Project Manager, AI Institute

Project Manager, AI Institute

The AI Institute Project Manager provides centralized administrative, operational, and communications support for the AI Institute, a newly established research unit within the Office of Research at Syracuse University. Reporting to the Institute Director, the Project Manager serves as the institutes primary administrative coordinator, responsible for day-to-day operations that enable faculty, staff, and researchers to focus on research and scholarship.

The Project Manager works in coordination with central university partners to ensure institute activities align with established processes and policies. Research administration coordination is performed in partnership with the Office of Sponsored Programs, Research Development, Sponsored Accounting, the Research Post-Award team, and schools/colleges. Finance and operations are coordinated with the Office of Research Finance and Operations team and the Graduate School. Communications work is coordinated with the institutes external marketing partner and SUs marketing and communications teams as needed. Reporting and metrics work is coordinated with the VPR Data team.

This is a generalist role designed to provide centralized administrative capacity at launch, working in partnership with central university units that lead specialist functions.

Education and Experience:

Required:

• Bachelors degree in a relevant discipline (business, communications, public administration, or related field), or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Three (3+) plus years of progressively responsible administrative, operations, or program management experience, preferably in a higher education, research, or other complex organizational setting.

Preferred:

• Masters degree. Experience supporting a research institute, center, or academic unit.
• Familiarity with sponsored research administration, university financial systems, and event coordination.
• Project Management Institute (PMI) certification (CAPM or PMP) a plus.

Skills and Knowledge:

• Strong organizational and project coordination skills with the ability to manage multiple concurrent priorities under deadline pressure.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to draft clear correspondence, event materials, and internal communications for varied audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively across organizational boundaries and to coordinate with multiple stakeholder offices, including faculty, central administrative units, and external partners.
• Working knowledge of university financial, procurement, and HR systems; aptitude for learning new tools quickly.
• Sound judgment, discretion, and the ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Customer-service orientation and a collaborative working style.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite; familiarity with website content management, project management, and communications platforms preferred.

Responsibilities:

• Institute Operations. Manage day-to-day operations of the AI Institute, including office and space coordination, calendar and scheduling support for the Director, meeting logistics, hosting visitors and partners, and maintaining institute records and internal documentation. Serve as the primary point of contact for institute administrative matters.
• Events, Programs, and Outreach Coordination. Coordinate institute events and programs, including research symposia, seminars, webinars, partner convenings, and public-facing outreach activities. Manage end-to-end event logistics, including planning, vendor coordination, registration, communications, and on-site execution. Support outreach to faculty, students, campus partners, and external stakeholders to build engagement with institute activities.
• Finance, Operations, and Institute Administration. Coordinate office operations and process institute-level financial transactions, including procurement, reimbursements, p-card reconciliation, and routine account monitoring, in coordination with the Office of Research Finance and Operations team.
• Support hiring and onboarding logistics, visitor coordination and logistics, and routine personnel administration for institute personnel in coordination with the Office of Research Finance and Operations and Postdoc Affairs teams.
• Coordinate graduate student researcher and assistant appointments with the Graduate School, including appointment processing, onboarding logistics, and broader graduate student coordination as needed.
• Communications. Coordinate institute communications, including website content updates, newsletters, internal announcements, and event-related communications.
• Maintain institute-level communications materials and support correspondence with affiliated faculty, partners, and stakeholders.
• Institutional marketing strategy and branded materials development are led by the institutes external marketing partner and SUs marketing and communications teams, with whom the Project Manager works in close coordination.
• Research Administration and Coordination. Serve as the institutes primary liaison for research administration matters, coordinating pre- and post-award activities with campus partners on behalf of institute faculty.
• Pre-award coordination includes deadline tracking, internal routing, and serving as the institute liaison to the Office of Sponsored Programs for proposal submission and budget preparation.
• Post-award coordination includes routine sponsored account monitoring and serving as the institute liaison to the Office of Research Post-Award team and the Office of Sponsored Accounting for award setup, financial reporting and monitoring, effort certification, and closeout activities. Coordinate with partnering schools and colleges as needed for joint or cross-unit awards.