Assistant Director

**COMPANY DESCRIPTION**

Singapore Management University is a place where high-level professionalism blends together with a healthy informality. The 'family-like' atmosphere among the SMU community fosters a culture where employees work, plan, organise and play together building a strong collegiality and morale within the university.

Our commitment to attract and retain talent is ongoing. We offer attractive benefits and welfare, competitive compensation packages, and generous professional development opportunities all to meet the work-life needs of our staff. No wonder, then, that SMU continues to be given numerous awards and recognition for its human resource excellence.

**RESPONSIBILITIES**
- This position is for Office of Campus Infrastructure and Services (OCIS).
- Stakeholder Engagement & Communication Strategy:
- Develop and execute a comprehensive stakeholder engagement strategy to ensure effective communication and alignment with internal and external stakeholders.
- Serve as the primary point of contact for all stakeholder-related inquiries, providing timely updates and addressing concerns or issues that may arise.
- Establish and maintain positive, long-term relationships with key stakeholders, including senior management, faculty, departments, external partners, and vendors.
- Regularly assess and assess stakeholder needs and adjust engagement strategies to ensure ongoing support and buy-in.
- Project Management, Coordination & Collaboration:
- Oversee the project coordination, and where necessary to lead committees to ensure that project deliveries are adhered to, meeting the intent of both stakeholders, space users balancing against budget and timelines.
- Be responsible for managing and facilitating the relationship between the organization and its contractors, coordinating closely with existing team. In addition to ensure contractors understand project requirements, adhere to organizational standards, and meet contractual obligations.
- Collaborate with project managers, business units, and external consultants to ensure that stakeholder expectations are clearly understood and met.
- Act as the liaison between project teams and stakeholders, facilitating clear communication, gathering feedback, and ensuring alignment on project goals and milestones.
- Ensure proper handover and taking over of spaces, pre/post renovation works. (including helping to manage defects and client feedback).
- Facilitate regular stakeholder meetings, workshops, and presentations to communicate project progress, changes, and key decisions.
- Drive and document steering committee meetings, ensuring clear action items, follow-ups, and alignment with project objectives.
- Assist in coordinating project timelines, deliverables, and milestones to ensure smooth execution.
- Space Planning:
- Co-Lead the design process, collaborating with architects and designers to create innovative and functional workspace solutions.
- Ensure design concepts align with organizational feedback, culture, brand identity, and operational requirements and help identify initiatives that could promote sustainability.
- Assist in space planning initiatives, working closely with facilities and project teams to optimize resource allocation and usage.
- Participate in space planning discussions to align facility needs with organizational goals and project requirements.
- Monitor existing space planning initiatives, ensuring alignment between proposed project with existing space planning initiatives.
- Reporting & Documentation:
- Prepare and present regular stakeholder engagement reports to senior leadership, summarizing feedback, concerns, and progress in addressing stakeholder needs.
- Maintain accurate records of stakeholder interactions, meetings, and correspondence for reference and transparency.
- Create and distribute internal and external communications, such as project microsite, updates, and project briefings, to keep stakeholders informed.
- Ensure documentation of project management processes, space planning efforts, and steering committee decisions.
- Issue Management & Conflict Resolution:
- Proactively identify potential risks or concerns that could impact stakeholder relationships or project progress and develop strategies to mitigate these issues.
- Address conflicts or misunderstandings between stakeholders and the project team promptly and professionally, ensuring resolution in a timely manner.
- Continuous Improvement:
- Continuously evaluate and improve stakeholder engagement strategies to ensure the highest level of effectiveness and satisfaction.
- Gather and analyze stakeholder feedback to enhance future projects and improve engagement processes.
- Implement best practices in project management, space planning, and steering committee documentation to enhance organizational effectiveness.
- Other duties as assigned.

**QUALIFICATIONS**
- Minimum of 7 to 10 years of experience in stakeholder engagement, management of multi-d