Stanford Graduate School of Business
Stanford's Graduate School of Business has built a global reputation based on its immersive and innovative management programs. We provide students a transformative leadership experience, pushing the boundaries of knowledge with faculty research, and offering a portfolio of entrepreneurial and non-degree programs that deliver global impact like no other. We are committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in service of our mission of developing innovative, principled, and insightful leaders who change lives, change organizations, and change the world. We invite you to be part of this mission.
The Stanford GSB invites applications for the position of Associate Director, Research Collections and Data Acquisitions for the GSB Research Hub. Within the GSB Research Hub and Business Library, collections no longer mean just monographs, serials, and electronic subscription databases. In addition to these baseline activities, the Associate Director will assist in managing the acquisition and lifecycle of research data purchased and donated for use by faculty and Ph.D. researchers, as well as other collections materials.
The Associate Director, Research Collections and Data Acquisition has two overarching areas of responsibility. The first is to support individual faculty members in their attempts to acquire data sources from established data vendors and individual organizations with whom the faculty has established a relationship. The incumbent will be responsive to individual faculty members' requests and needs and will skillfully help the faculty secure access to the desired data sources in a timely manner. Second, the Associate Director is responsible for supporting and executing on the GSB Library’s collections strategy. Both of these areas of responsibility require skills in contract negotiation, licensing and vendor management, research partnerships, and digital collections curation.
The position reports to the Director, Data Acquisition and Governance of the GSB Library and the Research Hub and will participate in the Library’s management team. The incumbent will plan, implement, and evaluate operations, propose policies and procedures, and set priorities in consultation with Library leadership, Research Hub technical specialists, collections specialists, and other University libraries. Management of the research data lifecycle will involve working with acquisition and contracting specialists within the GSB Library, University contracting offices, and the Data, Analytics, and Research Computing unit of the Research Hub.
The role requires a deep understanding of contracting and licensing of content in an academic research environment, strong financial and analytical skills, along with the ability to coordinate research data management.
Your primary responsibilities include:
- Collaborate with faculty in acquiring research data and other resources for individual faculty research projects.
- Provide consultation and support to individual faculty members seeking guidance on acquiring research data and managing datasets through the project life cycle.
- Carry out collections development, facilitate contracting and data licensing, and develop research partnerships.
- Provides strategic direction on procurement processes. Partner with GSB Library and Research Hub technical staff on procurement processes and data administration, collections metrics, and collections indexing.
- Work collaboratively with leaders within the GSB and across the University to develop an overall collections strategy, including planning, developing, interpreting, and implementing policies and procedures.
- Interpret, implement, and ensure compliance with University academic and administrative policies and procedures. Recommend new internal policies, guidelines, and procedures.
- In collaboration with other units within the Research Hub, manage the content lifecycle from acquisitions, resource management, and availability to metadata creation, enhancement, and discovery.
- Facilitate creating, maintaining, and enhancing unique GSB digital collections, including purchased datasets for broad use and individual GSB faculty datasets.
- Participate in GSB Library, University, and consortia committees.
- Negotiate complex data agreements for the Research Hub and GSB faculty.
- Negotiate research-related agreements that involve intellectual property, publication, confidentiality, and related issues.
- Identify contractual and policy issues such as compliance, conflicts of interest, and accounting. Raise issues to Research Hub leadership.
- Advise GSB clients by interpreting and explaining contract terms and conditions to faculty and staff.
- Facilitate interactions with other University research administration offices.
To be successful in this position, you will bring:
- Advanced Degree in Library or a relevant academic discipline and 10 years of relevant experience in an academic or related industry setting, demonstrating a high level of expertise and active engagement in their area of socialization at a national level or a combination of education and relevant experience.
- Demonstrated skills and knowledge of academic organization and academic budgets. Strong leadership and decision-making skills. Ability to lead organizational change and inspire innovation. Ability to ensure confidentiality around sensitive issues. Ability to lead in a shared decision-making environment.
- Familiarity with technologies and tools used in research data storage and computation and ability to learn applicable University and departmental systems.
- Experience with research data, ideally in business and social science disciplines.
- Demonstrated initiative in fostering new ideas and implementing change.
- Advanced ability to draft, negotiate, and administer research data agreements.
- Thorough understanding of University research environment and policies.
- Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills to review and analyze complex information.
- Strong service orientation and demonstrated ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, action-oriented, customer-focused team environment.
- Extremely detail-oriented, able to work well independently, and seek assistance when needed.
- Advanced communication skills to clearly and effectively communicate information to internal and external audiences, client groups, and all levels of management.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and good judgment.
- Strong organizational skills and the ability to prioritize various tasks and demands.
In addition, preferred requirements include:
- A postgraduate degree in a related discipline may be required or substituted for a master’s degree in information science. In addition, preference will be given to a candidate with a second Masters, Ph.D., or JD.
- An advanced degree in a social sciences field or a law degree is strongly preferred.
- Experience with relevant aspects of information operations, including understanding contemporary library practices, trends, and emerging technologies.
- Experience with electronic resource management systems and digital asset management systems.
- Awareness of issues and technical challenges related to research data curation, including privacy and de-identification, format migration, preservation, metadata, discovery, provenance, and data access.
- Broad knowledge of library automation systems, online resources, data storage, and research computing.
How to Apply
We invite you to apply for this position by clicking on the “Apply for Job” button. To be considered, please submit a cover letter and résumé along with your online application.
Why Stanford is for You
Stanford’s dedicated 16,000 staff come from diverse educational and career backgrounds. We are a collaborative environment that thrives on innovation and continuous improvement. At Stanford, we seek talent committed to excellence, driven to impact the future of our legacy, and improve lives on a global sphere. We provide competitive salaries, excellent health care and retirement plans, and a generous vacation policy, including additional time off during our winter closure. Our generous perks align with what matters to you:
- Freedom to grow. Take advantage of career development programs, tuition reimbursement, or audit a course. Join a Ted Talk, film screening, or listen to a renowned author or leader discuss global issues.
- A caring culture. We understand the importance of your personal and family time and provide you access to wellness programs, child-care resources, parent education and consultation, elder care and caregiving.
