Job Title:
Chief Academic and Innovation Officer
Department:
IR0021 Academic Programmes
Reporting to:
President
Reports to: President
Key Relationships: COO, CCO, Registrar, QQI, external academic partners and professional, statutory and regulatory bodies
The Role
The Chief Academic & Innovation Officer (CAIO) is a member of the Senior Leadership Team and holds executive responsibility for academic performance, learning innovation, and learner experiences across the entire DBS portfolio. This is a strategic leadership position focused on shaping the future of learning at DBS.
Reporting directly to the President, the CAIO sets the academic direction of the institution while leading a significant programme of change to evolve the academic strategy and programme portfolio. The role combines academic credibility with commercial insight, ensuring DBS remains relevant to learners, aligned with employer needs, and responsive to a dynamic educational environment.
The CAIO also leads the transition to digitally-enabled delivery, the integration of AI and emerging technologies, and the adoption of new delivery models. Central to the role is positioning DBS as a high-performing, digitally fluent institution that reflects the realities of a fast-changing world where learning is continuous, accessible, and shaped by the future of work.
The Person
You bring a broad and deep understanding of education, and in particular how it's evolving. Your experience spans sectors, learner groups, and organisational contexts, giving you a clear view of how education connects to real-world outcomes, career development, and the needs of employers.
The CAIO will be someone who has worked in education, but across a wide and varied landscape shaping strategy, leading teams, driving innovation, and working at the intersection of learning, industry, and the future of work.
You will understand the importance of regulation and academic quality, and your expertise will lie in balancing academic rigour with commercial performance and the learner experience. You will thrive in a dynamic environment, leading transformation while enabling academic teams to focus on what matters most: managing a portfolio of future-focused programmes, delivering outstanding learner experiences, and safeguarding academic integrity.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
* Lead the academic vision and strategy of DBS in line with institutional goals for growth, quality, and learner outcomes
* Provide visible leadership and direction to the Academic Directors and academic teams, setting clear expectations and building high-performance, learner centric culture
* Champion a modern academic model that reflects the needs of learners, regulators and industry
* Support strategic and operational decision-making at executive level, acting as a trusted advisor to the President on all matters relating to academic delivery
* Contribute to wider institutional initiatives, including cross-functional transformation, international development, and digital learning
* Take executive responsibility for the academic function's budget, ensuring prudent financial management and alignment with institutional targets
* Lead DBS in the development and implementation of applied research capability and champion industry-focused research activity across DBS faculty and academic team
Academic Quality and Compliance
* Ensure academic excellence, regulatory compliance and support successful learner outcomes across all disciplines
* Work closely with Registrar to manage the institution's relationship with QQI from an academic perspective and other accrediting or quality bodies, ensuring compliance, transparency and continuous improvement
* Provide leadership within appropriate academic governance bodies, including Academic Board
* Provide leadership at programme approval panels
* Ensure that all academic policies, programme structures, and delivery approaches are robust, well-documented, and effectively implemented
* Act as the academic lead for external quality reviews, validations and regulatory inspections
Curriculum and Programme Oversight
* Oversee the academic portfolio across undergraduate, postgraduate and professional education
* Work with Academic Directors and wider DBS teams to ensure the academic offering remains current, coherent, scalable and aligned to market demands
* Work closely with CCO to ensure a market-oriented strategy for programme development and management
* Collaborate with the Finance Director to develop a detailed profitability model per programme area, supporting data-driven decisions on portfolio optimisation, investment, and growth
* Work with SLT to champion and approve new programme proposals, lead academic input into business cases, and ensure programmes meet both commercial and regulatory requirements
* Guide disciplines in the rationalisation or refresh of underperforming courses, with a clear focus on relevance, impact and learner demand
* Ensure alignment between on-campus and online provision, promoting consistent academic quality across all delivery modes
Teaching and Learning Innovation
* Lead institutional strategies to enhance the quality, consistency and effectiveness of learning across all programmes and delivery models
* Lead the adoption of inclusive, research-driven pedagogies including UDL, active learning, and future-facing delivery models that integrate digital, hybrid and personalised learning approaches
* Promote a culture of innovation and experimentation in teaching, supported by mentoring, structured support and educational research
