Faculty Governance and Institutional Strategy Senior Manager

Job Summary:

The Democratic Knowledge Project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at the Harvard Kennedy School seek a senior staff member to support the design, launch, and early implementation of a new university-wide Harvard Faculty Senate. The initiative is led by Danielle Allen, the James Bryant Conant University Professor, and Faculty Director of both the DKP and the Allen Lab. This position plays a central role in building the structures, processes, and analytical foundations required for effective faculty governance across Harvard’s constituent schools.

The Senior Manager will work closely with senior faculty leadership and administrative partners across Harvard schools to advance strategic planning for the Faculty Senate, drawing on research, comparative analysis, and best practices in higher-education governance. The role will help translate faculty priorities into workable institutional processes, support coordination across schools, and develop materials that inform decision-making during the Senate’s formative phase.

This role is well-suited to a candidate with strong analytical and writing skills, experience in higher-education institutions, and an interest in organizational design, governance, and policy development. The position will operate with a high degree of autonomy and judgment, contributing substantively to the creation of a new governance body with long-term institutional impact.

Primary Responsibilities

• Conduct research on faculty governance structures and best practices at peer and aspirational institutions, synthesizing findings into briefing materials and recommendations for faculty and senior administrators.
   
• Support the strategic planning and early implementation of a university-wide Faculty Senate, including the development of governance frameworks, operating principles, and procedural guidelines.
   
• Prepare analytical memos, background documents, and presentations to support faculty deliberation and decision-making during the Senate’s formative phase.
   
• Coordinate with faculty representatives and senior administrative partners across Harvard’s constituent schools to facilitate information-sharing, alignment, and progress on Senate-related initiatives.
   
• With high level direction from University Professor and project lead, Danielle Allen, design and refine Senate processes for meeting structures, committee workflows, and mechanisms for faculty input and consultation.
   
• Track key decisions, timelines, and dependencies related to the launch of the Faculty Senate, helping ensure continuity and momentum across academic terms. Provide data analytics and write reports on progress based on initiative goals and intended outcomes.
   
• Produce documentation (e.g. white papers, briefing papers) of institutional knowledge and lessons learned to support the long-term sustainability of faculty governance structures.

In terms of allocation of time, the above responsibilities can be organized into 3 groups:

• Faculty Senate Formative Work – (bullets 1, 2, and 3) – 30%
• Faculty Senate Planning Meetings & Formal Convening – (bullets 4 and 5) – 40%
• Faculty Senate Progress, Documentation, Outcomes – (bullets 6 and 7) – 30%