Assistant Director Of Alumni Engagement

The Tippie College of Business is seeking an Assistant Director of Alumni Relations who will coordinate, execute, and evaluate strategies to engage alumni in the life of the College for their and the university’s benefit. This person will work closely with the Director of Alumni Engagement to build relationships, coordinate events, and help communicate with the College’s more than 58,000 living alumni. This person will work closely with current student leaders, companies, various alumni and advisory boards, and University administrators. Responsibilities will require some travel and work time outside the 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. workday. Remote work must be performed at a location within the state of Iowa and comply with the remote work program and related policies.

Get to know the Tippie College of Business

Since 1847, the Tippie College of Business has cultivated a legacy of innovation, thought leadership, and excellence in business education. We are over 4,700 students with BBA and graduate programs spanning six academic departments—accounting, business analytics, economics, finance, marketing, and management and entrepreneurship. We are eight centers and institutes, and four student-managed endowment funds. We’re over 56,000 alumni—and growing. Tippie is regularly listed in top business school rankings. We also hold the gold standard of accreditations, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), and have maintained the accreditation for over 95 years (since 1923).

But who we are is not just in the curriculum we curate—it’s also in the culture we create. Our leadership embraces our responsibility to pursue excellence through diversity. More than 150 years after our founding, we continue to provide a welcoming, inclusive environment designed for you to grow and flourish in your professional or academic career.

Key Areas Of Responsibilities And Specific Job Tasks

Message Development and Implementation

• Seek to develop, create, and execute in-person and virtual events that incorporate lifelong learning aspects into event programing.
• Draft and execute marketing, communications, and engagement plans to achieve program objectives utilizing various communication channels. 
• Develop and/or edit content aligned with various communications, activities, and events.
• Create and deploy communications regarding in-person and virtual events to a variety of audiences.
• Oversee Tippie alumni email inboxes and serve as main point of communication to alumni.
• In collaboration with the Dean’s Office staff, manage the College’s inventory of branded materials. Work with the front office staff and Marketing team to reorder and produce new merchandise for events and giveaways. Make suggestions and purchases of branded products and promotional items for outside vendors in accordance with brand standards, strategic priorities, and budget.

Public Relations

• On behalf of Tippie's Alumni Engagement Office, oversee the planning, execution, and evaluation of Departmental events as well as other initiatives like educational programs, alumni recognition, and engagement programs to achieve objectives and goals. Oversee annual outreach engagement events.
• Provide on-site event management and execution including event set up and tear down, as well as provide excellent on-site customer service.
• Build and maintain relationships with various external constituent groups such as businesses, vendors, community organizations, and campus partners, including the UI Center for Advancement.
• Proactively build and maintain relationships with various internal constituent groups including Tippie leadership, faculty, staff, students, volunteers, and campus colleagues to encourage engagement and achieve program goals. 
• Oversee planning, implementation, and evaluation of Departmental events and other initiatives such as educational programs, alumni recognition, and engagement programs on behalf of Tippie’s Alumni Engagement Office. Specifically, overseeing annual homecoming events, semi-annual Young Alumni Board meetings, Tippie Chicago Boat Cruise, the Alum of the Year nomination and awards event, Almost Alumni Week and Tippie Toast to Graduation events.
• Plan, execute, present, and execute event wrap-up for virtual programs like Tippie webinars.

Information Management

• Oversee and update alumni websites for programs and events. Including gather and disseminate post-virtual event data from the Zoom platform. Ensure all staff involved with events are properly trained. Prepare and share event briefings to adequately prepare all staff involved with each event. 
• Oversee collection, maintenance, and pulling of event-related data such as target audience lists, event registration, and engagement results using tools such as Microsoft Excel, Qualtrics, Salesforce, and UICA resources including BGI and Heat Map.
• Become proficient in pulling lists for email and mailing needs following the UI and UICA guidelines.
• Recognize patterns, trends, themes, and connections in information to develop innovative ideas and creative solutions.
• Develop and share measurable impact reports to the Director and Tippie leadership.
• Establish communication plans that share processes with important stakeholders, create new and update existing event management processes, and document the processes. Manage the application process and online web assets to for the Tippie Young Alumni Board (YAB).

Strategic Planning

• Work with the Director to review and carry out a strategic plan for alumni engagement and growth of the Tippie Alumni Program, and evaluate the plan's effectiveness annually.
• Utilize surveys and other analytics to measure the effectiveness of our programs.  
• Lead the development, implementation, and tracking of progress toward event management strategies that are aligned with departmental goals.  
• Create individual project plans to engage constituents. These plans may include digital and printed communications, special events, significant alumni events, and virtual programs.

Financial Responsibility 

• Assist in budget development and provide projections and recommendations for future program initiatives and event collateral.  
• Maintain event budgets. 
• Assess branded material costs and best practices and propose recommendations.

Leadership/Supervision

• Provide functional supervision, direction, and assignments to student employees. 

To obtain the full job description including key areas of responsibility, technical competencies, and desirable qualifications, please contact [email protected]

Position Qualifications

Education Requirement

Bachelor’s Degree or the equivalent combination of education and experience.

Required Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience creating and supporting inclusive and equitable working relationships with students, faculty, staff, and community members.
• 3-5 years relevant experience in program management, event planning or management, communications, marketing, or public relations.  
• Adept at functioning in a highly computerized environment.  Proficient in computer software applications including MS Word, PowerPoint and Excel, Zoom, and various databases.
• Must be able to work atypical office hours with evening, weekend, and early morning events and set up requirements on a regular basis. 
• Experience in developing, implementing, and analyzing marketing, communication, and engagement strategies.
• Experience in planning multiple projects at once; organizing, estimating, and executing programs and in person and virtual events including all logistics and staging. 
• Valid driver’s license plus the ability to meet the University of Iowa Fleet Safety program driving standards.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills with the ability to work independently and with a team. 

Desired Qualifications

• Knowledge of University of Iowa Policies and Procedures.
• Experience with academic and institutional advancement programs.
• Use of programs like InDesign and/or adobe

Application Details

In order to be considered for an interview, applicants must upload the following documents and mark them as a “Relevant File” to the submission:

• Resume
• Cover Letter

Job openings are posted for a minimum of 14 calendar days and may be removed from posting and filled any time after the original posting period has ended. Successful candidates will be required to self-disclose any conviction history and will be subject to a criminal background check and credential/education verification. Up to 5 professional references will be requested at a later step in the recruitment process. For questions, contact Josh Gulick at [email protected].

Benefits Highlights

• Regular salaried position. Located in Iowa City, Iowa.
• Fringe benefit package including paid vacation; sick leave; health, dental, life and disability insurance options; and generous employer contributions into retirement plans.
• For more information about Why Iowa? Click here.

Additional Information

• Appointment Type: Professional and Scientific
• Work Modality Options: Hybrid within Iowa
• Classification Title: Constituent Relations Spec
• Schedule: Full-time

Compensation

• Starting Salary Maximum: 58,000
• Pay Level: 4A
• Starting Salary Minimum: 44,429

Contact Information

• Contact Email: [email protected]
• Contact Name: Josh Gulick
• Organization: College of Business