student recreation and study areas with high speed Wi-Fi throughout.

At IBAT College Dublin, we pride ourselves on how we guide, support and mentor our students throughout their college experience and into their working lives. Employers need graduates that can hit the ground running and our students enjoy some of the most applied course content and teaching techniques in the country. A key objective of IBAT College Dublin is to ensure students have a positive, useful and engaging experience during their period of study. One of our biggest strengths is our people. The Academic Team at IBAT College Dublin is made up of faculty with significant lecturing experience and many years industry experience. We understand the challenges that exist within industry, our priority is to ensure that our graduates are fully prepared to differentiate themselves in the workplace when they graduate.

The individual would be:

• Responsible for developing and delivering the vision and strategy of the School such that it is aligned to the College’s strategic priorities, objectives and values.
• Provision of strong, creative, academic leadership; striving always to deliver excellence in education, enterprise and innovation.
• Responsible and accountable for the quality and output of the School as measured by key performance indicators (KPIs) that are aligned to the College’s strategic priorities.

Key Responsibilities

Institutional Level strategy

• Work with the senior management team to lead and contribute to cross-institutional initiatives (e.g. research and development of new programmes) to maximise the cross-disciplinary strengths of the School. Ensure the College’s strategy is in alignment and positioned to enhance the institution’s local, regional, national and international profile.
• Actively engage with committees and working groups to share and harmonise best practice to ensure consistency, efficiency and effectiveness of responsibilities and processes.
• Ensure senior management are aware of national trends in education, are engaged in all decisions which affect the development of the long-term educational character, mission, ethos, values and strategic aims, and have oversight of the associated strategic plans for the College.
• Ensure that IBAT fulfils all statutory and regulatory obligations as per the requirements of partners, Government, funding agencies and awarding bodies.
• Translate the agreed strategy into operational objectives and an annual operational plan.
• Oversee the collation, dissemination, monitoring, review and evaluation of the academic plan within the timescales required.

School Level strategy

• Work effectively in the leadership, management and development of School operational activities.
• Research, assess and make recommendations with regard to the School and wider institution in terms of competitor analysis, current offerings and future scope of delivery.
• Possess and encourage a forward thinking, flexible and responsive approach across the College towards changes in the external environment and thus ensure rapid responses to opportunities.
• Work in conjunction with colleagues across committees and working groups to share and harmonize best practice to ensure consistency, efficiency and effectiveness of responsibilities and processes.
• Implement sustainable financial business plans for the School including the management of staff and non-staff costs to meet College objectives and KPIs ensuring compliance with institutional strategy and in accordance with the agreed timetable.
• Provide a creative vision for the School and engage with relevant stakeholders to position it as a significant influential national and international leader.
• To lead and manage the School’s management team.
• To plan and develop organisational change for the advancement of the School and College.
• Maintain, negotiate, develop, and encourage effective and mutually supportive sustainable links with relevant, influential external bodies.

School level Operations

• Act as a representative of the School through the provision of strong academic leadership and operational management for the School striving for – and being accountable for – the KPIs that demonstrate excellence in education enterprise, innovation, student recruitment (domestic and international), retention and progression, within the planned resources.

• Providing the College’s academic lead with a tone of confidence and passion. Reinforcing College values and culture, addressing areas that require change. Maintaining an open dialogue and communication. Maintaining effective internal communication, fostering teamwork, and being a constant source of positive energy to the college.

• Quality Assurance responsibilities: In conjunction with the Registrar, to be accountable for efficient and effective processes and structures for the conduct of academic standards in education.

• In particular in the delivery of an excellent student-centred learning and ensuring appropriate access to robust student support mechanisms.

• Consulting actively and engaging with learners in a positive way, ensuring that there are mechanisms in place for effective two-way communication with all learners so that the College is recognised as placing the learner at the heart of its endeavours.

• New Income Identification: Work with the relevant team members to ensure the identification of new education, research and enterprise opportunities and the diversification of income streams.

• Enterprise: To champion innovation in enterprise activities and contribute to the School’s national and international policy.

