Associate Director

Job Title: Associate Director, IT Communications and Change Management
Location: Kennesaw, Georgia
Regular/Temporary: Regular
Full/Part Time: Full-Time
Job ID: 282756
About Us Are you ready to transform lives through academic excellence, innovative research, strong community partnerships and economic opportunity?Kennesaw State University is one of the 50 largest public institutions in the country. With growing enrollment and global reach, we continue to expand our institutional influence and prominence beyond the state of Georgia. We offer more than 190 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees to empower our 47,000 students to become thought leaders, lifelong learners, and informed global citizens. Our entrepreneurial spirit, high-impact research, and Division I athletics draw students from throughout the region and from more than 100 countries across the globe. Our university's vibrant culture, career opportunities, rich benefits, and values of respect, integrity, collaboration, inclusivity, and accountability make us an employer of choice. We are part of the University System of Georgia . We are searching for talented people to join Kennesaw State University in our vision . Come Take Flight at KSU.

Location (Primary Location for Job Responsibilities) Our Kennesaw campus is located at 1000 Chastain Road NW, Kennesaw, GA 30144.

Our Marietta campus is located at 1100 South Marietta Parkway, Marietta, GA 30060.

Job Summary Plans, executes, and evaluates strategies that inform, engage, and prepare the community for change, ensuring minimal disruption to business operations. Establishes and leads the unit, driving adoption of new and modified IT services and collaborating closely with senior leadership to align communications and change initiatives with broader divisional and institutional objectives.

Responsibilities KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
1. Develops and implements comprehensive communications and change management strategies and frameworks aligned with the university's culture and IT leadership objectives
2. Builds, mentors, and oversees a team of communications and change management professionals, defining and standardizing processes, templates, and tools to ensure consistent execution
3. Fosters a culture of continuous improvement, effectively prioritizing initiatives and allocating resources to meet evolving organizational needs
4. Collaborates with leadership, project managers, and program managers to integrate communications and change management plans into major IT initiatives and service launches
5. Conducts impact analyses, assess change readiness, and identify key stakeholders to develop tailored adoption strategies
6. Establishes metrics to measure and track effectiveness of communications and change initiatives (e.g., stakeholder engagement, user adoption, ROI)
7. Develops and executes communication plans that articulate the vision, value, and benefits of division service changes to faculty, staff, students, external partners, etc.
8. Creates and distributes high-quality, audience-appropriate content, including web materials, newsletters, and presentations to drive awareness and engagement
9. Facilitates workshops, training sessions, and other activities to increase organizational readiness and user competency
10. Identifies potential risks or resistance to the adoption of new or modified IT services, devising proactive strategies to address disruptions
11. Works closely with leadership to regularly report on risk status and engage in mitigation efforts
12. Ensures contingency plans are in place to maintain business continuity and user satisfaction throughout change initiatives
13. Collaborate with cross-functional teams including project management, technical staff, and business stakeholders to ensure seamless project execution and alignment with organizational goals
14. Advocates for a culture of change readiness, continuous improvement, and user-centric service design, promoting transparency and shared accountability
15. Provides regular updates to executive leadership, highlighting progress, successes, and areas for refinement
16. Defines and monitors key performance indicators (KPIs) for change initiatives, using data-driven insights to evaluate success
17. Leverages lessons learned to refine strategies, optimize processes, and adopt best practices across the IT division
18. Presents recommendations to division leadership, influencing the direction of future change initiatives and ensuring alignment with overall institutional objectives

Required Qualifications Educational Requirements
Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution of higher education in Organizational Development, Business Administration, Communications, Information Technology, or related field.

Required Experience
Seven (7) years of experience in change management, organizational development, communications, and/or project management roles demonstrating a progression of increasing responsibility, including a minimum of three (3) years in a leadership role.

Preferred Qualifications Additional Preferred Qualifications
Certifications in change management (e.g., Prosci, ACMP) strongly preferred
PMP or other project management certifications

Preferred Educational Qualifications
An advanced degree from an accredited institution of higher education in a related field

Preferred Experience
Higher education or IT experience

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities ABILITIES
Able to handle multiple tasks or projects at one time meeting assigned deadlines
Proven track record of leadership and team management, with the ability to mentor staff

KNOWLEDGE
Demonstrated success in implementing change management strategies in complex environments
In-depth knowledge of change management principles, methodologies, and best practices
Proficient with project management software and collaboration tools

SKILLS
Proficient with computer applications and programs associated with the position (i.e., Microsoft Office suite)
Strong attention to detail and follow up skills
Strong customer service skills and phone and e-mail etiquette
Excellent initiative, teamwork, problem solving, independent judgment, organization, time management, project management and presentation skills
Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, capable of building relationships across all levels of the organization
Excellent facilitation and presentation skills, with experience designing and delivering training and workshops
Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities to identify issues, risks, and opportunities for improvement

USG Core Values The University System of Georgia is comprised of our 26 institutions of higher education and learning as well as the System Office. Our USG Statement of Core Values are Integrity, Excellence, Accountability, and Respect. These values serve as the foundation for all that we do as an organization, and each USG community member is responsible for demonstrating and upholding these standards. More details on the USG Statement of Core Values and Code of Conduct are available in USG Board Policy 8.2.18.1.2 and can be found on-line at .

Additionally, USG supports Freedom of Expression as stated in Board Policy 6.5 Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom found on-line at .

Equal Employment Opportunity Kennesaw State University is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. The University is committed to maintaining a fair and respectful environment for living, work and study. To that end, and in accordance with federal and state law, Board of Regents policy, and University policy, the University prohibits harassment of or discrimination against any person because of race, color, sex (including sexual harassment, pregnancy, and medical conditions related to pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity or national origin, religion, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran or military status by any member of the KSU Community on campus, in connection with a University program or activity, or in a manner that creates a hostile environment for members of the KSU community.

For additional information on this policy, or to file a complaint under the provisions of this policy, students, employees, applicants for employment or admission or other third parties should contact the Office of Institutional Equity at English Building, Suite 225,

Other Information This is a supervisory position.
This position does not have any financial responsibilities.
This position will not be required to drive.
This role is considered a position of trust.
This position does not require a purchasing card (P-Card).
This position may travel 1% - 24% of the time

Background Check

• Standard Enhanced
• Education

Per the University System of Georgia background check policy, all final candidates will be required to consent to a criminal background investigation. Final candidates may be asked to disclose criminal record history during the initial screening process and prior to a conditional offer of employment. Applicants for positions of trust with screening
results which confirm a disqualifying criminal history will be immediately disqualified from employment eligibility.
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