Director of Digital Experience

Reporting to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Marketing & Strategic Positioning (AVC), the Director of Digital Experience (DDE) serves as a leader, change agent and driving force behind the integration of the University of Denver’s digital ecosystem, creating a seamless user experience across platforms and overseeing the front-end (content) advancement of the University’s website and implementation of the university brand in the digital space. The Director is responsible for overseeing front-end digital strategy, execution and reporting, ensuring the effectiveness of day-to-day activities within the teams supervised as well as supporting the overall quality of work done on behalf of the institution. Under the guidance of the AVC and in collaboration with partners overseeing back-end development, marketing, brand, creative, communications, market research and storytelling, the Director is responsible for influencing how people around the nation and globe interact with the University of Denver in a digital space, creating powerful tools and online experiences to support reputation, recruitment, and revenue generation.

This position must know and understand the role the website plays in building the University's reputation, as well as recruiting students and employees. The person in this position will develop a holistic view of the customer journey and apply data and insights to inform the ongoing improvement of the website that engages and converts, using data-driven decision-making, collaboration and innovation. The Director will provide support for campus partners across the University’s two campuses and in its communities, creating impactful digital experiences and ensuring DU’s digital tools are serving as its most effective marketing and communications platforms. This role combines supervisory responsibilities with contribution to and presentation of big ideas, responsibility for the care and optimization of DU’s website and content within its broader digital portfolio, and on-going establishment of the necessary systems and process that lead to efficient and effective outcomes for the University.

• Provides operational direction for the maintenance, optimization, enhancement, and ongoing optimization of DU’s Drupal and WordPress content management systems.
• In collaboration with AVC, creates and implements annual digital strategies in support of DU’s strategic priorities, with primary focus on reputational advancements; revenue-generation support for recruitment, fundraising, and other similar programs; thought leader/influencer advocacy; and other strategic priorities.  
• Forms close working partnership with IT counterparts to collaboratively provide strategic direction for the critical advancement and maintenance of the University’s website, mobile apps, Chatbot and other end user digital platforms.
• Recommends and oversees market research, usability and user testing activities, as needed, to support program.  
• Ensures website compliance with legal, privacy, regulatory and accreditation requirements.
• Actively monitors effectiveness of activities and leads optimization efforts to maximize results.  
• Sets policy, guidelines, and standards for official DU websites in collaboration with MarComm and IT senior leaders.  
• Analyzes, defines, and documents operational needs and objectives, current operational procedures, and system transactions and processes.
• Provides direction and strategic consultation for digital content (SEO, DAM, UI/UX, ADA compliance) to provide effective conversion funnels, landing pages and lending effectiveness to marketing efforts while also extending and expanding the reach of critical messages and differentiators.  
• Develops, executes and expands DU’s digital portfolio, creating enhancements that utilize localization, translation, regular usability/user testing, custom content delivery (personalization) and personas to maximize efforts and accomplish OKRs/KPIs.
• Directly manage strategic web, digital and interactive projects as needed.
• Collaborates on the implementation and on-going utilization of DU’s marketing automation platform, CRMs and MarComm’s digital marketing/technology suite.  
• Creates solutions that unify and integrates the digital ecosystem and transform it into an effective marketing and strategic communications system with user-focused enhancements in both form and front-end function.
• Supports the digital marketing program and portfolio in collaboration with marketing director colleagues. 
• Leads a team of web strategists responsible for increasing web traffic, engagement and conversion rates through content strategy, SEO and other digital marketing strategies. As a working manager, must be able to roll up sleeves and assist on any project team at any time to ensure positive outcomes. 
• Manages relationships with pool of freelance vendors and agencies to augment internal team’s capabilities and support strategic initiatives.  
• Serves as initial reviewer of team’s work and stands behind all work performed by digital experience teams, presenting and defending team’s work to internal and external constituents as appropriate.  
• Gathers and manages cross-functional teams for special projects as requested by AVC, ensuring that the members gathered for such projects understand roles, responsibilities and expected outcomes and deadlines.
• Constantly monitors and oversees workflow, proactively looking for opportunities to resolve process or procedures issues to provide all web and digital experience staff with the most efficient and effective framework to work within.

• Stewards the evolution of DU’s web infrastructure model and system in collaboration with IT counterparts.  
• Helps DU community understand the website’s intersection with target audiences, what central resources are available, and how to use the brand correctly in their online experiences. 
• Helps staff and campus partners understand and negotiate organizational change, so each staff member can grow and thrive.  
• Identifies areas of operational conflict/redundancy across campus and partners with campus colleagues to identify solutions.  
• Meets with MarComm leadership to assess and assign new project needs, and monitors ongoing work to ensure the smooth and efficient operation of the division.  
• Represents web/digital experience staff in the exchange of project information and deliverable needs up and down the communication stream. 
• Develops, implements and maintains work unit identity, design standards, policies, and procedures to ensure appropriate use of financial, administrative and staffing resources.
• Develops and monitors web and digital platform protocols, workflows and progress measurements to ensure production adheres to unit standards and objectives. 
• Oversees administration of DU’s CMS system training program to create a knowledge network and united community of web managers, authors and contributors across campus.  
• Serves as system administrator for web CMS systems, regularly reviewing system access and appropriate levels of access and permissions for campus community.  
• Tracks and documents changes in functional requirements and write detailed procedures and workflows that can be easily understood by the end users.
• Contributes to the implementation of and on-going utilization of DU’s PM system by ensuring the team maintains workflows within the system.
• Collaborates with brand and operations team leads to ensure digital asset management (DAM) systems are effectively structured and maintained.

• Aptitude to influence, build relationships, navigate politics, manage conflicts, and negotiate with colleagues to create mutually beneficial outcomes while maintaining a strong commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and equitable strategic practices.
• Ability to attract, retain, motivate, coach, and develop team members for high performance as well as create and maintain collaborative working relationships.
• Ability to quickly digest and synthesize complex information to activate teams swiftly when appropriate.
• Ability to condense complex messages into consistent, on-brand, and easy to understand messaging customized both effectiveness on digital platforms and with target audiences, along with the ability to vary delivery to match audience needs and unique customer journeys.
• Ability to be a team player, willing to pitch in on tasks that may be outside of usual responsibilities without an ego to support team as well as the successful achievement of business objectives and project outcomes.  
• Deep understanding of web and digital best practices with a proactive approach and demonstrated ability to create and improve processes and plans.
• Demonstrated ability to work on several initiatives requiring attention to detail, organization skills and project management at once in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Ability to analyze multiple data sets and make solid decisions and recommendations about ROI for short-term and long-term process and product improvements needed to yield results.
• Ability to maintain a high level of integrity, trustworthiness, confidentiality and respect while thinking creatively to solve complex problems and lead new initiative

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