Line Management, Performance and Development Responsibilities:

Managing People: Manage and support your people’s work productivity, performance, wellbeing and development to maximise their contribution and enable personal growth

• Workload and performance: Ensure accountability for an effective line management structure; ensure that all staff in the School are allocated duties/workload equitably and are clear about their responsibilities and that they are adequately managed, mentored and/or monitored.
• Staff Appointment: Take a personal role for ensuring programmes are adequately staffed, in a timely manner, for current delivery and have in place an approved pool of resource for lecturing should the need arise. Ensure any request for a new full-time appointment has full justification and is aligned with College strategy.
• Staff development: Ensure the provision of an environment conducive to the development of staff and students.
• Ensure line managers are skilled to provide mentoring and development to include preparation for promotion to ensure potential is fulfilled.
• Responsibility for the implementation of a performance framework that utilises metrics and objectives for education and research and is in line with College requirements and goals. Be accountable for ensuring the monitoring and management of all staff performance through individual staff appraisal e.g. moderation of assessments.
• Staff engagement: To plan and implement a strategy for regular staff engagement to ensure that staff contribute to and engage with the School and College strategy including organisational change.
• Student Experience: Ensuring that you personally lead the way in delivering an exceptional Student experience from Induction to Alumni.
• Managing Financial Decisions: Make well-informed and timely financial decisions regarding devolved budgets (if applicable), taking into consideration the impact of these decisions on the financial sustainability of a programme, the School or the wider institution.
• Managing Compliance: Responsibility for ensuring you and your teams understand and apply the relevant policies and guidelines to maintain operational compliance.
• Managing Risk: Responsibility for managing risks effectively and ensuring plans are put in place to mitigate risk or maximise potential, where appropriate.
• Embedding Collegiality: work with colleagues in a collegiate way.

Qualifications

• Masters degree with extensive professional success and achievement in a Higher Education Environment.
• Familiarity with major partners in a Higher Education Institution.
• Significant skills and experience in education/research/enterprise programme delivery.
• Good working knowledge QQI policies.
• Proven track record in the validation/revalidation of programmes (e.g. curriculum design and redesign in line with internal and external inputs).

Knowledge and experience

Planning and organising

• Excellent organisational skills.
• Ability to achieve maximum added value in coordinated strategic partnerships and academic education and/or research and/or enterprise as appropriate.
• Proven ability to lead change in a complex organisation.
• Ability to be contingent regarding changing faculty requirements.
• Ability to clearly communicate resource needs based on institutional operations.

Problem solving and initiative

• Exceptional ability to solve problems and critically analyse situations on both an individual and team basis.
• Ability to gather input from relevant stakeholders in order to achieve buy-in for proposed solutions.
• Proven ability to demonstrate independent and distinctive thinking.

Management and teamwork

• Substantial experience of identifying and achieving internal and external performance and service improvements (KPIs).
• Strong leadership abilities, including the ability to motivate, influence and persuade others - internally and externally.
• Ability to work cooperatively, influentially and effectively with the other members of the College, to deliver priorities.
• Ability to manage and lead individuals from diverse professional backgrounds
• Ability to shape a positive culture of management, leadership and engagement at all levels of the School through exceptional leadership and by personal example.

Communicating and influencing

• Positive communication and interpersonal skills, able to persuade and negotiate to help in developing and maintaining strong relationships with staff and key partners.
• Ability to positively influence colleagues, staff and peers and inculcate a team ethos geared toward delivery of the College’s priorities.

Other Skills and Behaviours

• Excellent communication skills.
• Commitment to maintain compliance with relevant Health & Safety policies and to sustain a working environment sensitive to the well being of employees.
• Ability to successfully lead and manage change through an organisation (especially growth).
• Ability to demonstrate alignment with the core values e.g. regarding equality and diversity, in all areas of work; champion those behaviours in the School.
• Apply and actively promote equality, diversity and inclusion principles to the responsibilities of the role.
• Entrepreneurial ability in order to identify and develop new opportunities to enhance the College’s reputation, brand, status.
• Team member and team leader when appropriate.

We will screen all applicants and select candidates whose qualifications meet our requirements. We will carefully consider your application during the initial screening and will contact you if you are selected to continue for the next stage of the recruitment process. We wish you every success.

GUS is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, or religion or belief.