Assistant Director of Business Operations

Department Summary

The Central Business Service Offices (CBSO), a shared service office, provides service within the Office of the Provost portfolio. The CBSO offers holistic support in the areas of Finance, Human Resources, Payroll, Purchasing, Contracting, Travel, and Accounts Payable.

The mission of the shared services group is to provide consistency through centralized services, offering our expertise in processing a wide variety of financial and human resources transactions and functions including acting as a liaison to the Business Affairs Office, Purchasing and Contracting Services, University Human Resources, and Payroll Administration. We are committed to providing superior customer service, collaboration, and implementing fair, consistent and equitable practices for all our partners to ensure their needs are fulfilled to the highest standard.

The CBSO unit provides shared services for several organizations within the Office of the Provost portfolio including:

• Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health
• Clark Honors College
• College of Design
• College of Education
• Lundquist College of Business
• School of Journalism & Communication
• School of Music & Dance

The units supported by CBSO constitute a large business enterprise consisting of more than 3,500 employees and more than $140 million in budgeted operations funds. There are additional operations funds such as foundation funds, research funding, designated operations, and other non-general funds, an estimated $15M before foundation funds. The CBSO works with multiple employee category types funded from various sources such as sponsored, gift, foundation and research, outreach, and designated operations funds.

The CBSO handles these fund transitions in addition to budgeted operations funds.

The Assistant Director of Business Operations (ADBO) within the Central Business Services Office (CBSO) has three primary functions: (1) managing purchasing and contracting activities; (2) providing oversight and backup support for accounting operations; and (3) serving as a leadership partner to the Associate Director in guiding CBSO strategic and operational priorities. This role oversees the day-to-day purchasing and contracting operations that support all CBSO partner units.

It provides guidance and recommendations on procurement strategies and contract decisions for both CBSO and its unit partners. The ADBO will exercise delegated contracting authority up to $25,000 per purchase. The position exercises decision-making authority over the transactional execution of purchasing and contracting functions in alignment with Federal, State, and University policies and standards. It provides guidance and recommendations on procurement strategies and contract decisions for both CBSO and its unit partners.

The Assistant Director of Business Operations directly supervises classified staff within the CBSO Purchasing and Contracting team. Responsibilities include understanding and applying relevant policies; managing workload distribution; resolving employee concerns; and leading performance management including training, employee development, and corrective action processes as needed. In addition to purchasing and contracting responsibilities, this position provides oversight and serves as a critical backup for accounting functions, ensuring continuity of operations, adherence to policy, and appropriate internal controls during staff absences, workload spikes, or periods of transition.

The ADBO will have frequent engagement with a wide range of stakeholders, including faculty, staff, individual contributors, executive leadership, and external suppliers. As a leadership partner to the Associate Director, this ADBO helps align operational strategies, support unit initiatives, and ensure that CBSO services continue to meet the evolving needs of its partner units. This position is eligible for hybrid work with required on campus presence.

The role reports to CBSO’s Associate Director, Financial Operations.

• Bachelor’s degree PLUS
• Three (3) years of progressively responsible finance and accounting experience, AND
• Three (3) years of supervisory or lead experience.
• OR
• Five (5) years of progressively responsible finance and accounting experience (in lieu of a bachelor’s degree), AND
• Three (3) years of supervisory or lead experience.