Director for Budget Administration

Director for Budget Administration

Requisition Number: 72000

Location: Boulder, Colorado

Employment Type: University Staff

Schedule: Full Time

Posting Close Date: 28-May-2026

Job Summary

The Budget and Fiscal Planning Department at CU Boulder seeks a Director for Budget Administration. This role reports to the Assistant Vice Chancellor and serves as a key contact for campus initiatives, providing budget expertise and representing the Budget and Fiscal Planning (BFP) department. The Director will manage campus-facing projects independently, keeping the Assistant Vice Chancellor informed of significant developments.

Key responsibilities include managing the campus incentive-based budget model, facilitating departmental budget support, and leading budget aspects of institutional compensation planning. The Director will implement campus-wide budget allocations based on executive decisions, determine campus cost allocations, and facilitate allocation discussions. This role connects campus vision, strategic priorities, and initiatives to actionable plans through data analysis, evaluation, and implementation, providing timely, data-driven support to supervisors and campus leaders. Success in this role requires strong partnerships across the university, a clear understanding of institutional priorities, and proactive planning to align CU Boulder's resources with strategic goals and core values. The Director will cultivate high-trust, collaborative relationships with campus partners and proactively identify partners for training and relationship-building to ensure unit budget officers are well-equipped to manage unit budgets and understand the CU Boulder budget process.

CU Boulder is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to diversity and inclusion. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Who We Are

Budget & Fiscal Planning (BFP) collaborates with academic and administrative leaders to coordinate campus-wide budget and fiscal planning. BFP identifies and facilitates the allocation of resources essential for the Boulder campus to excel as a leading educational and research institution. Through collaboration, BFP connects ideas, resources, and decisions that drive university success.

Key Responsibilities

Department Leadership:

• Coordinate with fellow department leaders to review, refine, expand, and implement innovative practices that enhance services.
• Facilitate the development of department-wide goals and manage issues with department leaders, offering a supportive environment for exploring forward-thinking solutions.
• Provide backup support to department leaders to broaden departmental knowledge and experience.
• Mentor BFP staff and campus budget representatives, offering training to ensure staff and campus unit representatives are proficient in budget management.
• Present results-oriented plans and projections to peers, supervisors, and department leadership.
• Translate Assistant Vice Chancellor and departmental priorities into clear operational plans, deliverables, and team workflows.

Project Management and Support:

• Lead budgetary and resource planning efforts, including regular review and analysis of financial information.
• Organize the development of materials for analyzing, reviewing, and supporting budgetary needs, discussions, and reporting, including maintaining the campus budget model.
• Ensure timely distribution of financial reports to support decision-making and financial accountability across all institutional levels.
• Coordinate the implementation of campus revenue-sharing agreements, particularly those governing tuition revenue collection and distribution.
• Monitor institutional and departmental budget performance monthly, identifying trends and proposing solutions.
• Collaborate with budget and financial management teams to understand budget variance drivers and recommend actions for budget shortfalls and other variances.
• Build collaborative relationships with CU Boulder colleagues and leadership to gather, clarify, and encourage the communication of information necessary for process improvement and effective project delivery.
• Set deadlines and assign project responsibilities to staff based on individual expertise.
• Prepare and present weekly updates to the supervisor and create formal and informal reports and presentations for management.
• Coordinate with the supervisor and relevant departments to ensure deliverables incorporate input from affected units.
• Manage, track, document, and ensure timely delivery of cyclical, scheduled, and ad-hoc requests from the supervisor.
• Review data inputs for the budget model to validate accuracy and clarity for users.
• Ensure alignment between budget model outputs, financial systems, and campus communications.

