Job description

Position: Director of Office of Strategy, Institutional Performance & Emerging Technology

Classification: Director Level

Reports To: President

About The American International University

American International University (AIU) is a private institution in Kuwait, founded in 2019, offering undergraduate programs in Engineering, Architecture and Design, Business Administration, Arts and Sciences, and Education, delivered in English on the American model of higher education. AIU serves a community of over 3,000 students and is executing the RISE Strategy 2026–2030 a five-year institutional transformation anchored in research development, WSCUC international accreditation, student success, and community engagement.

A strategy without execution discipline is a wish list. The Office of Strategy, Institutional Performance & Emerging Technology exists to ensure that AIU's ambitions documented in the RISE Strategy, approved by the Board of Trustees, and communicated to every stakeholder are operationalized, tracked, adjusted when evidence demands it, and delivered on time. The Director of this office is the President's closest strategic partner and AIU's institutional accountability mechanism.

For more information, visit: www.aiu.edu.kw

Department Profile

The Office of Strategy, Institutional Performance & Emerging Technology operates as a direct extension of the President's Office, serving as the institutional coordination and performance intelligence function that supports the execution of AIU's strategic priorities. Rather than functioning as a traditional planning department, the Office ensures that institutional strategy is translated into measurable outcomes through performance management, executive reporting, and strategic technology evaluation. The Office owns three interconnected responsibilities that together strengthen AIU's institutional effectiveness:

1. Strategy & Institutional Performance: Leading the RISE Strategy execution cycle, institutional KPI monitoring, quarterly performance reporting, Board reporting, annual strategy review, and continuous improvement of AIU's institutional performance management framework using the Balanced Scorecard methodology.
2. Emergent Technology Intelligence:
   Scouting, evaluating, and piloting emerging technologies relevant to AIU's academic and administrative operations functioning as an innovation incubator that identifies what is ready for institutional adoption before the CIO integrates it at scale.
3. Strategic Project Alignment: Coordinating with the University's existing PMO and Special Projects structure to monitor the strategic alignment and progress of major institutional initiatives, ensuring the President receives timely updates on projects that materially affect strategic objectives.

Scope of Work

The Director, Office of Strategy, Institutional Performance & Emerging Technology carries three complementary mandates that reinforce one another. Institutional strategy provides direction, performance management measures progress, and emerging technology enables innovation that supports AIU's long-term strategic priorities. The Director ensures these three functions operate in alignment to support informed executive decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

1. RISE Strategy Execution and Balanced Scorecard Management

• Own the AIU RISE Strategy 2026–2030 execution cycle translating Board-approved strategic objectives into annual operating plans, quarterly milestones, and individual VP and Dean accountability commitments
• Design, maintain, and continuously improve AIU's Balanced Scorecard the institutional performance management framework that cascades RISE Strategy KPIs from institutional level through school, department, and individual levels ensuring that every function can see how its work connects to the strategy
• Conduct quarterly strategy performance reviews with each VP reviewing KPI progress, identifying risks to delivery, proposing course corrections, and escalating material issues to the President with recommended responses
• Prepare the Annual Strategic Progress Report the principal annual document presented to the Board of Trustees each November synthesizing Balanced Scorecard data, institutional KPI achievements, variance explanations, and the following year's adjusted priorities into a clear, evidence-based narrative for Board review
• Manage the annual strategic planning calendar coordinating the February environmental scan, April-May VP planning submissions, June-July budget-strategy alignment, September Board approval, and November Board progress review ensuring that planning is a continuous cycle rather than an annual event
• Maintain the RISE Strategy risk register identifying strategic risks, assessing likelihood and impact, tracking mitigation actions, and reporting to the President and Board Audit & Risk Committee quarterly
• Coordinate with the Institutional Research Office to ensure that all Balanced Scorecard data is sourced from verified institutional systems no KPI reported to the Board may be based on unverified or manually assembled data.

