Job location: Van Pelt Library

Employment Type: Full-time
Posted data: 2019-10-16
Req: JR00011826
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.

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

Associate Vice Provost of Technology and Digital Initiatives

Job Profile Title

Associate Director, University Library B

Job Description Summary

The initial task for the Associate Vice Provost of Technology and Digital Initiatives (AVP) is to develop a cohesive strategy and vision to unite existing digital services and infrastructure, and ideate the path forward. The AVP will provide strong leadership and direction in the development, delivery, and integration of both traditional and innovative digital services, systems, and initiatives across the libraries. They will work with colleagues across the entire University and Penn Libraries organizations as a key voice for overall digital strategy and innovation, and will establish transparent, collaborative mechanisms for prioritizing work and allocating resources effectively. The incumbent will identify and oversee the implementation of new roles and technologies that improve, enhance, and extend library and digital services based on emerging needs of the Penn community.

Job Description

The AVP will oversee a team of approximately 80 and have direct managerial responsibility and oversight for the following areas:
▪ Digital Development and Systems - the infrastructure, applications and programming that support the Penn digital library
▪ Desktop Support and Client Services
▪ Educational Technologies (including University Courseware - Canvas) - enable digital scholarship and multimodal research, open access publishing, technology-enhanced pedagogies, collection development, and interactive, experiential media production
▪ The Schoenberg Center for Electronic Text and Image - enhances the research and scholarly use of rare books, manuscripts and other primary source materials by creating archive quality digital facsimiles and making them easily accessible to the worldwide community.
▪ Cultural Heritage Technologies and Digital Assets Management
▪ Establishing the Libraries' nascent Digital Scholarship Center.

Specifically, the AVP will:
▪ Participate in University-wide IT and digital planning to align the Libraries’ infrastructure and digital strategies with the campus vision
▪ Create and articulate an evolving digital strategy to support that vision with scalable solutions that will shift with the needs of students, faculty, staff, researchers, and scholars over time
▪ Track trends in development and use of information technologies, and recommend strategic directions that will allow Penn Libraries and the University to excel in its mission, and to lead globally
▪ Provide creative leadership and change management in helping Penn Libraries expand and scale its current successes
▪ Work closely with all senior leadership and department heads to ensure that digital services and platforms are aligned with user needs, empowering them with technological solutions that make their work more efficient/effective
▪ Create best-in-class services that network solutions for creating and preserving scholarship for users across the University
▪ Increase Penn Libraries capacity for digital projects, both established and experimental
▪ Represent the library in collaborations in the University, as well as with colleagues and peer institutions around the world, with emphasis on open access to collections and creating open source, interoperable, and collaborative solutions
▪ Provide advice and consultation to units across the University
▪ Bring together the research community through enhanced data management
▪ Develop proposals to funding agencies to secure support for library technological innovations

Qualifications
▪ Experience leading and inspiring teams to effectively collaborate in the development and scaling of user-oriented technical solutions
▪ Very high strategic acumen and exceptional influencing and relationship building skills. Proven track record in developing practical strategies and implementing across a large, complex organization
▪ Experience instituting and managing change in a large, complex environment
▪ Knowledge of key trends in digital libraries including ability to successfully evaluate emerging technologies and articulate their relevance to library systems
▪ Proven commitment to principles of human-centered design

Proven ability to lead complex and cross-organizational projects and effectively communicate, persuade, and document and translate architecture and technical design to a diverse community of stakeholders and audiences
▪ Sophisticated understanding of how information is organized, accessed, and used to support the academic and research missions of the University
▪ Demonstrated expertise in existing and emergent digital content and storage management standards and technologies
▪ Experience with/exposure to complex computer systems including network architectures, systems administration, software applications, and the development and programming of scalable, reliable production systems and large-scale information systems
▪ Seasoned administrative skills, including budget management and stewardship of funds
▪ Demonstrated ability to function successfully in a matrix environment
▪ Prior experience working in a mission-oriented institution is not required but knowledge of a university environment is desirable
▪ Passion for digital and innovation in a higher education institution

As well as apply here, qualified applicants should forward an electronic version of their curriculum vitae to:
Consultants to the Search Committee
Russell Reynolds Associates
PennLibraries@russellreynolds.com

Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

University Library

Pay Range

$108,411.00 - $205,981.00

Affirmative Action Statement 
Penn adheres to a policy that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.

Special Requirements 
Background check required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.