The Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia seeks a highly motivated, entrepreneurial, and hands-on Managing Director to advance the LaCross Institute for Ethical Artificial Intelligence in Business. This position is located in-person in Charlottesville, VA.

About the Institute:

The LaCross Institute for Ethical Artificial Intelligence in Business (LaCross Institute), launched in 2024, brings together Darden’s strengths in business ethics, stakeholder theory, and enterprise-wide thinking with capabilities in data analytics and decision science. Its mission is to help leaders harness the potential of AI to create human value and new business models while ensuring that AI use is ethical, inclusive, and socially responsible.

As a recently established Darden Center of Excellence, the Institute is in a formative stage of growth. It advances faculty research and thought leadership, interdisciplinary collaboration across UVA, student engagement through applied research and experiential initiatives, and meaningful engagement with industry and society.

Darden’s Centers for Excellence operate within a shared governance model of senior professional staff and Darden faculty. Faculty Academic Directors for each center or institute provide intellectual and strategic direction. The Managing Director partners closely with faculty leadership while taking primary responsibility and accountability as the institute’s leader for operational execution, program development, external engagement, and day-to-day advancement of the Institute’s mission.

Role Overview:

The Managing Director plays a central, execution-focused role in building and operationalizing the LaCross AI Institute during its early growth phase and setting the Institute up for long-term impact and success.

This is a highly hands-on position with an entrepreneurial mindset required to ensure success. As the only full-time staff member for the Institute at this stage, success for the Managing Director will require strong individual initiative, the ability to work across matrixed stakeholders, leadership through collaboration and influence, and comfort translating ideas into visible outcomes.

In partnership with the Institute’s Academic Directors and Darden leadership, the Managing Director will:

• Activate research priorities and support faculty collaboration in the institute’s domain areas

• Advance translation of faculty scholarship related to ethical AI in business into practitioner-facing outputs

• Develop and manage key Institute initiatives, such as the annual conference, a fellows program, and projects like the AI Index

• Cultivate industry engagement and sponsorship

• Design and execute signature convenings and engagement activities

The Managing Director reports to the Senior Associate Dean, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer and works closely with the Senior Associate Dean for Research, Institute Academic Directors, faculty, university partners, and external stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities:

Faculty Research & Thought Leadership:

• Partner with Darden and UVA faculty and the Office of Research Services to support research and thought leadership in ethical and applied AI in business.

• Help steward the Institute’s annual research agenda in collaboration with the Senior Associate Dean for Research and the Academic Directors.

• Manage and advance the AI Index report and related Institute research initiatives.

• Design and administer fellowship and grant programs that support faculty scholarship.

• Facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration across UVA (e.g., working groups, research pods).

• Translate faculty research into accessible practitioner- and student-facing outputs (e.g., white papers, summaries, frameworks, case studies, reports, events).

• Partner with Darden Communications and Marketing to extend the Institute’s visibility and impact.

• Commitment to bringing faculty ideas to the forefront of business practice is essential.

External Engagement & Sponsorship:

• Develop and implement a structured practitioner engagement strategy aligned with Institute priorities.

• Build relationships with industry leaders in AI, analytics, and related sectors.

• Identify and secure corporate sponsorship and external funding to support Institute activities.

• Design and execute signature convenings, such as the annual conference, roundtables, practitioner Fellows programs, salons, and seminars.

• Represent the Institute in relevant academic-industry forums.

• Partner with Darden Executive Education and Lifelong Learning to explore executive programming aligned with Institute themes.

Student Engagement:

• Enable student participation in research, white papers, AI reports, case development, conferences, and applied initiatives.

• Partner with faculty and Darden Business Publishing to support development of teaching materials aligned with Institute themes.

• Collaborate with other Centers of Excellence and student organizations to design student-facing initiatives such as speaker series, workshops, applied projects, and competitions.

• Support innovative faculty engagement with students on ethical and applied AI topics.

Operations & Institute Development:

• Develop and execute an annual operating plan aligned with Institute priorities.

• Establish effective operating processes and engagement rhythms to support sustainable growth.

• Track and communicate the Institute’s progress and impact across research, engagement, and sponsorship.

• Coordinate across Darden and UVA partners to leverage resources and advance Institute initiatives.

Education & Experience:

• Master’s degree and at least 6 years of relevant experience required.

• Experience in program development, research management, industry engagement, or related roles preferred.

• Experience at the intersection of business and AI, analytics, or emerging technologies strongly preferred.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Highly entrepreneurial self-starter comfortable working with ambiguity and limited direct support.

• Strong execution orientation; ability to translate strategy into action.

• Fluency in AI, analytics, or related technologies sufficient to engage credibly with technical experts and business leaders.

• Demonstrated ability to develop partnerships or secure sponsorship support is highly desirable.

• Ability to build and sustain relationships with faculty, researchers, and industry partners.

• Proven ability to manage cross-functional initiatives and multiple stakeholders.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

• Collaborative working style suited to a distributed governance environment.

• Strong commitment to ethical leadership, responsible AI, and the mission of the LaCross Institute, Darden, and the University of Virginia.

To Apply:

Please apply online and search for R0081008. Internal applicants may search and apply for jobs on the UVA Internal Careers website. Complete the application, and upload the following Required materials:

• Resume

• Cover letter detailing your interest in the position

***Please note that you MUST upload ALL REQUIRED DOCUMENTS into the CV/Resume box, into which multiple documents can be uploaded. Applications that do not contain all of the required documents will not receive full consideration.***

For this position, the selected candidate will need to complete the required background checks prior to the start date of the position.

This position will remain open until filled.

Questions regarding the application process should be directed to Marcus Rozier, Academic Recruiter, at hjv5vm@virginia.edu.

The University of Virginia is an equal opportunity employer. All interested persons are encouraged to apply, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Learn more about UVA’s commitment to non-discrimination and equal opportunity employment.