About the Purdue Applied Research Institute

The Purdue Applied Research Institute, LLC (PARI) seeks an experienced, highly motivated, and resourceful leader with the proven ability to operationalize a bold and ambitious strategic plan to join its leadership team as the Chief Operating Officer. As a Purdue Next Moves strategic initiative, PARI was launched in July 2021 as the new non-profit applied research arm of Purdue University, which has more than 1,900 full-time faculty, 50,000 graduate and undergraduate students, and many one-of-a-kind research facilities on its West Lafayette campus. Purdue’s engineering, cybersecurity, and agriculture programs are consistently ranked in the Top-10 for both quality and scale, and the university had record research expenditures of $780M in fiscal year 2022. With more than a $110M, 5-year strategic investment, PARI was created to extend the reach and impact of Purdue’s deep talent and research strengths in engineering, science, technology and policy by enhancing the university’s ability to translate discoveries into innovative solutions and services for mission-driven federal, industry, NGO, and foundation sponsors. PARI’s structure and outcome-driven culture is providing the agility and responsiveness to deliver large and complex programs in national security and defense, international development, and other advanced technologies.

Position Summary

The Chief Operating Officer (COO) will provide the vision and leadership to develop, implement and communicate PARI’s operations strategy and priorities to meet Purdue’s Next Moves targets for program delivery and impact. As PARI grows in scale and complexity, this individual will have overall responsibility to work with senior leaders at PARI and Purdue to define, staff, and oversee critical operating functions for the organization. The COO will ensure that PARI’s resources are coordinated and managed in a way to achieve self-sufficient operation on external funding after five years, which requires a deep understanding of federal and non-federal programs as well as complex research and commercialization environments. The successful candidate will have strong organizational, problem solving, risk management, people and communication skills. This position reports directly to the PARI Executive Director, is a key member of the PARI senior leadership team, and will provide regular reports to the PARI Board of Managers and Technical Advisory Board.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Set comprehensive strategic and operational goals for performance and growth as a member of the PARI senior leadership team.
• Design and implement operations strategies, plans, and procedures that support PARI as it grows in scale and complexity.
• Develop and maintain an effective organizational structure to support the evolving needs of PARI operations and to provide excellent service to mission-driven sponsors including DOD and USAID.
• Establish and maintain systems and policies that promote PARI culture and goals, including effective and efficient negotiation and delivery of complex federal and non-federal awards.
• Oversee daily operations of PARI and the work of the operations teams to include: finance and business; policies and procedures; proposal preparation and submission; contract costing, negotiation and administration; regulatory compliance, risk and security; talent management and human resources; physical facilities and information technology
• Remain current with evolving trends and changes in federal and non-federal programs, contracts, policies and procedures, and adjust operations to ensure optimal performance.
• Support regular reviews of PARI’s integrated program portfolio and elevates areas of opportunity or concern on financials, staffing, deliverables, security, sponsor relations.
• Support the contract proposal bid/no-bid decision process, including evaluating alignment with PARI mission and goals, technical capabilities, talent management, financial benefit and risk.
• Evaluate performance of PARI and its divisions by analyzing and interpreting data and comparing to targets, and provide insights and suggestions to senior leadership.
• Participate in evaluation of major long-term investments to include: capital construction, major research instruments, service agreements, new alliances and locations.
• Recruit, develop, and retain a diverse and inclusive workforce to support PARI’s operations in accordance with budgetary objectives and personnel policies.
• Ensure high-quality delivery of operations functions through regular communication with end users and regular assessment of performance metrics.
• Prepare and submit reports to the Executive Director in matters of importance.
• Serve as a key liaison and partner to Purdue leadership and stakeholders.
• Promote and manage strategic relationships with external partners and vendors, including programs that are highly sensitive and confidential.
• Other duties as assigned.
  

Essential Qualifications and Experience

• Master’s degree in business or management, engineering, science, or related fields.
• Minimum 10 years of relevant professional work experience, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership role in operations and administration.
• Previous experience in an organization with a complex portfolio of federal contracts and awards from DOD, IC, DOE, and USAID (including classified programs) is strongly preferred.
• Detailed knowledge of federal contracting to include: federal cost principles, Contracting Accounting Standard (CAS) compliance, and applicable laws and regulations.
• Experience with business processes, operations, management, and budgeting.
• Experience establishing and maintaining systems, processes, policies, and procedures to manage federally funded contracts and awards in a complaint manner.
• Strong understanding of talent resource management principles, practices, and procedures.
• Experienced in researching and preparing executive level documents, reports, and presentations.
• Experience in strategic planning and implementation.
  

Additional Requirements

• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and negotiation skills.
• Ability to build trusted relationships with diverse internal and external constituencies.
• High administrative and analytical skills, able to see patterns at the enterprise level, be a fast thinker, and make decisions with attention to accuracy, detail, and local context.
• Proven ability to effectively organize, prioritize and perform multiple functions, meet deadlines with short turn-around times, and manage changing situations.
• Demonstrated experience leading, managing and fostering a team in rapidly changing and deadline driven context.
• Skilled supervisor and coach, able to motivate or inspire both junior and senior staff.
• Demonstrate patience, reliability, composure, and stability under pressure.
• Adaptable and open to change as the organization evolves and grows.
• Experience working in higher education environment and/or a non-profit managing a diverse portfolio of projects funded by a wide range of USG and non-USG sponsors is preferred.
• U.S. Citizenship and ability to acquire a Top-Secret Clearance.

This position will allow a hybrid work environment, with 50% at PARI HQ in West Lafayette IN. Nominations and applications will be accepted until the position is filled. Applications and expressions of interest should be accompanied by a cover letter addressing how the candidate’s experience and qualifications have prepared them for the role. Please send nominations to Stephanie Ferguson at fergus52@purdue.edu.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 6 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at purdue.edu.

Purdue University is committed to advancing diversity. The University and the department value, nurture and respect all members of its community, and ensure an environment of inclusive excellence where all students, faculty, and staff are inspired and empowered to achieve their full potential.

Purdue University is an EOE/AA employer. All individuals, including minorities, women, individuals with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply.