Grant & Contract Specialist III

SUMMARY OF POSITION: 

Under the general direction of the Sr. Department Administrator, or designee, the Grant and Contract Specialist III is responsible for performing diversified and complex administrative, financial, and pre- and post-award budgetary functions in support of departmental activities, to include both responsibilities for both restricted and unrestricted departmental funds.  The Grant and Contract Specialist III will display a high degree of initiative and independent judgment and collaborate closely with laboratory leadership to continually assess and direct a wide range of issues including research program operations, personnel management, regulatory, quality improvement, long range financial planning.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Lead effort in management of all pre-award administration, to include, but not limited to, advising Sr. administrator and PI of sponsor guidelines, participation in application assembly, budget preparation, faculty guidance, e-submission processes, UMMS required paperwork, etc. and other administrative requirements for the submission of all federal and non-federal grants and contracts
• Working knowledge of NIH and other federal, state and foundation regulations and requirements.
• Identifies, proposes and implements creative solutions to potential fiscal issues.
• Develop and manage the division's annual budget and report variances and recommend corrective action. Provide high level fiscal analysis on forecasts as needed
• Verify that funds are available for all equipment, personnel and major purchases. Assure compliance with federal purchase and contract requirements. • Coordinate with central grant accounting and department staff on deposits, electronic transfers and cost transfers to funds/contracts
• Manage division(s) funding sources by monitoring revenue and expenditure activity
• Represent the department at administrative meetings within and outside of the Medical School applicable with their assigned divisions.
• Develop, lead and train junior staff which include (administrative assistants, financial assistants, and lower level grants and contracts specialists)
• Serve on Institutional committees established to improve school operations and system implementations
• Assist in determining space and facility needs for the unit faculty
• Advise faculty and staff on compensation and benefit policies and procedures
• Monitor regulatory and compliance requirements for all sponsored research activity, keeping detailed files and a tracking mechanism for annual renewals. Inform Sr. administrator of variances
• Assist in analytical studies of existing or proposed clinical trials to provide the economic basis for management decisions to improve operational/financial performance and to realize productivity improvements
• Monitor all clinical trial funding sources for assigned divisions by tracking revenue and expenditure activity and monitoring of trial milestones, identify variances and assist in resolving account variances
• Monitor contracts, extensions, and amendments with outside vendors, private agencies, and consultants in conjunction with Purchasing and legal offices; monitor the contracts for cost effectiveness and quality performance standards
• Prepare data for financial reports, budgets, budget and research fund reconciliations, forecasting, analysis, and ad-hoc reports for Sr Administrator and PI” s as needed. Perform analysis of data as required
• Work with the Sr. Administrator, principal investigators, and staff to resolve problems and to optimize the use of funds as required; finalize all expenditure activity of expired grants; deposit checks to any income and service fund accounts
• Manage all phases of post-award grants and contracts administration, to include monitoring budgets, expenses, and recovered overhead. Advise Sr. Administrator and PI of reporting requirements
• Assist faculty in finding possible funding opportunities
• Monitor post-award activities to ensure adherence to sponsor guidelines and all reporting requirements are met. Inform Sr. Administrator and PI on budget variances
• Oversee changes to award budgets and the submission of the necessary paperwork for approval of such actions
• Prepare reports for federal and sponsoring agencies
• Assist and participate with Grant Accounting in award termination process to close-out accounts. Notify Sr. Administrator and PI of final status
• Monitor operating expenses, prepare monthly variance-to-budget reports, Departmental voluntary and mandatory cost sharing, and advise the Administrator on reconciliation actions
• Oversees fiscal functions of Administrative Assistants within their assigned divisions (e.g. procard oversight, travel requests from multiple PIs and staff and oversee the processing of consultant agreements, travel vouchers, purchase orders, reallocation of expenditures, and other expenses
• Oversee and responsible for Effort certification for faculty
• Responsible for the process of initiating and submitting payroll personnel action forms related to transfers, funding changes etc. Audit the accuracy of employee payroll data
• Provide great customer service
• Perform other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, or Accounting, or equivalent experience (In school)
• 5-7 years of relevant job experience, or equivalent, preferably in an academic environment.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze and interpret financial documents, such as system reports, at both account and summary levels
• Demonstrated research administration experience with pre and post award emphasis.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Access and, PowerPoint), or similar software applications. Knowledge of enterprise financial products
• Excellent interpersonal skills (verbal and written) needed to present and communicate effectively with all levels of management
• Proficiency and experience with a Grants Management system
• Detail-oriented & analytic problem-solver
•  Excellent organizational and electronic document management skills
• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple deadlines
• Excellent people skills and relationship management
• Good communication skills across multiple levels of the organization.
• An enthusiasm for working in a multicultural, multi-ethnic setting.
• Ability to maintain extensive electronic document and e-mail files which are department property.
• Demonstrated ability to be organized and flexible in an environment which requires continuous monitoring of priorities.
• Exceptional attention to detail and confidentiality.
• Highly goal oriented, self-motivated, and team player

• Acts as administrative hub for clinical faculty investigators within the Department of Medicine, to manage clinical trial start up activities for both investigator initiated and industry sponsored clinical trials.
• Work with clinical faculty investigators and study coordinators to vet the financial viability of proposed budgets for investigator-initiated trials. This may include vetting specific costs with the Office of Clinical Research, working under tight timelines for grant proposals, and escalating budget deficits to the Chair, Department of Medicine for review.
• Acts as intermediary between clinical faculty investigators and pharmaceutical companies supporting investigator initiated studies when there is a budget deficit and additional funding is being requested.