Associate Vice Chancellor/CIO

The University of California, Riverside seeks an transformative, results oriented leader for the position of Associate Vice Chancellor/Chief Information Officer (AVC/CIO). The AVC/CIO joins UC Riverside at a time of significant change and growth. Recognizing the strategic importance that information and technology play in supporting the University mission Chancellor Wilcox and EVC/Provost Watkins recently approved a permanent $8 million increase in the operating budget for IT. This recurring investment will enable the new CIO to support strategic priorities and strengthen the IT team with the addition of approximately 25 new positions and to implement and to make a substantial upgrade to the network infrastructure. Reporting to the EVC/Provost, the CIO will lead a team of 157 FTE and manage an operating budget of $38 million, and will lead the University in the effective management and improvement of campus-wide information technology services for students, faculty, and staff.They will oversee significant new investments in staffing and technology that will strengthen foundational capabilities and catalyze new initiatives in teaching, research, and operations. The position provides leadership for university-wide initiatives to deploy technological solutions to enable research, support student success, facilitate teaching and learning, improve business processes, and utilize data for evidence-based decision making. This position emphasizes resourcefulness, innovation, a collaborative spirit, strong service orientation, excellent problem-solving skills, and a keen understanding of strategic higher education issues.

The AVC/CIO also must be an exceptional communicator who effectively engages with the campus community, including the distributed IT organizations, to facilitate IT decision-making and deliver a high level of service and satisfaction. The most competitive candidates will have successfully set and implemented IT strategies, developed, and led diverse high-performing IT teams, navigated decision making processes involving diverse stakeholders, and established operations that are strong on service and project execution.

About the University of California, Riverside

UCR is an outstanding research and educational institution recognized as the fastest-rising ranked university in the United States by U.S. News and World Report, Forbes, and the Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education. As one of 10 campuses within the University of California system, UCR is one of the most ethnically diverse research universities in the nation and has received significant recognition for its record in research and its exceptional success at attracting and graduating low-income and first-generation students. In 2016, UCR won the Project Degree Completion Award from the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities for its success in dramatically increasing graduation rates, and in 2017, Education Trust recognized UCR's success in eliminating the graduation gap for Latino and Black students. In 2021, U.S. News and World Report ranked UCR number one among universities in the United States for social mobility, enrolling and graduating a large proportion of Pell Grant recipients and setting a national standard for how a university can educate a diverse population, conduct research, and engage the broader community. The AVC/CIO must share these strong campus commitments to academic quality and diversity.

Situated on nearly 1,200 scenic acres in Inland Southern California, UC Riverside's diverse, inclusive, and globally focused community is creating a new model for what a great public research university can achieve. With more than 26,000 students and 1,100 faculty (nearly 870 of whom are ladder-rank faculty) - including two Nobel Prize winners and 13 members of the National Academies of Science and Medicine - the University is pioneering research with economic, scientific, and social impact on the real-world challenges we face in California and beyond.

CIO Leadership Agenda

With the $8 million increase in budget the AVC/CIO will look comprehensively at the allocation of financial and human resources and improve alignment with the University's strategic priorities and technology changes. Further, the AVC/CIO will leverage recent progress to improve and better align IT services with the needs of students, faculty, and staff. They will facilitate ITS' continued transformation into a collaborative organization, better skilled, and appropriately resourced to execute major projects and maintain effective service delivery. The AVC/CIO will help a talented and dedicated staff realize their full potential by improving processes, clarifying priorities, and investing in the development of new skills to leverage new technologies.

