Position Overview
The University of Kansas seeks a dynamic and strategic Chief of Staff (COS) to support the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) & Executive Vice Chancellor for Finance. As a key member of the CFO's leadership team, the COS provides high level strategic partnership, executive coordination, and operational leadership across all KU campuses. This position serves as the CFO's principal advisor and chief strategic assistant, ensuring alignment of financial priorities, advancing major initiatives, and strengthening collaboration among administrative, academic, and operational units.
The COS leads cross-institutional coordination of financial activities, policy development, and operational initiatives and partners closely with finance leaders across the Lawrence, Edwards, and KU Medical Center campuses. The position plays a central role in the execution of key finance-related strategic initiatives and works closely with project managers and leaders throughout the institution to ensure effective planning, communication, and execution of key initiatives.
The COS also serves as the CFO's primary communication liaison and will be responsible drafting executive-level correspondence and presentations, ensuring financial communications are accurate and accessible, and representing the CFO in meetings to promote strategic alignment and continuity of leadership. This role requires exceptional judgment, confidentiality, and the ability to synthesize complex information for internal and external audiences.
In addition, the COS oversees all Kansas Board of Regents related activities, including budget inquiries, preparation of the annual tuition and comprehensive fee schedule, development of meeting materials, and other Board required submissions. Furthermore, the position coordinates and develops legislative fiscal impact requests to determine the impact of potential legislation. These responsibilities involve managing time sensitive requests, coordinating with campus partners, analyzing financial data, and preparing materials that reflect the university's fiscal strategy and priorities.
This position reports directly to and serves the pleasure of the CFO. The incumbent must satisfactorily complete a university background check requirements and is expected to maintain confidentiality due to access to privileged financial, personnel and strategic information.
Job Description
50% Strategic Leadership and Executive Partnership
- Serves as the CFO's chief strategic assistant and logistics manager, demonstrating strategic foresight and executive judgment while coordinating across the VC/VP Finance offices on all campuses to anticipate needs, advance priorities, and ensure alignment with the CFO's strategic agenda.
- Participates as an active member of the CFO's leadership team, applying systems thinking and situational awareness to remain informed on evolving priorities, risks, and policy issues, and representing and articulating the CFO's position with clarity and credibility when needed.
- Represents the CFO in meetings and strategic discussions, demonstrating leadership presence, relationship-building skills, and the ability to communicate priorities, drive alignment, and ensure continuity of decision-making.
- Ensures timely follow-through commitments by managing complex workflows and high-priority issues with professionalism, confidentiality, and accuracy.
- Supports efforts to build and sustain a collaborative, engaged, purposedriven organizational culture that reflects and reinforces the University of Kansas' vision, mission, and values.
- Fosters a positive, service-oriented culture that supports effective executive operations, smooth workflow, and strong communication within the CFO's office.
- Builds trusted relations across administrative, academic, and operational units to support joint problem-solving, alignment of priorities, and progress on strategic initiatives.
25% Communication and Executive Messaging
- Oversees preparation of reports and required documentation for external entities, including the Kansas Board of Regents, exercising meticulous attention to accuracy, compliance, and institutional stewardship.
- Drafts high-quality correspondence and executive communications, using exceptional written communication and audience centered framing to convey complex concepts; monitors the CFO's inbox and responds on their behalf with discretion and sound decision-making.
- Serves as the primary liaison for the CFO across all campuses, fostering trusted partnerships, promoting consistent communication, and ensuring effective engagement and collaboration among a variety of stakeholders.
- Serves as the central communication hub for CFO communications and outreach, using strategic communication and stakeholder engagement skills to ensure clarity, consistency, and alignment with institutional goals.
15% Project and Operational Management
- Creates and maintains a comprehensive project management tracking system, demonstrating organizational excellence by monitoring progress, identifying risks, and briefing the CFO regularly on the status of key initiatives and commitments.
- Responds to inquiries, conducts issue-specific research and analyzes data to provide actionable recommendations, and support timely decision-making and effective problem resolution.
- Supervises administrative staff providing leadership, coaching, mentoring, and performance development to support a collaborative, high-performing team.
10% Other Responsibilities
- Performs additional duties as assign, including expanded supervisory responsibilities as institutional needs evolve.
Position Requirements
- Travel <25% required for occasional sameday trips to other campus locations for onsite meetings and coordination. Additionally, overnight travel may be required to attend professional conferences.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree and five (5) years of experience in a leadership/management/executive role, project management and communication skills.
- Experience that required working independently while managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment, with strong attention to detail, accuracy, and consistent follow-through as evidenced in application materials.
- Excellent written communication skills as evidenced by application materials.
- Experience with handling and maintaining confidential and sensitive information with sound judgment and discretion as evidenced in application materials.
- Experience developing and delivering communications to audiences, including translating complex financial or operational information into clear, accessible content as shown in application materials.
- Experience representing leadership in meetings, public settings, or formal contexts, including public speaking and professional presentation as shown in application materials.
- One (1) year of experience overseeing fulltime staff that included fostering professional growth, overseeing workload assignments, and providing ongoing performance feedback as evidenced in application materials.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in higher education, government, or complex public-sector organizations, especially in roles requiring coordination across multiple divisions, campuses, or operational areas as shown in application materials.
- Experience building strong trust-based relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including academic leaders, administrative units, system offices, and governing bodies as evidenced in application materials.
- Experience analyzing complex issues and data and presenting conclusions and recommendations in a concise, systematic, and understandable manner as shown in application materials.
- Experience in policy analysis, legal research methods, interpretation and application of state and federal statutes as evidenced in application materials.
Additional Candidate Instructions
In addition to the online application, the following documents are required to be considered for this position:
- Cover letter describing how you meet the required and preferred qualifications.
- Resume.
- List of three (3) professional references.
Only complete applications will be considered.
Application review begins Wednesday, March 25, 2026 and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants is identified.
Contact Information to Applicants
Ashley Lonnberg
lonnberg@ku.edu
785-864-9022
Advertised Salary Range
Starts at $120,000
Application Review Begins
Wednesday March 25, 2026
Anticipated Start Date
Monday May 11, 2026
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University of Kansas
Mar 09, 2026