Director, Academic Product Operations- SFBUE

San Francisco Bay University; Fremont (CA); Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 195,000; Full time

Job summary

San Francisco Bay University (SFBUE) is seeking a Director, Academic Product Operations to lead the academic market segment, translating opportunities into scalable operating models, delivery workflows, and partner coordination.

This exempt, full-time hybrid role reports to the Vice President of Strategy & Operations and is based in the Bay Area with regular in-person collaboration in Fremont, California.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in education, business, operations, technology, or a related field or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of experience in program operations, academic operations, EdTech, or related fields.
• Experience building operating models, workflows, KPIs, dashboards, and delivery systems.
• Experience managing vendors or platform delivery relationships.
• Ability to lead complex cross-functional initiatives with senior leaders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication and executive-level updates.
• Ability to operate in an early-stage environment with ambiguity and ownership.

Responsibilities

• Lead operational planning and execution for the Academic market segment.
• Refine and manage the operating model for SFBU/SFBUE Pro+ and related offerings.
• Build repeatable workflows, SOPs, KPIs, dashboards, and reporting structures.
• Serve as primary operating lead across academic platform, technical, and strategic partners.
• Maintain visibility into partner performance, risks, and improvements.
• Translate delivery needs into product requirements and roadmaps.
• Coordinate across leadership, faculty, suppliers, and stakeholders.
• Identify gaps and implement scalable improvements across people, process, systems.
• Support future market expansion with scalable operating infrastructure.

Skills

Program leadership

Vendor management

Executive communication

KPIs & analytics

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in education, business, operations, technology, or organizational leadership

Master’s degree (preferred)

Job description

About SFBUE

SFBUE is building a platform-centric, AI-enabled enterprise learning organization designed to support scalable academic and workforce learning opportunities. The organization is early-stage, fast-moving, and closely connected to San Francisco Bay University while developing its own operating model, partnerships, and platform capabilities.

About SFBUE

SFBUE is building a platform-centric, AI-enabled enterprise learning organization designed to support scalable academic and workforce learning opportunities. The organization is early-stage, fast-moving, and closely connected to San Francisco Bay University while developing its own operating model, partnerships, and platform capabilities.

Position Overview

Reporting to the Vice President of Strategy & Operations, the Director, Academic Product Operations leads the academic market segment for SFBUE, with an initial focus on higher education and workforce training opportunities. The Director translates academic opportunities into scalable operating models, delivery workflows, partner coordination, and measurable execution across SFBUE, SFBU stakeholders, faculty, and third‑party partners. This is an exempt, full-time hybrid position based in the Bay Area, with regular in‑person collaboration expected in Fremont, California.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities

• Lead operational planning and execution for the Academic market segment, initially focused on MBA, undergraduate, and workforce training opportunities.
• Refine and manage the operating model for SFBU/SFBUE Pro+ and related academic offerings, including launch readiness and hyper-care.
• Build repeatable workflows, SOPs, KPIs, dashboards, reporting structures, ownership models, and escalation processes for academic program delivery and learner experience.
• Serve as the primary operating lead across academic platform, technical, and strategic delivery partners; coordinate timelines, deliverables, service quality, issue resolution, and escalations.
• Maintain visibility into partner performance, operational dependencies, and delivery risks, and recommend improvements to partner strategy and internal capabilities.
• Translate academic delivery needs and operational pain points into product requirements, platform feedback, and roadmap recommendations.
• Coordinate across SFBUE leadership, SFBU leadership, faculty, technical partners, and other strategic stakeholders; maintain clear decision tracking and executive visibility.
• Identify operational gaps and implement scalable improvements across people, process, systems, and partner support without introducing unnecessary bureaucracy.
• Support future academic market expansion by creating a repeatable operating infrastructure that can scale beyond the initial Pro+ implementation.
• Perform other duties as needed.
  

Supervisory Responsibilities

This role may lead cross‑functional workstreams and oversee vendors, contractors, or future team members as the academic segment scales. Direct people‑management responsibilities may evolve with organizational growth.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in education, business, operations, technology, organizational leadership, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• 7+ years of progressively responsible experience in program operations, academic operations, product operations, EdTech, higher education innovation, education services delivery, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience building operating models, workflows, SOPs, KPIs, and delivery systems in complex or evolving environments.
• Experience managing vendors, service providers, implementation partners, or platform delivery relationships.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex cross‑functional initiatives involving senior leaders and multiple stakeholder groups.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and the ability to provide concise executive‑level updates, risk assessments, and recommendations.
• Ability to operate effectively in an early‑stage environment with ambiguity, changing priorities, and a high degree of personal ownership.
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in higher education, workforce learning, or enterprise learning environments.
• Experience with learning platforms, LMS ecosystems, AI‑enabled learning tools, or education technology products.
• Experience working in AI‑native or AI‑mediated environments and translating operational needs into product/platform requirements.
• Experience supporting new program or product launches, including launch readiness, hyper‑care, stabilization, and continuous improvement.
• Familiarity with academic delivery models, learner support operations, faculty engagement, and institutional stakeholder management.
• Master’s degree in a relevant field.
  

Knowledge, Skills And Abilities

• Strong program and operating leadership with the ability to create structure where it does not yet exist.
• Strong partner‑management, negotiation, issue‑escalation, and relationship‑management skills.
• Ability to balance academic quality, learner experience, operational reliability, speed, and scalability.
• Executive presence and the ability to communicate effectively with faculty, university leaders, vendors, product/technology teams, and external partners.
• Strong analytical judgment, prioritization, and comfort using KPIs and operating data to drive decisions.
• Demonstrated strong commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice.
  

Salary Range

The anticipated base salary range for this position is $170,000 – $195,000 annually, depending on experience, qualifications, and scope.

SFBUE is an Equal Opportunity / Aff... . SFBUE is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all employees and applicants for employment. SFBUE does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices based on race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation or any other characteristic protected by law.

In accordance with federal and state disability laws, SFBUE provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. If you require assistance during the application or interview process, please contact [e-mail].