Assistant TO CHAIR, Mechanical Engineering-Operations

Position: ASSISTANT TO THE CHAIR, Mechanical Engineering-Operations
Job Description

The Department of Mechanical Engineering has an outstanding for an Assistant to the Chair to join their team.

About this Opportunity

Reporting to the Department Chair, the Assistant to the Chair (ATC) provides high-level administrative and operational support to advance the priorities of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. This role requires sound judgment, discretion, and the ability to independently manage a wide range of responsibilities in a fast-paced environment. Serving as a key liaison, the ATC represents the Chair and the department to faculty, staff, students, external partners, and University leadership through written communications, meetings, and events.

The position also plays a central role in tracking and advancing strategic projects and initiatives on behalf of the Chair. In addition, the ATC provides administrative and operational support to the Department Administrator as needed.

Key Responsibilities

Support to the Chair 40%

* Act as liaison for the Chair with key University officials, faculty, staff, students, industrial contacts, foundations, government representatives, and the general public.

* Communicate frequently with the Chair, keeping them appraised of deadlines, policies, changes in policies, and any other relevant information coming from the Dean's Office or central university offices.

* Manage the Chair's schedule: organize activities, schedule and set meetings at the department, college, university community and national level, ensuring that the Chair's priorities and obligations are met. Prepare supportive background materials for the meetings and provide relevant background details.

* Coordinate travel arrangements for Chair; arrange for all contacts and meetings at the travel destinations; ensure that all travel objectives are accurately and completely carried out; process travel requests and reimbursements. Keep relevant stakeholders appraised of the Chair's travel and impacts to timelines and processes.

* Compose and edit correspondence, memos and reports in a concise and succinct manner for the Chair's signature, which are often times of a confidential and sensitive nature.

* Gather data relevant to the department and prepare project surveys and/or summaries and reports as requested.

* Assist the Chair with administrative functions related to advancement including direct interaction with donors and UW advancement offices.

* Communicate with donors and advancement office staff, handling inquiries regarding alumni, tracking, special reports, etc. (via Advance).

* Write thank you letters on behalf of the Chair for gift received from donors.

Academic Human Resources 40%

* Manage department academic human resources processes for tenure/tenure-track, teaching and research faculty, adjunct and affiliate faculty, visiting graduate faculty and postdoctoral fellows. This includes gathering teaching evaluations; processing faculty awards, processing and coordinating paid professional leave and retirements, while adhering to College of Engineering and University deadlines and procedures.

* Ensure annual reappointments of adjunct and affiliate faculty and maintain a schedule for reappointments, promotions and other changes in faculty status (retirements, leaves of absence, sabbaticals).

* Manage department's promotion and tenure process in Interfolio. This includes establishing timelines, managing letters from external reviewers, faculty votes, gathering the materials to prepare dossiers and coordinating with the Dean's office.

* Manage the department's merit review and peer review processes, including: establishing timelines, coordinating meetings, and ensuring timely completion. Provide faculty with the appropriate format to update their CV for the meeting; collect updated CVs from all faculty prior to merit review meetings. Coordinate collection of data for faculty database management system.

* Provide administrative support with position requisition and advertisement placement, administrative support to the search committee, search closing and preparation of hiring packets.

* Coordinate the interview process for faculty searches. This includes independent…