Assistant Director, Data Governance & Reporting

Columbia University; New York, Northern (NY, KY); Hybrid; USD 95,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Columbia University is seeking an Assistant Director of Institutional Data & Reporting within the Office of Planning and Institutional Research (OPIR). The role will support data governance, compliance reporting, and the development of robust data infrastructure across university systems.

Working with leadership and stakeholders, you will design sustainable reporting workflows, extract and transform data from enrollment, HR, finance, and research systems, and present insights to executive

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in social science, information or data science, statistics, computer science, business analytics, or related field
• Four years of relevant professional experience preferred
• Demonstrated success navigating a complex organizational environment, preferably in higher education
• Demonstrated experience working with relational databases, SQL, data modeling, and reporting infrastructure
• Experience developing recurring reports, reporting workflows, and validation processes
• Experience with data visualization and reporting tools such as PowerBI, Tableau, Oracle Analytics Cloud, or similar platforms
• Ability to manipulate, transform, and analyze data using tools such as Excel, SQL, R, or Python
• Strong analytical, organizational, and project management skills
• Ability to communicate complex technical and analytical concepts effectively to diverse audiences
• Facility with managing multiple priorities and deadlines while maintaining a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail
• Self-directed and collaborative, with creative problem-solving skills and a collegial work style
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, discretion, and professionalism in a highly confidential environment

Responsibilities

• Institutional Reporting: Prepare and submit mandatory federal, state, accreditation, and other institutional reporting requirements.
• Contribute to publicly available institutional reports such as the Statistical Abstract, Columbia FACTS, and the Common Data Set.
• Develop, maintain, and improve recurring institutional reports, dashboards, and reporting workflows.
• Generate ad hoc reports in response to requests from university leadership and internal and external stakeholders.
• Present information in clear, concise, and actionable formats for technical and nontechnical audiences (tables, visualizations, dashboards).
• Collaborate with OPIR staff to define reporting requirements, establish data standards, and improve reporting consistency across projects and initiatives.
• Stay current with trends and best practices in institutional research and higher education reporting.
• Data Management, Governance & Reporting Infrastructure: Contribute to the design, development, maintenance, and oversight of OPIR reporting databases and related infrastructure.
• Develop sustainable workflows for data extraction, transformation, validation, and reporting using SQL Server and related technologies.
• Support efforts to automate recurring reporting processes and improve reporting efficiency and reliability.
• Maintain documentation of data sources, business definitions, reporting logic, and data dictionaries for the OPIR data hub.
• Apply data governance and stewardship principles to support data integrity, security, and quality control.
• Collaborate with university partners to support reporting and data integration efforts.
• Contribute to the continued development of the OPIR data hub and related capabilities.

Skills

Analytical skills

Communication

Project management

Collaboration

Problem-solving

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in social science, information or data science, statistics, computer science, business analytics, or related field

Tools

PowerBI

Tableau

Oracle Analytics Cloud

SQL

Excel

Python

R

Job description

Columbia University is seeking an Assistant Director of Institutional Data & Reporting within the Office of Planning and Institutional Research (OPIR). The role will support data governance, compliance reporting, and the development of robust data infrastructure across university systems.

Working with leadership and stakeholders, you will design sustainable reporting workflows, extract and transform data from enrollment, HR, finance, and research systems, and present insights to executive