The 53-year-old will oversee the first transfer window under the INEOS regime alongside technical director Jason Wilcox and incoming chief executive Omar Berrada.
United are also working on a short-term agreement with ex-Chelsea chief Christopher Vivell, who would offer his expertise with talent ID and player recruitment.
The Red Devils' transfer plans are expected to accelerate now that Ratcliffe has his desired sporting structure in place.
And Ashworth has already revealed what to expect from him, in particular, when finding his feet in a new environment after joining Newcastle from Brighton and Hove Albion in May 2022.
He explained that his priority tasks at St. James' Park were getting to grips with how the club operated and helming a successful transfer window.
"The most important thing for me is to understand who's in place, the culture, where everybody fits, what's going really well, what's going on where maybe we have a few gaps and try and bring that together," Ashworth told NUFCTV.
Dan Ashworth is a huge coup for Man Utd. (Image: Getty)
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"We're about to start a transfer window, so there will be a lot of things on the to-do list with players in and out – things Eddie will want to do for the first-team squad.
"Within time, it's about understanding the medical department, the academy, loans, the women's team and other things across the remit of the sporting director.
"The two most important things for me at the moment are to try and understand and get to know all the staff, how the club functions and the culture here and then short-term, help drive the transfer window for the next three months."
Ashworth added: "It's very similar to my role as technical director at my previous employment. I always describe it as sitting in the middle of the wheel.
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"My job is to sit in the middle of the wheel hand connect the different departments of the club and align everything as best as I possibly can."
United have reportedly identified a new centre-back, central midfielder and striker as the three most pressing areas to address this summer.
The M16 giants have already seen a £43million bid for Everton's Jarrad Branthwaite rejected and are reportedly now in talks with Bayern Munich for Matthijs de Ligt.
Paris Saint-Germain's Manuel Ugarte is said to have emerged as a top midfield target, while United are being strongly linked with triggering Bologna striker Joshua Zirkzee's £34m release clause.
