Associate Director, Budget Operations and Decision Support

Department: Budget and Resource Planning
This position is represented by the agreement between the Professional Staff Association and the University of Guelph

If you are a current employee of the University of Guelph you must apply on the internal Career Page in order to be considered as an internal applicant.

Career Opportunities (sapsf.com)

General Purpose

Under the direction of the Director, Budgets and Resources Planning of Financial Services, the Associate Director will lead the Decision Support Unit partnering with Deans, AVPs and financial managers across the University to understand business needs, including what drives their revenue sources and expense pressures. In successfully performing their responsibilities, the Associate Director must possess strong leadership skills that have been acquired through both formal training and extensive experience. A high level of discretion and confidentiality is required while having a customer service mindset to make sure leadership is well supported in their decision-making needs. The Associate Director may perform the responsibilities of the Director, Budgets and Resources Planning in his/her absence.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Consulting regularly with the senior leaders (Associate Vice-Presidents, Deans, department heads and budget and financial managers) of each Budget Planning Unit, the incumbent oversees the Decision Support Units analysis of financial position and works with them to identify budgetary needs and opportunities.
• Proactively providing well-informed and expert input as part of the contributions to the development of multi-year financial and resource planning.
• Maintaining excellent working relationships with senior and financial leaders across campus. Building trust around issues of financial reporting, compliance, position management and fiscal planning.
• Influencing decision makers toward optimal, evidence-based decisions across the organization.
• Leading the Decision Support Unit (DSU) composed of a team of 7 mainly professional accounting staff: 4 Decision Support Consultant and 3 Budget Analysts, in the delivery of positive high-quality service to a wide range of internal stakeholders. This task will require that all staff have the technical and systems skills to meet the constantly increasing financial planning complexities in Post-Secondary Education while maintaining high quality service in a high stress, deadline driven environment.

Requirements

• Completion of an undergraduate degree in finance, accounting, economics, or related field. A Master’s degree is preferred.
• CPA Designation is required.
• 7+ years of experience in budget development, financial management, and decision support in a complex organization.
• Leadership and management skills with ability to lead and motivate teams.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to synthesize complex financial data into meaningful insights.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills to present complex financial information to executives and stakeholders.
• Proficiency in financial modeling and analysis software such as Microsoft Excel, FRS, Oracle, Cognos, Tableau, etc.
• Proven track record of successfully managing large and complex budgets.
• Budgeting, forecasting, and project management experience.
• Ability to handle politically sensitive/confidential issues and incorporate institution-wide perspective.
• Extensive knowledge of complex financial environments in non-profit/public sector.
• High degree of commitment, motivation, and organization skills to handle high volume of work.

Employee Type: Regular
Position Number: 10325525

Classification: P&M FT- Band 09
Professional/Managerial Salary Bands
The target hiring salary for this position is minimum and up to 96% of midpoint for the salary grade.

*Tentative evaluation; subject to committee review.

At the University of Guelph, fostering a culture of inclusion is an institutional imperative. The University invites and encourages applications from all qualified individuals, including from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in employment, who may contribute to further diversification of our Institution.

Posting Date: 11/12/2026
Closing Date: 11/19/2026