Senior Associate

Position Summary

Reporting to the Associate Director, the Senior Associate, Resident Support oversees day-to-day Resident Support operations and ensures high-quality, responsive housing services for Columbia Residential residents and prospective residents, including graduate and General Studies students, as well as faculty, postdoctoral, and non-affiliate populations. The role supervises the Resident Support front office, manages high-volume communication channels, supports services across the housing lifecycle, and serves as a primary escalation point for complex cases, emergencies, and policy matters.

Responsibilities

• Provides operational leadership by supervising front office staff, ensuring appropriate staffing coverage, consistent service delivery, and compliance with University policies and housing regulations.
• Serves as the primary escalation point for complex resident matters—including policy, wellness, and safety incidents—by overseeing Maxient case coordination, documentation, and resolution with campus partners to support resident safety and mitigate institutional risk
• Manages high-volume communications across email, phone, LiveChat, and walk-in channels, and oversee the 24/7 emergency phone program (coverage, protocols, after-hours response), including emergency relocations and Essential Personnel responsibilities during closures
• Partners with the Associate Director to implement customer service strategy by setting service standards and metrics, producing insights and reporting, and delivering training and initiatives that improve quality and staff performance
• Collaborates with Leasing Administration to identify lifecycle process gaps and recurring issues (selection, move-in/out, transfers, extensions, sublets, cancellations) and implements improvements to processes, communications, and documentation to increase efficiency and reduce escalations
• Collaborates with Leasing Administration to identify lifecycle process gaps and recurring issues (selection, move-in/out, transfers, extensions, sublets, cancellations) and implements improvements to processes, communications, and documentation to increase efficiency and reduce escalations
• Performs other duties as assigned or as necessary

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and or equivalent.
• A minimum of 4 years in related University Housing position, leasing, or real estate office required
• Excellent customer service and communication skills, both written and verbal
• Demonstrated supervisory or team-lead experience
• Must possess strong organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills
• Ability to manage sensitive situations with discretion, sound judgment, and professionalism

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior management-level customer experience

Job Type: Officer of Administration

Salary Range: $80,000 – $83,000

Location: New York, New York

Type: Full-time

Categories: Staff/Administrative