Entity: Aga Khan University
Location: Karachi, Pakistan
Department: Office of the Provost
Introduction:
Aga Khan University, chartered in 1983 as Pakistan's first private international university, is committed to the provision of education, research, and health care of international standard relevant to Pakistan and the region. The affiliated Aga Khan University Hospital has well-equipped investigative services and provides state-of-the-art clinical facilities. AKUH is the first hospital in Pakistan to be awarded the prestigious Joint Commission International Accreditation (JCIA) for practicing the highest internationally recognized healthcare standards.
As an equal opportunity employer, AKU believes in promoting a diverse and inclusive culture and is committed to adopt appropriate standards for safeguarding and promoting a respectful relationship with and between diverse workforce of its faculty, staff, trainees, volunteers, beneficiaries, wider communities, and other stakeholders with whom it works, including children and vulnerable adults and expects all employees/trainees and partners to share this commitment.
Responsibilities:
Reporting to the Provost and Vice President Academics, you will demonstrate strong strategic management, research administration, and analytical skills and abilities to lead and manage a wide spectrum of activities related to global academic planning and the development of new academic programmes within the University. You will pursue excellence in all activities and be passionate about academia and the governance of academic institutions.
You will be responsible for:
- managing Annual Global Academic Planning/Budget process with all academic entities
- analyzing the development of new academic programs to ensure completeness and compliance with AKU, national and regional requirements
- administer the development of hiring and infrastructure plans for academic entities for sustainable academic programs across the University
- supporting and overseeing the development of annual budget and activity plans for the academic entities and for the Provost's office, supporting the delivery of the AKU Strategic Plan and its academic implementation plans ensuring efficient management of financial and human resources
- overseeing the development of the Academic Council and regional senate meeting agendas, track key issues and concept notes, follow-up and/or resolution of issues arising
- supervising the development of the Provost’s Report to the Board of Trustees for efficient operating procedures
- overseeing the development of meeting agendas for regional councils and the Board of Trustees, track key issues and concept notes, follow-up and/or resolution of issues arising, in conjunction with the Board Secretariat
- managing high-level searches for the University including searches for Deans, Directors and other high level -staff reporting to the Provost maximizing employee strength to meet strategic goals and objectives
- advising the Provost on policy and government relations issues, stakeholder relations, and strategic issues relevant to AKU geographies
- managing Provost’s papers and correspondence including preparation of briefings, speeches and talks
- assisting in drafting policies and procedures
- overseeing management of Provost’s schedule, including all supporting matters
- serving as Advisor to Provost on key issues including policy, strategies, stakeholder management etc. to ensure improved time management and strategic support for the Provost
- reviewing current processes, policies, systems to improve output of deliverables
- building relationships with key stakeholders internal and external to AKU for improved integration of academic programs and activities, development of community consensus, products, and/or services that are important to AKU.
Requirements:
You must have:
- Master’s degree from a reputable institution, PhD or a law degree is an asset, ideally with a focus on one of AKU’s regions
- at least 5 years research and teaching experience in higher education
- at least 5 years of administrative experience in higher education and/or non-profit sector; experience in Low and Middle Income Countries is essential
- experience in at least one of the countries served by AKU (Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania) is an asset
- demonstrated excellence in academia and the administration of academic institutions
- ability to work effectively with all constituencies and stakeholders of a health-focused university with expanding programmes in the humanities, social sciences, and environmental sciences
- excellent skills in project management and associated budgeting, academic budgeting and a working knowledge of academic financials
- excellent management and organizational skills
- outstanding interpersonal skills and ability to work with people across regions and cultural diversities
- multi-lingual, with the highest level of fluency in English. Excellent command of one other language spoken in an AKU country (e.g., Urdu or Swahili) is an asset
- experience with writing grant proposals, white papers, Board of Trustee and other briefing documents, media communications, and other complex documents
- experience in drafting policies and associated procedures and other governance documents is an asset
- ability to synthesize complex information and present ideas in a succinct manner
- experience in speech writing and development of visual presentations
- strong time management skills and able to work well under tight deadlines, heavy workloads and with a high degree of individual responsibility
- excellent working knowledge of MS Teams and other Microsoft programs
- integrity, especially in handling confidential material
- strong grasp of trends, complex regulatory environment in AKU’s regions and international trends in higher education
- demonstrated sound judgment in dealing with challenging, sensitive, and complex situations; and
- willingness to travel to all AKU sites and AKDN locations, depending on security alerts.
Comprehensive employment reference checks will be conducted.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for interview.
