Student Success System Manager - Office of Academic Innovation - Penn Engineering

University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Student Success System Manager - Office of Academic Innovation - Penn Engineering

Job Profile Title

Information Technology Project Leader

Job Description Summary

The Student Success Systems Manager (SSSM) supports the effective operation, coordination, and continuous improvement of student success systems for the Office of Academic Innovation (OAI). Reporting to the Assistant Director of Slate Operations, this role serves as an operational owner for Slate student success functionality across online and support for residential master’s and graduate programs.

This position focuses on day-to-day system oversight, workflow management, cycle readiness, issue triage, and cross-team coordination, ensuring that student success processes are executed consistently, efficiently, and in alignment with institutional goals. While admissions functionality may be supported when necessary, the primary emphasis of this role is student success operations, engagement, retention, and reporting.

The SSSM also maintains select reporting and analytics responsibilities, ensuring operational teams have access to accurate, timely insights that support student success outcomes. This position is hybrid, with two days per week on campus in Philadelphia.

Job Description

Detailed Responsibilities

Student Success Systems Oversight 

• Serve as an operational owner of Slate student success functionality across OAI-supported programs.

• Coordinate and manage student success modules, including turning features on and off by term or cycle.

• Independently maintain workflows, queries, forms, events, and communications related to student success.

• Manage system updates either live or between cycles, collaborating closely with the Assistant Director of Slate Operations as needed.

• Ensure system configurations align with student success processes, timelines, and operational requirements.

• Lead the scoping, planning, and build of new student success modules and functionality in Slate, partnering with student success stakeholders to translate operational needs into system requirements, workflows, data structures, and user experiences that support engagement, retention, and student outcomes.

Workflow, Cycle, and Operational Management

• Maintain and clear workflows in preparation for new academic terms or engagement cycles.

• Coordinate cycle preparation checklists in Asana, ensuring all system and operational tasks are completed on schedule.

• Provide recommendations to improve cycle readiness processes and documentation.

• Collaborate with office teams to ensure coordinated execution of responsibilities tied to student success milestones.

Request Intake, Triage, and Support

• Serve as the primary point of contact for student success–related Slate requests.

• Triage incoming requests via Slack and tickets; providing Tier 1 support and escalating issues as appropriate.

• Manage the Slate Helpdesk board in Asana, tracking progress, prioritization, and backlog items.

• Partner with the Assistant Director of Slate Operations on escalations, enhancements, and resolutions.

Communications, Engagement, and Events Support

• Support the development and execution of ad hoc and campaign communications in Slate, including emails and drip campaigns tied to student success initiatives.

• Build and maintain recipient queries, merge fields, and conditional logic for communications.

• Provide Slate-related support for student success events, including onboarding sessions, advising events, office hours, and engagement activities (virtual and on campus).

• Audit event templates, registration workflows, and communications for accuracy and consistency.

• Provide day-of Slate support for student success events when needed.

Data, Reporting, and Operational Insights

• Produce recurring and ad hoc reports related to student success, retention, engagement, and program outcomes.

• Maintain dashboards and reports in Slate and other reporting tools to support operational decision-making.

• Ensure data accuracy through regular auditing, deduplication, and validation of records.

• Support leadership requests for surveys, annual reports, board reporting, and regional or cohort analyses.

• Maintain organized documentation of reports, queries, and data processes to ensure continuity and scalability.

System Administration and Governance

• Maintain accurate user accounts and permissions within Slate, assigning or updating access at the direction of the Assistant Director of Slate Operations.

• Support data hygiene practices, including consistent deduplication and record maintenance.

• Ensure system usage aligns with institutional data governance, security, and privacy standards.

• Assist with testing, rollout, and adoption of new Slate features and related platforms.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree and 2–3 years of relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Master’s degree in Data Analytics, Data Science, Information Systems, Computer Science, or a related field strongly preferred.

• Experience in data strategy, business analytics, systems management, or data product management.

