Head: Academic Planning and Operations

The Independent Institute of Education (The IIE) is a registered private higher education provider and a wholly owned subsidiary of ADvTECH Ltd, listed on the JSE.

The IIE’s Central Academic Team (CAT) is the custodian of academic quality, educational technology, and governance across the institution. It leads academic strategy, compliance, and operational integrity through robust governance structures.

The current CAT is in the process of being repositioned as a Centre of Excellence, a hub for academic innovation, staff capacity building, quality assurance, and governance across both the schools and tertiary divisions.

**The purpose of the job**:
The Head: Academic Planning and Operations is accountable for leading and coordinating the execution of institution-wide centralised academic operational processes, ensuring standardisation, compliance, and efficiency across all sites of delivery. This includes oversight of the two brands' academic calendar, the qualification setup in the Academic Master, the finalisation of Phase-in in-Phase out (PIPO), and the tracking of assessment and material readiness. The role ensures systems and processes are optimised and accurately maintained in alignment with academic delivery cycles, supporting both national and international institutions.

**Reporting to**:
**Main Outputs and Responsibilities for this Position**:
Phase in-Phase out (PIPO) Finalisation & Qualification Configuration Oversight
- Lead the PIPO finalisation process for each brand, including Ghana, ensuring timely submission, version control, and compliance with internal and external requirements.
- Provide guidance and oversight to institutional teams on PIPO input, quality assurance, and sign-off protocols.
- Coordinate with AIT and relevant stakeholders to manage and update the Campus Qualification Offering (CQO) report across all platforms.
- Ensure alignment of academic programme data in the Academic Master and faculty delivery plans.

Academic Master Management & Maintenance
- Oversee the setup of new qualifications on the MIS platform, ensuring structural integrity, accurate credit and module data, and regulatory compliance.
- Approve and manage changes to existing qualification records (e.g., curriculum amendments, elective structures).
- Lead collaboration with AIT and the Head: Academic Insights & Reporting to test and verify configuration changes before go-live.
- Ensure documentation of all changes and configuration processes is centrally maintained and auditable.

Central Academic Calendar Development & Assessment Scheduling
- Drive the end-to-end development, approval, and publication of the centralised Academic Calendar and National Assessment Schedule (NAS) of the two institutions.
- Ensure synchronisation between academic cycles, assessment windows, and institutional planning timelines.
- Manage cross-functional alignment with stakeholders and compliance on critical dates and dependencies.
- Maintain governance and communication processes to respond to calendar changes or shifts across the academic year.

Academic Delivery Tracking & Escalation Oversight
- Monitor the centralised tracking of curriculum and assessment material readiness across all brands.
- Coordinate reporting and dashboards on material/assessment delivery statuses for relevant stakeholders.
- Support the escalation processes for delivery delays or risk areas, in collaboration with Institution Deans and other key stakeholders and Academic Planning.
- Ensure alignment with CAT AQA team for material verification and version control.

Asset Management
- Oversee the centralised tracking and stock control of assets (e.g., IT hardware) across CAT, ensuring standardisation and visibility.
- Coordinate asset allocation and distribution
- Manage asset lifecycle processes, including procurement planning, usage monitoring, maintenance scheduling, and decommissioning, in partnership with AIT and Procurement.
- Ensure asset governance compliance, maintain updated records for audits, support reconciliation reports, and implement controls to prevent loss, duplication, or misuse.

**Qualification**
- Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree for any of the following: Higher Education Management, Business Administration, Academic Planning or Educational Leadership
- Honours or Postgraduate Diploma in: Higher Education Studies / Academic Administration, Project Management (with academic or systems focus)—to be added as an advantage

**Experience**:

- Minimum of 5 years in an Academic Administration or Planning Manager
- Minimum of 3 years in an MIS/Systems Coordinator in Higher Education
- Minimum of 3 years as Project or Operations Manager (Academic Delivery)

**Competencies**:

- Academic Operational Planning- Systems & MIS Qualification Setup
- Stakeholder Coordination
- Change & Version Control
- Data Tracking & Reporting- Asset Management- Risk Escalation & Mitigation
- Attention to details
- Proactive problem-solving
- Resilience
- Accountab