Description
Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer
Auburn University
Auburn University, in partnership with Korn Ferry, invites nominations and expressions of interest for the position of Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer.
Founded in 1856, Auburn University is one of the South’s largest and most respected public research institutions. Designated as Alabama’s first land-grant university, Auburn has evolved into a comprehensive land-, sea-, and space-grant institution serving more than 33,000 students across 12 colleges. With a total operating budget of $1.98 billion, Auburn is known for its unique blend of tradition and innovation, combining the academic strengths of a major research university with the spirit, values, and sense of community that define the “Auburn Experience.” The university’s mission is rooted in forward-thinking education, life-enhancing research, and selfless service, with a vision to lead and shape the future of higher education.
At this pivotal moment, Auburn seeks a strategic and visionary leader to serve as its next Chief Information Officer (CIO). Reporting to the Senior Vice President for Business and Administration and the Chief Financial Officer and engaging regularly with the President and senior leadership, the CIO will serve as the university’s senior technology executive, guiding enterprise-wide IT strategy and operations. The CIO will guide the Office of Information Technology and the University Information Security Office, overseeing six direct reports and a team of 135 employees across a broad portfolio of services that span infrastructure, enterprise systems, cybersecurity, instructional technology, and user support. In addition, the CIO will serve as a strategic partner by providing support and guidance to distributed Information Technology units across the university, which collectively include approximately 153 employees.
A key priority for the CIO will be providing strategic leadership and support for Auburn’s ERP transition by fostering institutional alignment, championing university-wide priorities, and enabling effective cross-functional collaboration. The CIO will lead effective change management to ensure smooth adoption of new systems and processes. The CIO will also drive IT modernization efforts, including migrating infrastructure services to the cloud, defining enterprise architecture strategies, and building organizational capabilities to support modern technology environments. They will play a central role in advancing Auburn’s data capabilities, developing a unified data strategy and governance framework that supports data-informed decision-making across academic and administrative units. In collaboration with university leadership and distributed IT units across campus, the CIO will ensure that technology investments are aligned with institutional priorities and responsive to emerging needs, including the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence and other transformative technologies.
The ideal candidate will be a strong communicator and a seasoned and forward-thinking technology leader with at least 10 years of progressively responsible experience in a large, complex organization, preferably in higher education. They will bring a strong track record in enterprise IT strategy, digital transformation, and data governance, along with experience managing large-scale operations and leading high-performing teams. Experience building and institutionalizing effective PMO and Quality functions that achieve broad adoption is highly desirable. A bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or a related field is required; a master’s degree (MBA or Information Technology) is preferred. The successful candidate will demonstrate a collaborative leadership style, a commitment to service excellence, and the ability to foster innovation across the university.
Auburn has retained Korn Ferry, a global organizational consulting firm, to assist with the search. The search is being led by Victoria Antolini, Anna Flagg, and Lindsay Conklin. All inquiries, nominations, and expressions of interest should be submitted in confidence to Korn Ferry. Applications should include a detailed curriculum vitae and a letter of interest. To ensure full consideration, inquiries, nominations, and applications should be submitted electronically, in confidence, to Anna.Flagg@Kornferry.com
