Janine Marino

About Janine Marino

Transforming vision into executable strategy I specialize in evaluating complex…

Experience

1. Director of Operations

   Kaplan Institute

   Nov 2021 — Present · Chicago, IL, US

   Executive leader for Illinois Tech’s innovation and entrepreneurship hub, managing strategic operations, budget oversight, talent development, and cross-institutional initiatives. Trusted advisor to the Executive Director, responsible for aligning programs, systems, and resources to expand access to entrepreneurship and workforce pathways for historically excluded communities.• Serve as chief architect of internal operations, managing a $2M+ budget and overseeing HR, facilities, academic programming, and performance systems to support 25+ interdisciplinary courses and 650+ students per semester.• Designed and led strategic hiring process to build a new leadership team, including marketing, events, and operations staff aligned with long-term growth strategy.• Partner with executive leadership and faculty to align mission, program delivery, and institutional reporting, improving cross-campus collaboration and funder engagement.• Lead cross-functional team on $6M National Science Foundation-funded workforce initiative, from initial proposal through post-award management, team hiring, and multi-year strategy execution.• Oversee operations and compliance for six annual grants, ensuring accurate financial reporting and strong funder relationships.• Represent Kaplan Institute in external partnerships with corporate funders, city agencies, and community organizations, advancing inclusive innovation and economic mobility in Chicago.• Spearheaded organization-wide technology transformation, implementing CRM, marketing automation, and event platforms to increase data transparency and operational agility.• Led $2M capital improvement project to resolve critical acoustics and lighting issues in a facility- completed ahead of schedule and under budget.

Education

• Columbia College Chicago

  Master of Arts - MA

• Boston University

  Bachelor of Arts - BA

• UC Irvine

  Certificate, Project Management

• Northwestern University

  Certificate, Project Management

  2013 — 2014

• Illinois Tech Stuart School of Business

  Master of Business Administration - MBA

Skills

• Dance
• Entertainment
• Performing Arts
• Social Networking
• Fundraising
• Marketing Strategy
• Editing
• Volunteer Management
• Training
• Tessitura
• Community Outreach
• Music
• Public Relations
• Teaching
• Time Management
• Event Management
• Arts Administration
• Social Media
• Project Management
• Facebook
• Non-Profits
• Event Planning
• Management
• Leadership
• Nonprofits
• Marketing
• Public Speaking
• Customer Service