2. Emergent Technology Intelligence and Innovation Piloting

• Lead AIU's horizon scanning function systematically monitoring emerging technologies relevant to higher education (generative AI, adaptive learning systems, learning analytics, spatial computing, research tools) and producing quarterly Technology Intelligence Briefings for the President and Senior Leadership Team
• Design and manage AIU's innovation piloting programme a structured process for testing emerging technologies in controlled institutional environments before recommending them for full adoption. Pilots are time-bounded, evidence-evaluated, and documented for institutional learning regardless of outcome
• Coordinate with the CIO to ensure that emergent technology intelligence flows effectively between the scouting function (this Office) and the operational integration function (CIO/Digital Transformation Office) the Director scouts and pilots; the CIO scales and operates
• Develop and maintain AIU's Emergent Technology Watchlist a living document tracking technologies at horizon, early adoption, and evaluation stages updated quarterly and shared with Deans and VPs to inform curriculum development, research direction, and administrative investment decisions
• Represent AIU in GCC and international higher education technology forums building relationships with peer institutions, technology providers, and research networks that provide early access to innovation relevant to AIU's strategic priorities
• Evaluate all significant unsolicited technology proposals received by the President's Office providing structured, evidence-based assessments that enable the President to make informed decisions quickly without technical bias

3. Strategic Project Alignment and Executive Reporting

• Coordinate with the existing PMO / Special Projects structure to monitor the strategic alignment of major institutional projects and provide updates to the President as required.
• Review executive project portfolio reports prepared by the PMO / Special Projects structure, assessing strategic alignment, institutional risks, and matters requiring Presidential attention.
• Monitor strategically significant cross-functional projects designated by the President, ensuring alignment with institutional priorities and escalating strategic issues requiring executive attention.
• Coordinate with the Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO) and the PMO / Special Projects structure to monitor accreditation-related project milestones (eligibility application, self-study, SAV1, SAV2), highlighting strategic risks and providing executive updates when timelines are at risk.
• Support Deans and VPs in applying project management discipline to their own portfolio of strategic initiatives providing coaching, templates, and periodic portfolio reviews rather than doing the project management for them.
• Coordinate the AIU Strategic Projects Review by consolidating strategic project updates from the PMO / Special Projects structure, facilitating executive discussion, and preparing concise, action-oriented summaries for the President.
• Coordinate with internal project sponsors and external consultants on strategic initiatives as required, ensuring the President receives timely updates on key deliverables, risks, and institutional implications.

4. Presidential Advisory and Institutional Intelligence

• Serve as the President's primary strategic advisor on institutional performance providing candid, evidence-based assessments of where AIU is ahead of plan, where it is behind, and what the President needs to decide or direct to keep the institution on track
• Prepare and curate the President's institutional intelligence package a regular briefing document synthesising strategic performance data, competitive intelligence on peer institutions, accreditation progress, and emerging risks enabling the President to lead from a position of current, verified information
• Draft the President's strategic communications including the annual state-of-institution address, Board Chair correspondence on strategic matters, and institutional strategy updates to faculty, staff, and the Kuwait higher education community
• Coordinate the Senior Leadership Team agenda and strategic discussion calendar ensuring that the President's leadership team spends its meeting time on decisions, not on status updates that could be communicated in writing
• Represent the President at external meetings, conferences, and stakeholder engagements on strategic matters when delegated and provide detailed briefings and follow-up when representing AIU externally
• Maintain AIU's institutional memory on strategic decisions documenting the reasoning behind major institutional choices so that future leadership teams understand not just what was decided but why, enabling continuity through leadership transitions

Minimum Qualifications:

Education

• Doctoral degree required in Strategy, Higher Education Management, Business Administration (MBA), Public Administration, Project Management, or a closely related field.
• Candidates with strong GCC higher education strategic planning experience are strongly considered.

Experience

• Minimum eight (8) years of progressive experience in higher education, with at least four (4) years in a strategic planning, institutional effectiveness, or senior project management leadership role at a GCC university.
• Demonstrated experience managing a university's strategic planning cycle from environmental scanning through KPI development, annual review, Board reporting, and plan revision in a GCC institutional context.
• Proven experience implementing or managing a Balanced Scorecard or equivalent institutional performance management framework candidates must be able to describe a specific implementation, not just familiarity with the concept.
• Experience working with institutional project portfolios and executive reporting, including monitoring strategic initiatives, interpreting project status information, and advising senior leadership on institutional priorities and risks
• Direct experience working with or reporting to a university President or equivalent executive candidates must be comfortable advising at C-suite level, preparing Board-level documents, and maintaining professional discretion in a senior advisory role.
• Experience with WASC or comparable institutional accreditation project management understanding how accreditation timelines translate into institutional project portfolios is a material advantage.

