Academic Applications Lead - Open for All Nationalities

Role Overview

Academic Applications Lead at Ajman University, open for all nationalities. This position provides strategic leadership and oversight for all student-facing systems and applications.

Role Purpose

Lead implementation of academic applications, manage the entire student information technology system, and ensure seamless integration and optimal performance of all systems supporting student registration, academic tracking, advising, and student services. The role requires strategic planning, team leadership, vendor management, and cross-functional collaboration with academic leadership and IT stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy & Planning

• Develop and execute strategic roadmap for academic applications aligned with Ajman University's digital transformation goals and academic priorities.
• Lead change management initiatives for major system implementations, upgrades, and process improvements.
• Define and coordinate the execution of testing procedures and develop test cases to serve the overall quality assurance process.

System Management & Operations

• Deploy, maintain, and troubleshoot all Banner and academic modules.
• Set workflow processes and maintain student systems.
• Oversee the implementation and integration of the Learning Management System and Banner system.
• Coordinate system upgrades and ensure seamless transitions.
• Maintain the readiness of Student Information System applications after applying new updates, upgrades, or releases.
• Test and upgrade applications' patches.
• Create, modify, and tune database schemas.
• Troubleshoot data extract issues and create new data schemas for the university data warehouse.
• Migrate and integrate data with different applications.
• Implement best practices for supportability, ease of maintenance, and system performance.

Technical Support & Troubleshooting

• Troubleshoot academic applications integrated with Banner Student Information System, including applications on SaaS cloud solutions, academic advising solutions, and mobile applications.
• Lead projects related to Academic Applications and Banner Student Information System, supervising and implementing development, integration, and migration processes.
• Translate highly technical specifications into clear non-technical requirements.

Vendor & Stakeholder Management

• Manage vendor relationships for academic application providers and ensure optimal value and performance.
• Meet and coordinate with internal and external stakeholders to establish project scope, system goals, and requirements.
• Collaborate with academic units, registrars, and administrative units to understand their data needs and requirements.
• Exercise independent judgment in decision-making, lead complex projects, and manage project progress.

Documentation & Training

• Maintain, analyze, prioritize, and organize requirement specifications, data mapping, and diagrams for developers and testers.
• Provide documentation of all processes and training as needed.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in a computer field.
• Minimum 7 years of related experience in higher education technology, including 3 or more years in team leadership.
• Minimum 5 years' experience in technical or software support.
• Banner Student Information System experience: Registration, Self-service, Students and Faculty, and Banner Student Admin.
• Professional or job-related certifications: SIS Banner 9, Admin and Self-service; Project Management certification (PMP, PRINCE2, or equivalent) preferred; ITIL Foundation or higher preferred.

Skills & Competencies

• Strong knowledge of Oracle platform, SQL, and PL/SQL.
• Reporting tools and JavaScript.
• Student advising systems such as CRM Advise.
• Mobile applications.
• Academic Advising solutions.
• SaaS cloud solutions.
• Strong troubleshooting and customer service skills.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, in English.
• Team leadership and people management.
• Vendor and contract management.
• Stakeholder management and executive communication.
• Knowledge of higher education business processes and academic operations.
• Knowledge of customer service standards and procedures.

Additional Information

• English is required; Arabic is preferable.
• Work is normally performed in a typical interior or office work environment.
• No or very limited physical effort is required.
• No or very limited exposure to physical risk.