Education & Compliance Office Manager

Job Description

Finance, Planning, and Budgeting (FPB) encompasses the major central financial, planning, analytical, and budgeting functions for the University of Washington, including:

• Financial Stewardship & Operations
• Institutional Analytics & Decision Support
• Budget, Policy & Strategy
• University Business Services

The Education & Compliance Office Manager plays a critical role in advancing the University Controller’s Office (UCO) mission by establishing a robust education and outreach framework. This position leads the development of a university-wide training program, including foundational courses that will become prerequisites for Workday accounting role access. By creating consistent communication channels in a decentralized environment, the manager ensures timely dissemination of accounting updates, policy changes, and system requirements, fostering transparency and alignment across campus units.

In addition to education initiatives, the manager oversees key compliance and monitoring functions, including institution-wide deficit tracking, overhead assessment reviews, and enhanced monitoring in collaboration with Internal Audit. Working closely with the Enterprise Accounting & Governance and Institutional Analytics & Decision Support teams, this role develops reporting tools to identify and correct financial activity, ensuring accuracy and accountability. Through these efforts, the manager strengthens financial governance while equipping campus stakeholders with the knowledge and resources needed to maintain compliance and operational excellence.

Duties & Responsibilities

Strategy Development

The Education & Compliance Manager develops and advances a cohesive financial education strategy that strengthens institutional stewardship, supports compliance, and promotes financial sustainability across the University. This role ensures training programs and assessment frameworks are scalable, effective, and aligned with enterprise systems and governance objectives.

• Direct the development of training content and resources that support campus-wide financial literacy and accountability, collaborating with UCO units as well as broader university stakeholders.
• Design and implement a university-wide financial training strategy aligned with institutional policies and Workday functionality.
• Serves as a trusted advisor to campus stakeholders, providing authoritative guidance on accounting & compliance policies and directives.
• Communicates complex financial concepts clearly, ensuring transparency and alignment across diverse audiences, including senior executives and auditors. Builds and sustains collaborative relationships with internal and external partners to garner alignment and stability in accounting practices across Shared Environments, Dean’s Offices, and other central administrative units.
• Develop a foundational accounting course that will serve as a prerequisite for Workday financial role access, establishing consistent baseline knowledge across all units with accounting roles in Workday.

Leadership / Team Management

Provide leadership and manage the Education & Compliance Office.

• Manage the day-to-day operations of the Education & Compliance Office, as well as guidance and oversight of projects and workflow, and general project timelines.
• Work with a diverse group of individuals to create an inclusive environment and culture
• Responsible for management, staff development, career enrichment, and training.
• Foster a collaborative and inclusive culture, promoting knowledge sharing, accountability, and continuous professional development.
• Ensure team establishes and adheres to best-in-class standards for developing financial literacy training materials, driving consistency and excellence across all educational initiatives.

Program Development/Management

• Manage institutional compliance programs, including audit remediation and financial monitoring.
• Establish and maintain a compliance program operations manual.
• Lead exemption review processes and ensure alignment with university policies.
• Establish performance metrics and feedback loops to evaluate training effectiveness and continuously refine curriculum based on evolving institutional needs and regulatory changes.
• Advance UCO’s deficit monitoring program, implementing enhanced review protocols and risk indicators to proactively identify and address financial imbalances.
• Collaborate with Internal Audit to design and implement a structured process for tracking and resolving findings from audit reviews, ensuring timely remediation and strengthened institutional controls.
• Oversee the institutional overhead assessment framework, ensuring accurate application of rates and consistent compliance across all units.
• Lead exemption review process, aligning decisions with university policies, and curating exemption requests for executive review.
• Collaborate with Treasury and Management Accounting and Analysis to en…