Academic Department Manager

Competition 2254

This position is part of the Association of the Academic Staff of the University of Alberta (AASUA).

In accordance with the Administrative and Professional Officer Agreement, this position has a comprehensive benefits package and an annual salary range of $80,542 to $134,238.

Location - This role is in-person at North Campus Edmonton.

Working at the University of Alberta

The University of Alberta acknowledges that we are located on Treaty 6 territory, and respects the histories, languages and cultures of First Nations, Métis, Inuit and all FirstPeoples of Canada, whose presence continues to enrich our vibrant community.

The University of Alberta is a community of knowledge seekers, change makers and world shapers who lead with purpose each and every day. We are home to over 14,000 faculty and staff, more than 40,000 students and a growing community of 300,000 alumni worldwide.

Your work will have a meaningful influence on a fascinating cross-section of people — from our students and community members, to our renowned researchers and innovators, making discoveries and generating solutions that make the world healthier, safer, stronger and more just. Learn more.

Working for the Department of Family Medicine

The University of Alberta Department of Family Medicine is a top school for Family Medicine in Canada. As a department, we are responsible for educational innovations and research that have been adopted across Canada and internationally. We are innovative and creative thinkers, producing high-quality work. We are a learning organization, constantly seeking to improve how we do what we do for our learners, patients, and communities.

Position Summary

In collaboration to lead Alberta’s Largest Academic Primary-Care Team

If you have steered a PCN or comparable primary-care enterprise through growth and change—and you’re ready to scale that impact province-wide—this role is built for you.

As the Academic Department Manager (ADM), you will partner with the Department Chair to run a $33 million academic enterprise that spans more than 40 faculty physicians, 935 Clinical Academic Colleagues, 80+ rural teaching sites, and numerous urban clinics. Your mandate: unlock administrative capacity for the Chair, drive governance reform, and champion data-driven, people-first change that elevates care, teaching, and research across Alberta’s primary-care ecosystem.

Duties 

Strategic & Governance Leadership

• Design and execute a refreshed governance model that aligns department, PCN (Primary Care Network), PCA (Primary Care Alberta), AHS, and AMHSP priorities.
• Lead annual strategic and business-planning cycles; translate vision into KPIs, accountability frameworks, and rapid-cycle improvements.
• Build trusting relationships with PCNs, PCA, AHS, Alberta Health, and rural/urban teaching sites to accelerate innovation and overcome change resistance.

Operational Excellence & Change Management

• Own all departmental systems and processes—finance, HR, facilities, communications—ensuring “friction-free” day-to-day operations.
• Introduce lean workflows, data dashboards, and a continuous-improvement culture to a geographically distributed team.
• Surface challenges to the Chair with clear, well-calibrated solutions, enabling swift, collaborative decision-making.

Financial Stewardship

• Oversee $33.7 M operating budget, $15 M research portfolio, and $20 M endowments; create multi-source forecasts (AMHSP, UA Operating, PGME, Endowments).
• Ensure compliance with AMHSP agreements, AHS policies, and U of A governance; craft business cases to fund new clinical and educational initiatives.

People & Culture

• Lead nine direct and three indirect reports; foster a high-performance, inclusive culture grounded in transparency and collaboration.
• Drive strategic workforce planning for faculty, physicians, and staff across multiple unionized environments (NASA, AASUA).

Qualifications

• Senior leadership experience (3+ years) running a large, multi-site primary-care or PCN operation—ideally as an Executive Director or equivalent.
• Proven success in change management, governance redesign, and stakeholder engagement within complex health-care systems.
• Strong command of AMHSP, AHS, PCA, and Alberta primary-care funding models (or analogous public-sector health funding structures).
• Expertise in strategic planning, human resources and financial management, and risk mitigation for budgets >$10 M.
• Bachelor’s degree (minimum); master’s in Business, Health Administration, or related field preferred.
• Exceptional communication skills: you translate complex challenges into clear options, actions, and outcomes—fast.