Executive Director

The Executive Director in the Office of the Chancellor at Vanderbilt University serves as a senior operational leader, connecting information, people, priorities, and commitments across the institution to enable the Chancellor to operate at the highest level. This high-trust role maintains a broad view of the Chancellor’s time, interactions, travel, preparation, and institutional responsibilities, working closely with the Chancellor, Chief of Staff, Vice Chancellors, senior university leaders, and external stakeholders. The role reports to the Chief of Staff and oversees two Senior Executive Coordinators and the Assistant Director of Briefings and Research.

About Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee, is a preeminent private research university with over 13,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff. The university offers undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees across 11 colleges and schools, emphasizing cross-disciplinary research and a culture of "Radical Collaboration." Vanderbilt is expanding its presence with new campuses in West Palm Beach, Florida; San Francisco; and New York City, fostering innovation, entrepreneurship, and immersive learning. The Chancellor’s Office supports the Chancellor’s institutional, philanthropic, civic, political, academic, and public-facing responsibilities across this enterprise.

Responsibilities

• Chancellor’s Office Leadership
  • Lead the day-to-day administrative operations of the Chancellor’s Office.
  • Oversee the Senior Executive Coordinator, Assistant Director of Briefings and Research, and other administrative staff, fostering a collaborative, high-performing team.
  • Establish clear roles, decision rights, escalation points, and communication protocols to prevent missed information, duplicated work, or dropped commitments.
  • Exercise judgment to resolve matters without unnecessary escalation.
• Calendar Strategy & Executive Time
  • Own the strategic framework for allocating the Chancellor’s time, evaluating meeting requests, travel demands, and external engagements.
  • Determine what belongs on the Chancellor’s calendar, what should be delegated or declined, and where tradeoffs must be made.
  • Protect time for strategic thinking and reduce inefficient travel while maintaining a forward-looking view of commitments.
• Institutional Coordination
  • Connect information and activity across executive offices and university functions to build strong working relationships.
  • Ensure the Chancellor’s direction is accurately translated and executed, coordinating complex engagements involving multiple stakeholders.
  • Follow up on incomplete information or unclear responsibilities.
• Briefings, Preparation & Information Flow
  • Set the strategic direction for the Chancellor’s briefing process in partnership with the Assistant Director of Briefings and Research.
  • Ensure the Chancellor receives the appropriate level of information, context, and analysis before significant interactions.
  • Develop systems to identify missing, inconsistent, or politically sensitive information.
• External Engagements & Protocol
  • Serve as a point of contact for trustees, donors, elected officials, corporate executives, civic leaders, and media, representing the Chancellor with discretion and credibility.
  • Coordinate high-level external engagements, including objectives, preparation, logistics, and follow-up.
  • Travel with the Chancellor for major university, donor, government, media, and stakeholder engagements as needed.
• Systems, Technology & Operational Improvement
  • Improve workflows related to calendar decisions, briefing preparation, information sharing, and stakeholder management.
  • Lead the use of AI and data to enhance visibility, decision-making, and operational efficiency.
  • Provide actionable recommendations based on data analysis of the Chancellor’s time, travel, and meeting load.

Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in management, public administration, communications, higher education, or a related field is required; an advanced degree is preferred.
• 10+ years of progressively responsible experience in high-level executive-office leadership, operations, government, higher education, philanthropy, or a similarly complex environment.
• Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office, executive calendar systems, CRM platforms (e.g., Salesforce), Box, project-management tools, and AI-enabled workflows.

Skills

• Seasoned executive-office leader with the judgment and presence to engage credibly with senior university leaders, trustees, donors, CEOs, elected officials, and high-profile stakeholders.
• Strategic operator who connects information quickly and understands the downstream impact of decisions.
• Politically astute, institutionally aware, and highly discreet with sensitive information.
• Comfortable exercising authority, making sound decisions, and communicating them effectively.
• Intellectually confident, able to challenge leaders with facts and sound reasoning.
• Calm under pressure, thrives in unpredictability, and maintains accountability in high-stakes environments.
• Operationally rigorous with a strong instinct for systems, follow-through, and collaboration.
• Technologically curious, leveraging AI, CRM systems, and data to improve decision-making.
• Committed to Vanderbilt’s values, including institutional neutrality, open inquiry, and civil discourse.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, prescription, dental, and vision coverage beginning on the hire date.
• 403(b)-retirement plan with university matching contributions.
• Paid time off, life and disability insurance.
• Tuition assistance for self and up to three dependents.
• Employee wellness and professional development resources.

Schedule

Full-time position based on Vanderbilt University’s campus in Nashville, Tennessee. Travel with the Chancellor may be required, including domestic and occasional international travel.