The Chief Operating Officer (COO) is responsible forend-to-end operational strategy and execution across the University/Group, ensuring that the student experience, digital and technology capabilities, and physical campus infrastructure are integrated, future-ready, and aligned to academic and institutional strategy.
The role exists to translate strategy into scalable operations, strengthen cross-functional execution, and ensure that Taylor's delivers a coherent, high-quality student journey supported by modern systems and fit-for-purpose campuses.
Key Accountabilities:
1. Enterprise Operations & Strategic Execution
- Act as the University's principal integrator of operations, ensuring alignment between academic priorities, student needs, digital enablement, and physical infrastructure.
- Translate institutional strategy into clear operating models, execution roadmaps, and delivery milestones.
- Drive cross-functional decision-making, breaking down silos across operational domains.
- Serve as a strategic partner to the Vice-Chancellor / President and Executive Management Committee on operational trade-offs, sequencing, and risk.
2. Student Experience & Services
- Provide executive oversight of Student Experience and Student Services, ensuring a seamless end-to-end journey from enrolment to graduation.
- Ensure student touchpoints (academic services, non-academic services, campus life, wellbeing, support services) are designed intentionally and delivered consistently.
- Champion a student-centric operating mindset, using data, feedback, and service design principles to continuously improve experience and outcomes.
- Ensure student experience strategies are scalable across institutions and campuses, not fragmented by unit or function.
3. Digital, Data & Technology Enablement
- Provide strategic oversight of Digital & Technology, including enterprise systems, data platforms, automation, AI enablement, and cybersecurity.
- Ensure technology investments are purpose-driven, enabling better student experience, staff productivity, and operational efficiency - not technology for its own sake.
- Drive a digital operating model that supports academic delivery, student engagement, analytics, and decision-making.
- Partner closely with academic and corporate leaders to ensure digital initiatives are embedded into ways of working, not run as standalone IT projects.
4. Estates, Facilities & Campus Development
- Provide executive leadership over Estates & Facilities, including campus operations, maintenance, space planning, capital projects, and sustainability initiatives.
- Ensure campuses are safe, functional, future-ready, and aligned to the academic and student experience vision.
- Oversee long-term campus master planning, balancing growth, cost discipline, ESG considerations, and student experience.
- Ensure optimal utilisation of physical assets across the institution/group.
5. Governance, Risk & Operational Resilience
- Ensure strong operational governance, risk management, and business continuity across all operational domains.
- Establish clear accountability, performance metrics, and reporting for functions under the COO's remit.
- Ensure regulatory, safety, and compliance requirements related to operations, facilities, and systems are met.
6. Leadership & Culture
- Lead and develop senior leaders across Student Experience, Digital & Technology, and Estates & Facilities.
- Build a culture of execution discipline, collaboration, and accountability.
- Act as a visible role model for enterprise thinking - prioritising institutional outcomes over functional optimisation.
Job Requirements:
Education & Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Management, Engineering, Education, or a related field.
- MBA or relevant postgraduate qualification is strongly preferred.
- Executive leadership or governance certifications (e.g. INSEAD, Harvard, or equivalent) are advantageous.
Experience
- 15+ years of progressive leadership experience, including significant time in executive or C-suite roles overseeing large, complex operations.
- Proven track record of leading multi-functional portfolios (e.g. operations, digital/technology, customer/student experience, infrastructure/facilities).
- Demonstrated success in translating strategy into execution at enterprise scale, including delivery of large transformation programmes.
- Experience operating in complex, matrixed organisations with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.
- Strong background in driving cross-functional integration and breaking down organisational silos.
- Experience overseeing digital transformation, enterprise systems, and data-driven operating models.
- Experience managing large-scale physical infrastructure, estates, or asset-heavy environments is highly desirable.
- Prior experience in higher education is preferred experience in similarly complex, service- and asset-intensive sectors (e.g. healthcare, hospitality, aviation, large consumer services) is also highly relevant.
Skills & Capabilities
- Strong enterprise and systems thinking, with the ability to connect strategy, operations, technology, and customer/student experience.
- Exceptional strategic planning and execution capability, with disciplined follow-through.
- Proven ability to lead large-scale organisational transformation and change initiatives.
- Strong financial and commercial acumen, including capital planning and investment prioritisation.
- Deep understanding of digital, data, and technology as enablers of operational excellence.
- Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills at Board, executive, and external levels.
- Ability to make high-quality decisions in complex, ambiguous, and fast-changing environments.
- Strong governance, risk management, and operational resilience expertise.