• Proven experience configuring and managing a CRM, ideally Slate, including custom fields, dashboards, reports, and validation rules.

• Ability to connect data across multiple systems and translate complex information into clear, actionable insights.

• Experience with data visualization tools (Tableau, Power BI) and working knowledge of SQL or similar query languages.

• Strong communication and collaboration skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

• Experience in higher education, executive education, or professional services environments preferred.

Preferred

• Experience supporting higher education admissions, marketing, student success, or program teams.

• Familiarity with Asana or similar project management tools.

Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

School of Engineering and Applied Science

Pay Range

$70,500.00 - $90,000.00 Annual Rate

Salary offers are made based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, and in alignment with salary ranges based on external market data for the job’s level. Internal organization and peer data at Penn are also considered.

Equal Opportunity Statement 

The University of Pennsylvania is an equal opportunity employer. Candidates are considered for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, creed, national origin (including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics), citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status or any class protected under applicable federal, state or local law.

Special Requirements 
Background checks may be required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.

University Benefits

• Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts: Penn offers comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits to protect you and your family’s health and welfare. You can also use flexible spending accounts to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars.

• Tuition: Take advantage of Penn's exceptional tuition benefits. You, your spouse, and your dependent children can get tuition assistance here at Penn. Your dependent children are also eligible for tuition assistance at other institutions.

• Retirement: Penn offers generous retirement plans to help you save for your future. Penn’s Basic, Matching, and Supplemental retirement plans allow you to save for retirement on a pre-tax or Roth basis. Choose from a wide variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.

• Time Away from Work: Penn provides you with a substantial amount of time away from work during the course of the year. This allows you to relax, take vacations, attend to personal affairs, recover from illness or injury, spend time with family—whatever your personal needs may be.

• Long-Term Care Insurance: In partnership with Genworth Financial, Penn offers faculty and staff (and your eligible family members) long-term care insurance to help you cover some of the costs of long-term care services received at home, in the community or in a nursing facility. If you apply when you’re newly hired, you won’t have to provide proof of good health or be subject to underwriting requirements. Eligible family members must always provide proof of good health and are subject to underwriting.

• Wellness and Work-life Resources: Penn is committed to supporting our faculty and staff as they balance the competing demands of work and personal life. That’s why we offer a wide variety of programs and resources to help you care for your health, your family, and your work-life balance.

• Professional and Personal Development: Penn provides an array of resources to help you advance yourself personally and professionally.

• University Resources: As a member of the Penn community, you have access to a wide range of University resources as well as cultural and recreational activities. Take advantage of the University’s libraries and athletic facilities, or visit our arboretum and art galleries. There’s always something going on at Penn, whether it’s a new exhibit at the Penn Museum, the latest music or theater presentation at the Annenberg Center, or the Penn Relays at Franklin Field to name just a few examples. As a member of the Penn community, you’re right in the middle of the excitement—and you and your family can enjoy many of these activities for free.

• Discounts and Special Services: From arts and entertainment to transportation and mortgages, you'll find great deals for University faculty and staff. Not only do Penn arts and cultural centers and museums offer free and discounted admission and memberships to faculty and staff. You can also enjoy substantial savings on other goods and services such as new cars from Ford and General Motors, cellular phone service plans, movie tickets, and admission to theme parks.

• Flexible Work Hours: Flexible work options offer creative approaches for completing work while promoting balance between work and personal commitments. These approaches involve use of non-traditional work hours, locations, and/or job structures.

• Penn Home Ownership Services: Penn offers a forgivable loan for eligible employees interested in buying a home or currently residing in West Philadelphia, which can be used for closing costs or home improvements.

• Adoption Assistance: Penn will reimburse eligible employees on qualified expenses in connection with the legal adoption of an eligible child, such as travel or court fees, for up to two adoptions in your household.

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To learn more, please visit: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/PennHR/benefits-pay