Senior Director, Technology Applications

Senior Director, Technology Applications Westcliff University is seeking a Senior Director of Technology, Applications to lead the strategy, implementation, and optimization of enterprise applications to support the university’s rapid growth and enhance the student experience. This role will accelerate the university’s technology roadmap, with a focus on establishing an integrated scalable application platform. The position provides hands‑on leadership across enterprise systems such as the Student Information System (SIS), Instructional Technology (LMS), Slate CRM, and related project management. The goal is to establish a premier IT organization that implements leading technology and provides innovative technology solutions to the organization. The Senior Director reports to the CFO and partners with academic and administrative leadership, and outside vendors to deliver proactive, high-impact technology solutions aligned with institutional priorities. Applications Strategy and Delivery Own and execute the enterprise applications roadmap, aligned to institutional growth and student experience goalsLead implementation and enhancement of key platforms (e.g., academic/operational systems including SIS, LMS, Academic operations and CRM)Drive delivery of SaaS and custom-built applications to support scaling needsLeverage AI to accelerate business processes automation and build a robust knowledge baseEstablish governance for application architecture, integrations, and lifecycle managementEnhance the University’s posture and awareness of Application Information SecurityAble to transform the development organization to new AI development paradigmEvaluate and recommend new technology solutions aligned with university needs Leadership and Team Development Provide strong, hands‑on leadership across applications, instructional technology, and systems solutions teamsBuild and scale the applications organization, including hiring critical roles and optimizing team structureUpskill existing leadership by providing mentorship and guidance Technology Acceleration and Execution Increase speed and quality of application implementations, addressing current resource and execution gapsIntroduce agile, product-oriented delivery models where appropriateEnsure applications are positioned to support rapid institutional growth and scalability Vendor and Partner Management Develop and manage strategic relationships with key application vendors and consulting partnersLeverage external partners (e.g., Moodle consultants, offshore resources) to accelerate delivery Stakeholder Engagement Act as a visible and proactive technology leader across the universityPartner with academic and administrative leadership to understand needs and translate them into solutionsImprove IT’s reputation as a strategic, solution-oriented partner rather than a reactive function Data and Business Intelligence Develop a formal data and analytics roadmap to improve data availability, reporting/analytics capabilities, including our evolution from reporting to predictive analyticsActively incorporate AI into our roadmap, pushing the organization to have focused and insightful analytics as opposed to dashboards and reporting All other duties as assigned Job Requirements 10+ years of progressive IT leadership experience, with significant focus on enterprise applicationsProven track record leading large-scale application implementations and integrationsExperience building and scaling high-performing technology teamsStrong experience with vendor management and SaaS platformsDemonstrated ability to operate in fast-growth, transformation-oriented environmentsHands‑on leadership style with the ability to drive execution, not just strategyExperience in higher education or similarly complex environmentsFamiliarity with Learning Management Systems (LMS) such as Moodle Preferred Experience balancing in-house development and commercial platformsExposure to offshore or hybrid delivery models #J-18808-Ljbffr