at University of Illinois in Urbana, Illinois, United States
Job Description
Assistant Director Research Administration - School of Chemical SciencesCollege of Liberal Arts & Sciences
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The School of Chemical Sciences is searching for an Assistant Director Research Administration to manage the day-to-day pre-award and post-award sponsored research program activities for assigned departments within the School of Chemical Sciences (SCS) and supervising and supporting the Sponsored Research Business Analysts (SRBA) in the SCS business office. Responsible for providing SCS faculty with expertise in pre-award and post-award functions for complex and routine funded research projects. The Assistant Director will be the point of contact for all faculty with inquiries concerning their grant portfolios. Assumes a leadership role in the development and submission of proposals and fiscal management of Federal and non-Federal awards. Responsible for maintaining an understanding of current federal solicitations, ever-changing federal regulations, and University policies and guidelines related to research administration.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Pre-Award Activities
• Provides expertise and guidance to faculty and principal investigators in the preparation and submission of routine and complex proposals to various sponsors, including but not limited to Federal, State, Industry partners, Non-Profit organizations, and foreign entities.
• Reviews and interprets sponsor regulations and guidelines, as well as Illinois policies and procedures, and oversees proposal application packages for a wide array of submission systems.
• Coordinates the development of proposals, budgets, expenditure forecasts and ad-hoc financial reporting for sponsored projects to ensure compliance with specified requirements. Acts as lead research administrator on large, complex grants that include multiple collaborators.
• Assists SRBA's in coordinating with multiple investigators and their staff, including Graduate Students, Postdoctoral Research Associates, and Visitors on budget formulation, expenditure forecasts, personnel effort obligations, and reporting requirements.
• Serves as a liaison with Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA) and assists with agreement negotiations, as necessary. Follows up on pending agreements and works with SPA to ensure they are finalized and sponsored project funds are established in a timely manner.
Post-Award Activities:
• Facilitates fiscal management activities with faculty members and principal investigators which includes financial projections; projections are utilized to provide advice and guidance to research teams on hiring and other major spending decisions such as large equipment purchases.
• Manages personnel budgets and expenditures through regular review of proposed appointments and account reviews; directs the execution of labor distribution changes for principal investigators and research staff in response to changes in research effort communicated by the principal investigator or faculty participating on the project.
• Ensures the timely completion of the semi-annual confirmation process for principal investigators reviewing and confirming research expenditures.
• Coordinates the review of sponsored project expenditures and ensuring integrity, accuracy and allowability of transactions in accordance with project budgets and agreements as well as University and Federal guidelines; oversee the account reconciliation process; ensures all account reconciliations are performed and necessary accounting corrections are performed timely.
• Manages the completion of sponsored project close-out reviews and works with SPA to close completed project accounts in a timely manner for assigned research portfolio.
• Requests and monitors anticipated accounts, sub-award agreements, and other agreement extensions.
• Performs monthly review of financial statements for unallowable expenditures, deficits, accuracy
Leadership Duties
• Supervises and leads grants management staff to achieve success and foster a culture of innovation and high-level performance at both individual and organizational levels. This includes allocation of workload, ongoing performance management with coaching and feedback, career development planning, travel approval, as well as conducting annual performance reviews.
• Collaborates with SCS leadership team members to evaluate and continue to enhance service levels to our customers and design strategic professional development plans for team members.
• Serves as Primary Contact for all sponsored research activity in the SCS business office.
• Trains and serves as an ongoing resource for new SRBA professional staff.
• Develops and implements departmental policies and procedures for research administration, ensuring compliance with UIUC and funding agency requirements.
• Analyzes the pre- and post-award business processes and develops operational strategies that ensure efficiency, accuracy, and effective communication and customer service.
• Oversees agency requirements as they change, at least annually, to ensure continued compliance and update departmental policies and procedures as necessary.
• Collaborates with department contacts to ensure faculty teaching, research, public service, costsharing, and other efforts are correctly reflected in ARS and cost-sharing obligations are met.
• Develops, implements, maintains, and oversees systems for monitoring principal investigator efforts on sponsored projects to ensure the investigators meet their effort obligations on their awards. Recommends changes in investigator effort and appointment requests, as necessary, to ensure compliance with effort obligations. When necessary, obtains sponsor approval for deviations from budgeted effort.
• Monitors the SCS research portfolio to allocate the workload as necessary among the SCS Grants team members, keeping in mind the differing requirements of the various agencies, the range of complexity of certain pre-and post-award activities, and providing opportunities for staff development, cross-training, and efficient and effective operations.
• Ensures proposals are submitted and completed projects are closed timely.
Research Administration Duties
• Manages the chart of accounts, requesting Banner account segments when necessary, and ensures accuracy of information in BA4 finance and departmental accounting and reporting.
• Assists SCS purchasing and payables functions by coordinating the review and approval of purchasing transactions, review and approval of iBuy system transactions, and subaward invoice processing.
• Designs and maintains various reports, spreadsheets, and/or databases to effectively manage sponsored project funds.
• Participates in the campus research administration community by attending RAAB, BMG, and Sponsored Programs and Research Compliance (SPaRC) meetings, and serve on various committees to enhance and improve administration efforts
• Serves on search committees and acts as committee chair, as needed, for open searches within the school.
• Assumes additional grants and contracts duties to further the mission of SCS.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in business administration, accounting, finance, economics, or a field related to the position.
- Six years of professional work experience in research administration or financial administration.
- Illinois Certified Research Administrator
- Strong background in accounting principles and sponsored research pre-and post- award administration.
- Master's degree in Business Administration, Higher Education Administration, or a related field.
- Experience with University business policies, procedures, and financial systems.
- Experience with supervision, leadership and/or distribution of labor.
- Ability to organize and successfully manage multiple concurrent complex tasks.
- Proven track record of customer service and demonstrated ability to be result-oriented with strong organizational and time management skills.
- Excellent interpersonal skills, the ability to communicate effectively with others, and the ability to interact with a broad array of internal and external constituents.
- Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of University, College, and Department organization, objectives, and goals.
This is a 100% full-time Civil Service 5040 - Grants and Contracts Associate position, appointed on a 12-month basis. The expected start date is as soon as possible after the deadline date. The budgeted salary range for this position is $85,000 to $95,000. Salary is competitive and commensurate with qualifications and experience, while also considering internal equity. This position is eligible for a hybrid work schedule (remote work and in-person work in Champaign-Urbana each week) per the University of Illinois workplace flexibility guidelines- https://cam.illinois.edu/policies/hr-87-2/. Sponsorship for work authorization is not available for this position.
For more information on Civil Service classifications, please visit the SUCSS web site at https://www.sucss.illinois.gov/pages/classspec/default.aspx .
Application Procedures & Deadline Information
Applications must be received by 6:00 pm (Central Time) on April 15, 2025. To apply for this position, please create a candidate profile at https://jobs.illinois.edu, use the Apply Now button on the posting and upload your cover letter, resume, and names/contact information for three professional references. Please remember to include specific information on how you meet the qualifications of the position in your application materials, including all relevant experiences.
In order to be considered as a transfer candidate, you must apply for this position. Applications not submitted through https://jobs.illinois.edu will not be considered. If required by the position, transcripts or other documentation of credentials are to be provided no later than the first day of employment. For further information about this specific position, please contact lascollegehiring@illinois.edu. For questions regarding the application process, please contact 217-333-2137.
The University of Illinois offers a very competitive benefits portfolio, depending on the position. Click for a complete list of Employee Benefits .
The University of Illinois must also comply with applicable federal export control laws and regulations and, as such, reserves the right to employ restricted party screening procedures for applicants.
The University of Illinois System is an equal opportunity employer, including but not limited to disability and/or veteran status, and complies with all applicable state and federal employment mandates. Please visit Required Employment Notices and Posters to view our non-discrimination statement and find additional information about required background checks, sexual harassment/misconduct disclosures, and employment eligibility review through E-Verify .
The University of Illinois must also comply with applicable federal export control laws and regulations and, as such, reserves the right to employ restricted party screening procedures for applicants.
Applicants with disabilities are encouraged to apply and may request a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (2008) to complete the application and/or interview process. Accommodations may also be requested on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions, or religion. Requests may be submitted through the reasonable accommodations portal , or by contacting the Accessibility & Accommodations Division of the Office for Access and Equity at 217-333-0885, or by emailing accessibility@illinois.edu .
Requisition ID: 1029651
Job Category: Professional and Administrative
Apply at: https://jobs.illinois.edu
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