Program Manager, University Relations

20600 Emerald Parkway, Cleveland, Ohio 44135 United States of America

Since 1916, Oatey has provided reliable, high-quality products for the residential and commercial plumbing industries, with a commitment to delivering quality, building trust and improving lives. Today, Oatey operates a comprehensive manufacturing and distribution network comprised of industry leading family of companies:
Oatey, Cherne, Keeney, Quick Drain, Hercules, Dearborn, Oatey Canada, William H. Harvey, Masters, Contact, Belanger, Lansas, and Durgo.

At Oatey, we're doing big things — and by joining us, you'll have the chance to do big things too. You can build a strong career in an innovative, inclusive, high-performance environment, with the confidence that your company cares — about you, our customers and our world. Ready to make an impact in a place where you matter?

The University Relations Program Manager leads the strategy, design, and execution of Oatey’s early talent programs and associated initiatives. This role serves as a key strategic partner in attracting, engaging, and retaining a diverse, high-quality pipeline of early career talent.

This position combines expertise in university relations, full-cycle recruiting, program management, and employer branding. The role owns The Oatey Intern Experience end to end, including recruitment, onboarding, engagement, development, and conversion to full-time roles.

This role also carries accountability for external benchmarking and continuous improvement, ensuring Oatey’s early talent and university relations programs remain competitive, differentiated, and market-leading relative to peer and aspirational organizations.

• Lead full-cycle recruitment for early career, intern, and entry-level programs, including sourcing, screening, interviewing, selection, and onboarding.
• Partner with HR and business leaders across sites to forecast hiring needs and align early talent strategies with business objectives.
• Build a consistent, data-driven approach to early talent acquisition through dashboards, metrics, and return on investment (ROI) analysis for university recruiting and internship programs.
• Facilitate hiring manager training and ensure a best-in-class candidate experience across all stages of the hiring process.
• Partner with the Director of Talent Acquisition & Workforce Development to build and sustain conversion pipelines for high-performing interns, including maintaining and leveraging the Oatey Intern Alumni network and associated communications.

• Serve as Oatey’s primary liaison to universities, colleges, trade schools, and professional associations.
• Develop and maintain strategic relationships with career services, student organizations (e.g., NSBE, NBMBAA, SHPE), and academic programs to strengthen Oatey’s campus presence.
• Plan and oversee campus recruiting activities, including career fairs, classroom presentations, student networking events, and industry partnerships.
• Represent Oatey in external workforce development initiatives and local business partnerships to expand reach and impact.
• Engage associates as Campus Ambassadors to extend Oatey’s campus footprint and increase employee participation in recruiting events.

• Design, facilitate, and continuously enhance the annual Oatey Intern Experience from orientation and training through project scoping, execution, report-outs, and conversion to full-time employment.
• Conduct ongoing external benchmarking of early talent, internship, and university relations programs against industry peers, competitors, and best-in-class…