Director of Employer Development, Center for Career Development & Academic Exploration
: Job Details :

Position Title: Director of Employer Development, Center for Career Development & Academic Exploration Reports to: Associate Vice Provost & Executive Director Classification: Exempt, full-time staff position The University of Tennessee, Knoxville invites applications for the position Director of Employer Development in the Center for Career Development and Academic Exploration (CCDAE). The University: The University of Tennessee is the state's flagship research institution, a campus of choice for outstanding undergraduates, and a premier graduate institution. Enrolling over 38,000 students, the campus is located in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains and beautiful East Tennessee. As a land-grant university, it is committed to excellence in learning, scholarship, and engagement. In all its activities, the university aims to advance the frontiers of human knowledge and enrich and elevate society. The university values intellectual curiosity, pursuit of knowledge, and academic freedom and integrity. The Division: The Division of Student Success at UT works to engage each student scholar's experience by supporting their unique strengths and goals. It collaborates with UT faculty and staff to help each student scholar maximize their individual strengths and understand how their strengths contribute to their academic dreams, career paths, and personal well-being. As a member of Student Success, the center's mission is empowering student scholars to create and achieve career goals by providing comprehensive career education. Position Summary: Reporting to the Associate Vice Provost and Executive Director, the Director of Employer Development creates and manages the overall employer relations strategy for the center. This includes strengthening relationships with current organizations that recruit UT talent while also attracting new employers to the university. The Director provides leadership in coordinating employer development efforts across the university. Additionally, this position provides supervision and leadership to the Assistant Directors who engage employers, oversee career systems, and foster the development of internships. Position Responsibilities: STRATEGIC VISION Provide strategic leadership of and engagement with the employer recruiting program at the University which engages over 1,000 national employers, hosts 10-15 job fairs, and hosts numerous industry networking events (e.g. Employer of the Day); Identify new employers to engage for key market and industry areas and identify strategic teams for site visits; Travel for site visits and relationship building with key employers; Partner with university administration and academic leadership to engage with identified employers; Manage the Employer Advisory Board and Elite Partnership sponsorship program; Oversee software management system (Handshake) comprised of thousands of employer contacts, job postings and student profiles/resumes; Oversee center outreach to potential employers through marketing campaigns and materials and targeted events; Utilize techniques including cold calling, professional association membership, direct referrals, and cross-industry marketing to increase employer participation in campus recruiting; Monitor economic and corporate development trends to proactively seek opportunities with new employers; Seek ways to connect employers with students; Monitor the work of the Job Location and Development coordinator to ensure effective and proper administration of the grant; Engage with the Center for Career Development Advisory Council in partnership with CCDAE leadership. OPERATIONAL LEADERSHIP Provide administrative leadership and oversight for strategic implementation of career fairs and relationship development with key campus partners; Contribute to office fundraising through job fair revenue and corporate sponsorships; Oversee evaluation and reporting of all employer development team activities and Key Performance Indicators; Develop procedures and policies necessary to administer a comprehensive centralized employer relations and recruiting program that includes on-campus recruitment and job development programs for students and alumni; Assess employers needs periodically; Foster relationships across the 14 UTK colleges to understand ongoing and shifting market needs; Partner with Tennessee Chambers of Commerce to increase placement of students within the state; Monitor corporate involvement with UTK through contacts with Development and Alumni Relations; Serve as Center liaison with Alumni Affairs to engage alumni in hiring of UTK students; Monitor expenditures of assigned funds for travel and special programs for Employer Relations Program; Measure ROI on employer development work. Provide leadership for the development of meaningful on-campus internship opportunities and foster opportunities with employers for new external internships. The nature of this role requires travel, evening and weekend work. SUPERVISION AND TRAINING Supervise three Assistant Directors covering the areas of employer relations, internship development, and career systems; Monitor performance and recommend various personnel actions including but not limited to hiring, merit increases, promotion, professional development, and vacations schedules; Provide training to staff on topics including strategic planning, goal setting, communication with employers, and department policies; Assist AVP in facilitation of center leadership team to ensure most effective operations; Analyze long-term impact of decisions and plans, and establish and evaluate standards of performance; Affect changes in office policy in collaboration with AVP. OTHER Represent center at campus meetings and events; Approve expenditures and payroll; Assist in other departmental activities, events, and programs including career fairs, departmental marketing through orientation, visit days, etc., and community outreach. Participate and guide staff participation in Division activities; Participate in professional development activities to ensure professional growth and knowledge needed to provide effective leadership; Investigate employment trends and hiring practices; Participate in various local, state, regional, and national organizations such as, chambers of commerce, SOACE and NACE to increase employment opportunities for students and alumni. Qualifications: Qualifications: Education Required: Master's degree Experience Required: Minimum of seven years' full-time experience in higher education, recruitment, or sales/development positions where building relationships is critical. Minimum of an earned Master's Degree at time of hire. Preferred: Experience in university career center employer relations or college recruitment program; Experience developing a strategy to meet quantifiable objectives; Experience supervising staff; Experience with career-related technology and software, including career services management systems, for service delivery, record-keeping and reporting purposes. Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities Required: Ability to lead a team and supervise professional staff; Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to create and maintain working relationships and professional networks; Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written; Skill in preparing clear and concise reports, policies, procedures, correspondences and other written materials; Ability to set and achieve goals. Preferred: Knowledge of career-related technology and software, including career services management systems, for service delivery, record-keeping and reporting purposes. Salary: Minimum $90,000 and accompanied by a university benefits package. Application Process: First review begins November 11, 2024. For full consideration, applicants must apply electronically through the TALEO SYSTEM including submission of cover letter, resume, and the names, addresses, and phone numbers of three references.