Director, Business Systems

Position Summary and Responsibilities

Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Sponsored Projects Administration (“SPA”), the Director for Business Systems shall oversee the data systems, reporting, training, outreach and communication functions of the unit. The candidate will work closely with the other Directors of Sponsored Projects Administration to streamline and document internal business processes, with an emphasis on developing and maintaining grants management systems and other technologies to facilitate operations and capture data for operational effectiveness and reporting purposes. The position will have cross-campus responsibility, to use the same processes at the Medical Center, Public Health, and Morningside offices of Sponsored Projects Administration.  

The Director of Business Systems sets standards for requirements, prioritization, testing, release management, and documentation; manages a team of analysts and report developers; and serves as SPA’s primary liaison on data system matters to enterprise CUIT, Finance, Procurement, and various school/departmental stakeholders, among others. The Director drives data quality and user experience, advancing compliant, efficient processes that support sponsored research activity at scale. 

The Business Systems (eBiz) division serves the research community by operating SPA’s data management and quality‑control program; delivering role‑based training and subject‑matter expertise on the electronic systems used for sponsored projects; providing institutional reports on proposals, awards, and expenditures; and leading special projects to enhance and streamline system use University‑wide. The Director stewards this portfolio—aligning roadmaps, services, end-user engagement, and staffing to deliver reliable systems, high‑quality data, clear reporting, continuous improvement, and helping set the direction of the unit. The Director has managerial oversight of the Business Systems team.

The Director will represent the department in all University-wide technology initiatives. They lead testing, release, and change management end‑to‑end—establishing UAT/regression strategies with sign‑off criteria, coordinating cutover with IT/vendors, and driving communications, training, and adoption. They will be responsible for defining quality assurance processes to ensure data integrity, testing procedures for the semi-annual releases and patches of the grants management system, and improving processes for tracking customer requests and monitoring department performance metrics. This position will orchestrate the rollout strategy for grant system reports and/or post-award access for the departments.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in education and experience, plus
  ten years of related experience; Master's degree preferred

Preferred Qualifications

• An advanced degree in computer science or other related discipline is highly preferable. In addition, high-level analytical abilities and detailed knowledge of both accounting and grants management business practices and software systems are required.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.