Assistant Director, MBA Student & Academic Services

Position Description

Are you a higher ed professional looking to utilize your expertise and expand your skill base in program delivery in a high-energy, innovative environment? Are you excited about being part of a collaborative team deeply committed to providing students with the highest-level MBA experience? Are you looking to be highly engaged in the day-to-day processes that facilitate a vibrant, faculty-driven curriculum?If so, consider the Assistant Director role, where you will be a member of the broader Harvard Business School (HBS) MBA Student & Academic Services (SAS) department with a specific focus on program delivery for the first-year Required Curriculum (RC) and second-year Elective Curriculum (EC).


As part of the MBA Student & Academic Services (SAS) team, the Assistant Director is responsible for course delivery of key MBA academic programs through direct management of three direct reports and project-based management of additional MBA staff. Reporting to the Associate Director, MBA Program Delivery, the Assistant Director is responsible for managing all aspects of delivery and implementation of ongoing innovations.


The Assistant Director will work collaboratively with the rest of the Program Delivery team, which includes ten full-time staff members, actively contributing to the success of all programs, fostering a high level of collaboration and a spirit of excellent service and partnership with all constituents.



Program Delivery for Campus-Based RC and EC Courses and Programs


Alongside other SAS Program Delivery Assistant Directors, manages operations and class delivery of the portfolio of programs for the Required (RC) and Elective Curriculum (EC) in the MBA Program

• Oversee Teaching Group Meeting scheduling, planning, and materials preparation; with Associate Director, attend Teaching Group Meetings, identify class session needs, coordinate logistics, and align resources to ensure that faculty members and students are administratively supported in their teaching and learning
• Responsible for classroom and meeting reservations and setups, including materials, media, and catering, chair logistics meetings for delivery of classes and programs, delegate tasks to direct report and support staff, manage vendors to ensure effective delivery of services, liaise with MBA Program partners and Finance, Operations, Media Services, and Catering departments, maintain documentation related to class delivery, including session logistics and notes, and work with the program team to ensure that materials are organized, updated, and available
• Oversee student communications to ensure assignments and action items are clear, timely, and accurate
• Support delivery of all programs and courses in the Required and Elective Curriculum portfolios as needed.
• Working with the MBA Joint Degree team, oversee logistics for the delivery of MS/MBA January intensive courses.

Supervises Manager, Program Coordinator, and Staff Assistant

• Manage workflows and ensure roles are fully supported
• Hold regular 1:1 meetings, provide feedback and coaching
• Ensure proper short-term and casual staff resources are in place for program management and course delivery support

Other duties for MBA Student & Academic Services as required

• Participate in departmental goal-setting processes and implementation of priorities
• Contribute to MBA, SAS, and Program Delivery initiatives and committees
• Be responsible for additional duties as assigned

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent work experience required
• Minimum of 5 years' relevant work experience

Additional Qualifications and Skills

Additional Required Qualifications:

• In addition to the 5 years of experience required above, we require an additional 2 years of administrative experience.
• Bachelor's degree is required.

Additional/Desired Qualifications:


We're looking for a highly energetic team player with experience managing complex logistics, shifting priorities, and tight deadlines. This person will have a demonstrated history of high-quality program delivery. The right candidate will have:

• excellent interpersonal skills that enable him or her to influence and maintain partnerships with various stakeholders
• good judgment, diplomacy, and the ability to work effectively with minimal oversight
• a strong command of Microsoft Office programs, with outstanding proficiency in Excel
• a knack for quickly learning new technology
• previous supervisory experience

Applicants should be well-versed in event planning and/or program management, adept at managing and troubleshooting multiple projects under changing circumstances, and able to work cross-functionally in directed and undirected environments.


Experience working with Learning Management Systems (especially Canvas) would be helpful, as would proficiency with SharePoint, Qualtrics, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Additional Information

This is a hybrid position which we consider to be a combination of remote and onsite work at our Boston, MA based campus. HBS expects all staff to be onsite 3 days per week and departments provide onsite coverage Monday - Friday. Specific hours and days onsite will be determined by business needs and are subject to change with appropriate advanced notice.


We may conduct candidate interviews virtually (phone and/or via Zoom) and/or in-person for this role


A cover letter is required to be considered for this opportunity.


Harvard Business School will not offer visa sponsorship for this opportunity.


Culture of Inclusion: The work and well-being of HBS is profoundly strengthened by the diversity of our network and our differences in background, culture, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, and life experiences. Explore more about HBS work culture here

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