The AVP/CIO will work with constituents across the University to pursue an agenda that includes:
  • Upgrade campus networks, storage, and data protection capabilities to support teaching and research.
  • Collaborate with schools, colleges, the library, staff, and faculty to improve services to support teaching and learning and maintain modern technologies in classrooms and online learning spaces.
  • Grow the high performing IT team with improved processes and a collaborative culture as well as the structures and competencies to support strategic IT directions.
  • Facilitate an annual strategic review of student and administrative technology solutions to support improved processes, leverage newer technologies, and achieve a more sustainable application portfolio.
  • Provide leadership through the implementation and support of new campus financial management systems and processes.
  • Expand support for research endeavors including high performance computing and other technologies and services to enable scholarship and creative works.
  • Improve quality and consistency of IT services and enhance communications with students, faculty, and staff.
  • Continue to strengthen the partnership and coordination of services between central and distributed IT units.
  • Develop a decision-making framework to evaluate how the University adopts new technologies and sources technology solutions and services (E.g., cloud, on premises, etc)
  • Position the University to use data in decision-making by improving data governance and management practices, integrating data sources and increasing overall organizational analytical capabilities.
  • Providing executive leadership and support for the digital transformation of University services considering both process improvement and end-user experiences.
  • In partnership with University academic and administrative leadership, re-envision an IT governance structure that builds on the University of California's shared governance model.


Required and Preferred Qualifications

The CIO will have at least the following minimum qualifications:
  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
  • 7 years of experience at a senior management level of a major division of information technology organization such as academic and/or administrative computing in a complex, multi-tiered organization.
  • Led implementation of a major technology or service.
  • Experience with the financial and security implications of adopting cloud-based services for applications, platforms, and infrastructure.
  • Strong communications and interpersonal skills that enhance collaboration amongst diverse constituents.
  • Strong financial management skills including the ability to manage complex budgets with multiple fund sources.
  • Created an inclusive organizational culture that is welcoming of equity and diversity, stresses collegiality, and values professional development.


We are interested in meeting candidates with varied experiences and backgrounds. The most competitive candidates will have many of the following additional qualifications and experiences.
  • Advanced degree.
  • Broad experience and understanding of the varied technology needs across academic departments and administrative divisions of a complex university.
  • Experience implementing industry best practices in project management, service management, application selection, and development.
  • Leadership role in the implementation of an institution-wide technology solution with significant process improvement and organizational change management components.
  • Understanding of risk-based strategies and solutions needed to manage threats to data security and privacy.
  • Experience in a research-intensive higher education institution with an understanding of the computing, networking, and other support needs of diverse research programs.
  • Experience managing IT in a distributed or federated IT operating model.
  • Experience fostering teamwork and direction among information technology employees reflected in a results-oriented, energetic, innovative, flexible, and client-focused culture.
  • Demonstrated experience using technology to improve processes to support the teaching, research, and outreach efforts of the faculty and the learning outcomes of students.


Application Process

For full consideration please submit a cover letter, statement of contributions to diversity (more information can be found below), and resume to ucr@nextgenpartnersllc.com by October 31st to ensure full consideration. The position will remain open until filled. The recruitment will be conducted in confidence until finalists are invited for campus visits. Please direct all inquiries or nominations for this position to Next Generation Executive Search Managing Partners Phil Goldstein at phil@nextgenpartnersllc.com or Mary Beth Baker at marybeth@nextgenpartnersllc.com.

In a “Statement of Contributions to Diversity,” we ask applicants to describe their past and/or potential future contributions to promoting a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment, which is a key requirement of the role of every faculty and staff member at UCR. There are numerous ways to contribute, and a commitment to this part of our mission can be reflected through research, teaching, supervision, mentoring, community engagement, service, and any of the other varied activities that are a part of an academic or administrative career.

As a condition of employment, you will be required to comply with the University of California SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Vaccination Program Policy. All Covered Individuals under the policy must provide proof of Full Vaccination or, if applicable, submit a request for Exception (based on Medical Exemption, Disability, and/or Religious Objection) or Deferral (based on pregnancy) no later than the applicable deadline. For new University of California employees, the applicable deadline is eight weeks after their first date of employment.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer with a strong institutional commitment to the achievement of excellence and diversity among its faculty and staff. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.