Technical and Analytical Knowledge

• Proficiency with strategic planning and Balanced Scorecard frameworks candidates must demonstrate working knowledge of the BSC four-perspective model (financial, stakeholder, internal processes, learning & growth) and its application in a higher education context.
• Strong data analytics and visualization capability the Director must produce Balanced Scorecard dashboards and strategic performance reports that Board members with no higher education background can read and act on.
• Project management methodology proficiency (Prince2, PMP, or equivalent). Working knowledge of project management methodologies sufficient to interpret project reporting, assess strategic risks, and support executive oversight of institutional initiatives. PMP certification is considered an advantage.
• Technology literacy sufficient to evaluate emerging technologies at a strategic level the Director does not need to be a technologist, but must be literate enough to assess a vendor demonstration, understand integration implications, and ask the right questions of the CIO.
• Familiarity with Kuwait's higher education regulatory environment PUC requirements, institutional governance obligations, and the competitive landscape of Kuwait's private university sector.

Skills, Competencies and Personal Attributes

• The political intelligence to hold VPs and Deans accountable for RISE Strategy delivery without making accountability feel like surveillance the Director must be seen as a partner in execution, not an auditor of failure
• Exceptional executive communication the ability to translate complex institutional performance data into a three-paragraph President's briefing, a ten-slide Board presentation, or a one-page project status update all with the same rigour and none of the same length
• Strategic patience combined with operational awareness—the ability to maintain a five-year strategic perspective while monitoring the progress, risks, and institutional impact of major strategic initiatives.
• Cultural intelligence appropriate to AIU's multicultural GCC environment working effectively with Kuwaiti faculty, international administrators, owner Board members, PUC representatives, and WSCUC accreditation staff requires different registers and relationship norms.
• Professional discretion at the highest level the Director has access to the most sensitive institutional information: financial projections, personnel decisions, accreditation risks, and Board deliberations. This access is a privilege that requires absolute confidentiality.

Preferred Qualifications

• PMP (Project Management Professional) certification. The formal credential is considered an advantage for interpreting project reporting and supporting executive oversight of institutional initiatives.
• Experience with a university’s WASC accreditation project portfolio, including sequencing of eligibility, self-study, SAV1, and SAV2 milestones as institutional activities with named owners and defined escalation paths.
• Prior experience in a Chief of Staff or Strategy Director role in a GCC university. Candidates who have served as principal strategic advisors to a university President in the Gulf will have strong familiarity with institutional dynamics, stakeholder relationships, and cultural context.
• Published research or professional contribution to strategic planning or institutional effectiveness in GCC higher education, demonstrating thought leadership rather than solely operational experience.
• Arabic language proficiency is an advantage for engagement with Kuwaiti Board members, MOHE officials, and Arabic-speaking stakeholders.

How to Apply

Interested candidates should visit the Job Opportunities section on the AIU website and submit a complete application comprising:

• A current curriculum vitae
• A cover letter (maximum 3 pages) addressing three specific questions: (1) Describe the most significant strategic planning or institutional performance management system you personally built or led in a GCC university — what was the starting state, what did you build, and how did leadership use it to make better decisions? (2) Describe a major institutional strategic initiative that you supported through executive reporting, performance management, or strategic advisory work. How did your analysis influence executive decision-making? (3) How would you approach the first 90 days in this role at AIU what would you learn, what would you establish, and what would you avoid doing too early?
• A one-page strategy diagnostic framework not a business plan, but a sample of how you would structure a quarterly strategy review for the President: what data would you present, in what format, and how would you frame the President's decision-making agenda
• Contact details for three professional referees at least two of whom can speak to your strategic planning or PMO leadership work, and at least one of whom is a university President, Provost, or equivalent executive you reported to or directly supported

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. The selection process includes a structured interview with the President and a strategy presentation exercise candidates are given AIU's RISE Strategy KPI framework and asked to present a hypothetical Q2 strategy review to the President and two VPs. This exercise is the most reliable test of whether a candidate can do this job.

Submit application via: https://aiu.edu.kw/careers/jobs

The successful candidate is expected to commence employment at the earliest convenience, and no later than September 2026.

AIU is an equal opportunity employer committed to academic excellence, professional integrity, and the digital future of Kuwaiti higher education.