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Manager, Student Technology, Student Innovation

Department: Student Success Office Effective Date: October, 2011
Grade: USG 12 Reports to: Director, Student Innovation

General Accountability

The Manager, Student Technology is accountable to the Director, Student Innovation for management and coordination of technology development and initiatives that encourage, develop, enable and promote the entrepreneurial and innovative talents and ambitions of all students at the University.

The incumbent will play an important role in supporting a holistic approach toward student success (see diagram below), in particular within the experiential and entrepreneurial aspects of student development, which include the career and professional endeavours of our students.

Nature and Scope

Over the past twenty years, Waterloo has been recognized as the most innovative university in Canada, and our students have played a central role in this achievement. The Student Success Office will further build on the university’s reputation for innovation through the Student Innovation (SI) unit, and a highly organized and dynamic manager is needed to support the development, growth, and exploration of how technology can support that reputation.

Reporting to the Manager, Technology is a development team of co-op students.  

The Manager, Technology will lead a student development team that is focused on identifying and building technologies that support the student success office’s mandate to foster and support a fulfilling university experience. This could include both hardware and software but the primary technology expertise will be mobile and other web based application development.

The Manger, Technology, will directly support what has evolved over the past 3 years to be the most comprehensive and respected suite of student innovation and entrepreneurship services and programs of any post-secondary institution in the country.

The programs and initiatives overseen by the director and supported by the incumbent include:

Statistical Data

Specific Accountabilities

Management

The Manager, Technology will have direct supervision and responsibility for a student technology development team made up mainly of co-op students from the University of Waterloo. The incumbent will identify roles and recruit students to work on the team, manage the development and deployment of leading edge technology, and identify opportunities to improve the student experience with technology, as well as deploy applications.

The incumbent will be an expert in web application development and/or mobile application development. They must not be afraid to open up a text editor and get into the code with the students. A secondary responsibility is to be a mentor for both the student reports and to the students involved in the VeloCity program.

A high degree of technical skill, experience managing development teams, interpersonal acumen and problem solving ability is required to provide oversight in balancing the multiple priorities, partners, facilities and programs.

Technical strategies and planning

The Manager, Technology must provide strategies, management, structure and process for the assessment, planning, initiation and provision of technology. He/she will work with the Director to ensure that these items are of high quality, reflect well on the university and are a positive factor in engaging and developing students.

The incumbent will view the Student Innovation unit as an entrepreneurial endeavor and will assist the student success office in its continued evolution and development with regards to technology. A high degree of creativity, strategic thinking, entrepreneurial ability and adaptability are required in order to support the director in these efforts.

Student Engagement, Success and Retention

At the core of the Student Innovation mandate is the development of student talent. Through a variety of co-curricular education, networking and experiential development opportunities and initiatives, the manager will have an opportunity to play a key role in the development of student entrepreneurship. Technology used to facilitate the activities of Student Innovation can enhance the overall experience for students, staff, and our partners. Beyond face-to-face interaction with students, the technology Student Innovation uses has a direct impact on the student experience. Thus, a student-centered mindset is essential.

The Manager must have in depth knowledge of the latest web and mobile-based technologies. He/she must work in partnership with the academic enterprise and external partners to provide programs and facilities to enhance student development and engagement.

Partnerships

The incumbent will demonstrate highly developed interpersonal skills in order to interact with a wide range of individuals in various settings.

Specialized and Technical Experience, Knowledge and Skills

The incumbent will have experience deploying technology and user focused design. Familiarity with Agile development methodologies and leading a team using those methods is essential. Understanding both the potential and the limitations of a variety of technology as well as the ability to explain that effectively is expected of the incumbent. In depth knowledge of at least one modern development framework for web-based applications and one of the leading mobile platforms is also expected.

The Manager will also be familiar with incubator-style work environments. The Student Innovation Office will often have space to manage in other cities and countries and being familiar with how those environments operate will be expected.

Working Conditions