* Encourage the use of feedback, analytics and research to evaluate and improve teaching practice
* Champion the integration of AI and emerging technologies to enhance teaching, learning and assessment
* Embed AI-enabled tools (e.g. adaptive learning, intelligent tutors, generative feedback) to support learner success and faculty effectiveness
* Build faculty capability and confidence in applying modern learning design and technologies
Digital Learning and VLE Strategy
* Provide executive oversight of academic content and digital delivery across all areas
* Lead the academic design and implementation of online and hybrid delivery models, ensuring they are scalable, learner-centred and pedagogically sound
* Lead and oversee the implementation of a Library strategy that positions the Library as a future-oriented resource for learners and academic staff
* Work collaboratively with Head of IT to ensure strategic oversight of the VLE development and maintenance (e.g. Moodle), ensuring consistent learner experience and integration with teaching practices
* Drive the adoption of asynchronous, hybrid, and digitally-supported delivery models across the institution
* Ensure all digital learning meets DBS quality standards and aligns with accreditation and assessment requirements
Student Engagement and Outcomes
* Work with Academic Directors and teams to improve learner retention, satisfaction, progression and academic success
* Integrate academic, digital and support services to strengthen the overall learning experience
* Use qualitative and quantitative data to monitor performance and identify gaps in student outcomes
* Champion teaching practices and curriculum designs that support learner engagement, inclusion and accessibility
* Align student success metrics with institutional financial sustainability and reputational goals
Team Leadership and People Development
* Line manage Academic Directors, Faculty Management, Student Engagement and Learning Unit and Library, providing structured support and performance oversight
* Set a culture of accountability, innovation and performance across the academic and learning design teams
* Develop a flexible, performance-oriented faculty model that combines full-time, adjunct and industry-based lecturers
* Build strong working relationships across academic teams, with a focus on collaboration and shared outcomes
* Develop academic leadership capability at all levels, including succession planning and mentoring
* Ensure the academic team structure and staffing model remain fit-for-purpose as the institution evolves
Required Skills and Experience
* Significant leadership experience in higher education, academic transformation, or learning innovation, and a track record of delivery
* Proven experience of developing high-performing and engaged teams
* Proven ability to align academic delivery with strategic growth goals
* Deep understanding of academic governance, quality assurance and regulatory frameworks
* Demonstrated success in leading teaching innovation and digital learning transformation
* Strong commercial mindset and experience working across academic and business functions
* An understanding of customer service and an appreciation of the requirements of a private educational institution
* Experience of working with a broad range of stakeholders, at various levels within and external to an organisation, and the ability to foster and maintain relationships
* Postgraduate qualification; PhD not essential, but CAIO must ensure appropriate doctoral-level depth across the academic leadership team
Desirable
* Familiarity with QQI standards and the European Qualifications Framework
* Experience in a private, international, or hybrid HEI
* Experience with virtual learning environment (Moodle), as well as platforms such as Salesforce, and use of learning analytics and AI tools for education
Leadership Attributes
* Visionary thinker with an ability to execute at scale
* Collaborative and cross-functional leader with strong influencing skills
* Comfortable leading transformation in complex or regulated environments
* Data-informed, learner-focused, and commercially aware
* Builds trust, transparency, and performance in diverse teams
Pay & Benefits
The salary for this role is DOE.
* Free Internal Courses;
* Discounted Fees for Family Members;
* Life Assurance & Disabilities Cover;
* Sports & Social;
* Employee Assistance Programme;
* Employee Discount Scheme;
* Paid sick leave;
* Death-In-Service Benefit.
This job description is a guide to the work the post holders will initially be required to undertake. It may be amended from time to time to meet changing circumstances by mutual agreement. It is expected that the post-holders and their manager will review the job description regularly.
Position Type:
Full time
Contract Type:
Regular
Pay Frequency:
Annual
Location:
Dublin, Ireland
Job Functional Area:
Faculty Management
All appointments are subject to providing proof of eligibility to work in Ireland on full time basis (upon being invited to interview). Please refer to our privacy policy here: DBS Privacy Notice for Candidates.
This job description is a guide to the work the post holder will initially be required to undertake. It may be amended from time to time to meet changing circumstances by mutual agreement. It is expected that the job description will be reviewed regularly by the post-holder and their manager.
DBS is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity. If you require any adjustments or additional support within the recruitment process, please contact us directly.
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