Cross-Department Partnerships and Engagements:

• Act as a liaison between centralized budget/financial analysts, the supervisor, and campus constituents to define problems, determine project scope, address issues, and ensure effective and timely project completion.
• Lead critical path and/or high-level projects, guiding project members toward timely solutions by developing, presenting, and interpreting data-rich information tailored to the financial expertise of each audience member.
• Participate in job-related committees and engagements organized by partner departments, such as the Campus Controller's Office, Data Analytics, Provost's Office, and Enrollment Management.
• Serve as the BFP lead on campus-wide projects, developing modeling and analysis as needed, and providing budget expertise to critical campus projects while also contributing as an individual.

Supervision, Management, and Development:

• Establish and monitor staff performance and development goals, set objectives, determine priorities, and conduct regular coaching and annual performance appraisals.
• Organize and assign workflow, providing clear and direct communication to establish focus and ensure employees understand their duties and delegated tasks.
• Monitor and manage daily production activities, providing constructive feedback and supporting issue resolution.
• Foster teamwork and encourage open communication, curiosity, feedback, and involvement in decision-making processes.
• Build positive relationships with employees, offer motivational support, and cultivate a work culture that challenges, respects, and engages staff.
• Ensure business and service continuity by identifying and assigning backup project leads for all cyclical and major deliverables; assess knowledge gaps to coordinate training and skill development for cross-trained personnel.

What You Should Know

• This position offers a hybrid work modality.

What We Can Offer

• The annual salary range for this full-time position is $150,000 - $170,000.
• A one-time hiring bonus allowance may be available, subject to applicable guidelines for the Business, Finance and Infrastructure department.

Benefits

The University of Colorado Boulder offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and retirement plans; generous paid time off; tuition assistance for employees and dependents; and an ECO Pass for local transit. Explore additional perks and programs through the CU Advantage program.

Be Statements

Be ambitious. Be inspired. Be Boulder.

What We Require

• Bachelor's degree from a four-year accredited institution.
• A minimum of four years of relevant experience in higher education budget and finance, or related experience, including at least one year of supervisory experience.
• Equivalent combinations of education and experience may be considered.

What You Will Need

• Ability to foster teamwork and collaborate effectively with others, whether in a project management, team leadership, or member role.
• Experience managing change and supporting leadership initiatives to enhance revenues, reduce expenses, and improve efficiencies.
• A flexible mindset, open to listening and considering options and ideas that may require additional effort but offer significant potential.
• Skill in coaching and encouraging team members and stakeholders, from analysts to leadership, through complex data, processes, and forms.
• Proactive relationship-building abilities, with a genuine interest in enabling the success of others to strengthen internal partnerships at CU Boulder.
• Attentive and ethical communication skills, with excellent verbal and written abilities to explain complex financial processes and decisions tailored to the audience.
• Thorough analytical thinking, with the ability to approach problems logically and systematically, committed to producing complete, accurate, and carefully prepared documents.
• A forward-thinking, results-oriented approach, utilizing data and institutional knowledge to forecast issues and opportunities, and preparing appropriate options for various outcomes.
• Technical expertise and demonstrated depth of knowledge in public higher education budget modeling, including advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Word, and Outlook.
• Ability to manage and manipulate large datasets, transforming them into formats understandable by diverse constituents.
• Experience as both an independent and team contributor, demonstrating initiative to address tasks and issues proactively.
• Self-confidence and willingness to take an independent stance, communicate honestly with leadership, and professionally advocate for a position.

Special Instructions

To apply, please submit the following materials:

1. A current resume.
2. A cover letter detailing how your background and experience align with the position's requirements, qualifications, and responsibilities.

References may be requested at a later stage.

Please apply by May 28th, 2026, for consideration.

Application materials will not be accepted via email. Please apply through CU Boulder Jobs.

In compliance with the Colorado Job Application Fairness Act, you may redact or remove age-identifying information from submitted materials.

To apply, visit https://jobs.colorado.edu/jobs/JobDetail/Director-for-Budget-Administration/72000.

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The University of Colorado does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, pregnancy, disability, creed, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, political affiliation, or political philosophy. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply.