Assistant Director of Operations

Department

SSD Knowledge Lab

About the Department
Knowledge Lab (KLab) is an interdisciplinary research lab in the Social Science Division (SSD) of the University of Chicago working at the intersection of artificial intelligence, complex systems, computational science, and an emerging science of ideas and innovation. KLab collaborates with researchers globally and regularly publishes in Nature, Science, PNAS, NeurIPS, ICLR, ICML, and other leading venues. It is directed by Prof. James Evans, Max Palevsky Professor of Sociology and Data Science at UChicago.

The lab cultivates a culture of curiosity, creative exploration, and improbable discovery. For instance, a current initiative — Chorus — is an AI Assistant for the lab that the Assistant Director could integrate with operational information and dashboards to address queries by all team members, onboard new staff, and help project managers keep track of finances and deliverables.

Job Summary
The job manages a broad range of business operations and academic activities. Develops and implements office procedures and policies and ensures compliance. Prepares and monitors the budget for a unit.

KLab seeks an experienced and entrepreneurial Assistant Director of Operations to serve as the operational backbone of the lab. This is not a conventional administrative role. The ideal candidate brings genuine enthusiasm for KLab’s research mission and organizational ambitions, and the creativity and judgment to take operational and administrative systems to a new level — automating what can be automated, solving problems that seem unsolvable, leveraging technology, and building new systems that enable the lab to move at the speed of discovery.

The Assistant Director reports to and will work most closely with the Director of Strategic Research & Lab Initiatives and will supervise a part-time administrative assistant.

This role is for someone who burns for finding creative organizational solutions, sees the larger purpose of operational work, and brings that energy beyond a 9-to-5 orientation. If work is routine for you while you would rather be doing something else, this is not the right fit. If you are energized by the idea of building the operational infrastructure of a world-class research lab — and doing so in genuinely innovative ways — we would love to meet you.

Responsibilities

• Design organizational systems that are ideally invisible, partially automated, and continuously improving – e.g. building on KLab’s AI Virtual Assistant (Chorus) to automatically answer questions about lab operations and research.

• Take a systems perspective to operations: identify patterns in individual needs, develop organization-wide solutions, and create processes that get things done efficiently without generating unnecessary bureaucracy.

• Own the pipeline from needs to fast solutions, including keeping operational tickets organized and ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.

• Dig into operational challenges where others give up — using experience, good judgment and skill to identify institutional solutions to complex problems.

• Anticipate operational needs before they become problems, and develop proactive solutions without waiting for direction.

• Identify and implement automation opportunities for routine administrative tasks — including potential integration with KLab’s AI system (Chorus) — freeing researchers to focus more on discovery.

• Design and maintain automated financial reporting systems that provide real-time visibility across multiple, complex grants to support daily resource allocation and staffing decisions.

• Monitor budgets, manage expenditures, and ensure compliance with grant and institutional requirements.

• Conduct basic analysis and visualization of operational and financial data to surface insights and drive continuous improvement.

• Partner with SSD offices to coordinate fast-paced onboarding of postdoctoral researchers, staff, students, and visiting scholars — navigating university systems and changing national immigration requirements proactively to compress timelines and ensure new members integrate smoothly.

• Maintain real-time HR dashboards of people, contract renewal dates, visas, and onboarding/ offboarding status, so the lab can act proactively and staff have foresight.

• Serve as the lab’s primary liaison to work with university partners on visa sponsorship, immigration issues, and support for the lab’s substantial international community.

• Serve as the lab's primary operational point of contact for research proposals, coordinating across KLab researchers, department administrators, and the university's pre- and post-award offices for submissions that are complete and on time.

• Develop and maintain internal systems (e.g. integrated with Chorus) to give the team a real-time overview of the lab's grants: what's in preparation, what's under review, what's been awarded, and what's closing out.

• Manage post-award operations in close collaboration with project managers: track spending against budgets, prepare financial reports, and flag issues before they become problems.

• Assist in communicating KLab’s research, teaching and service achievements internally and externally, including collaborating with the communications teams of SSD and the university.

• Draft and coordinate internal lab announcements and other communications that reflect KLab’s culture and voice.

• Provide operational supervision and support for KLab events and special initiatives (e.g. conferences, summer institutes, workshops).

• Manage the design of KLab’s Chorus AI Assistant from an operational perspective, e.g. by linking HR and financial dashboard information to Chorus and helping it answer administrative questions.

• Uses best practices to develop and execute organization's operational and overall strategic plan. Develops and implements relevant policies and procedures and ensures compliance.

• Plans, develops, analyzes and manages budget, including developing multi-year budget forecasts. May oversee the preparation and management of grant and contract proposals, ensuring compliance with all University, federal and private foundation guidelines and regulations. Develops financial reports and assists with seeking funding for grants.

• Works with minimal guidance in space, facilities, and equipment, including renovations, moves, maintenance and ongoing facilities operations.

• Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.

Work Experience:
Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education

• Master’s degree.

Experience

• 5-7 years of progressively responsible experience in business, research, or academic operations and administration.

• Knowledge of operational and administrative processes related to finance, HR and planning.

• Facility with spreadsheets, reporting tools, and data visualization for operational decision support.

• Comfort learning and using new technologies, including AI-enabled systems and workflow automation tools.

• Managerial experience.

• Exercises excellent judgment in balancing creativity, compliance, and practicality.

Preferred Competencies

• Systems thinker and designer: Takes a systems perspective and sees connections across people, processes, timelines, and resources.

• Self-starter with top-tier self-organization: Demonstrates strong ownership, urgency, and follow-through.

• Creative problem-solver: Solves problems resourcefully and moves work forward in situations that may be ambiguous or evolving.

• Good communicator: Communicates clearly and professionally with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.

• Team player: Works independently while also contributing positively