Senior Contracts and Grants Specialist

Overview

Contracts and Grants Specialist, Senior - (1900003P)

The School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics Administration is seeking a Senior Contracts and Grants Specialist. The Senior Contract and Grant Specialist will establish and maintain effective working relationships with faculty, administrators, staff, and students to provide the highest level of pre-award and post-award management for sponsor related funds. The Senior Contract and Grant Specialist is also responsible for conceptualizing, developing, and providing ongoing training and education to the University of Maryland, Baltimore research community to increase institutional knowledge related to grants and contracts. This position independently leads a contract and grants team and is responsible for hands on oversight and management of a sponsor based portfolio. Manages the grant process from development, review, and submission through the post-award stage at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Identifies, develops, and implements procedures/practices to ensure research administration goals and objectives are met while complying with University, federal, state, and sponsor rules and regulations. 

This is an exempt, regular position and offers a generous benefits package that includes 22 vacation days, 14 floating and observed holidays, 15 sick days; comprehensive health insurance and retirement options; and tuition remission for employees and their dependents at any of the University System of Maryland schools.

Essential Functions

Proposal Preparation:

• Serves as in house subject matter expert to staff and faculty in development and review of all grant and contract proposals and applications. Reviews and interprets funding agency guidelines and regulations and advises faculty as to policies and procedures of those agencies as well as those of the state and University. Works with faculty to develop proposals and advise on funding strategies.  
• Leads faculty in budget development and planning, advising on determination and computation of appropriate salary levels, percentages of effort, fringe benefit rates, and indirect cost rate and base. Ensures that all proper university officials have approved the proposed activity.
• Coordinates the proposal development activity to plan, manage, and track milestones and ensure internal and external deadlines are met. Oversees the contractual process of sponsored awards with both Sponsored Programs Administration/Sponsored Programs Accounting and Compliance and external sponsors for faculty. 

Post Award Administration:

• Serves as primary point of contact between University and sponsoring agencies, and between faculty and University administration matters and study related issues related to the sponsored project. Provides expertise to faculty in interpreting award terms and conditions and maintaining best financial practices to assure compliance with sponsor requirements, university policies and procedures, and relevant laws and regulations. Responsible for insuring faculty maintain proper spending of research funding.
• Reviews and analyzes data to solve complex sponsored research problems; develops and implements updates to workflow, practices, and procedures; prepares reports and summaries on research funding. Interprets data for the purpose of determining past financial performance to develop and prepare financial reports for financial analysis, forecasting, and trending. Devises financial reporting tools and reports. 
• Oversees contract and grant budget and authorizes establishment of funds.  Reviews and maintain documentation related to cost transfers, requests for expenditures, effort reporting, budget revisions, and fund statements. Oversee invoicing, accounts receivable, and deposits in the financial system and ensures payments are applied correctly.
• Performs continuous monitoring of project, drafts requests to funding agency for revisions in terms and conditions, and prepares multiple representations and certifications to federal and private agencies.

Business Unit Operations:

• Ensures overall optimum unit efficiency and compliance with appropriate policies, procedures, and specifications. Works closely with sponsors and leadership to develop shared business processes in order to streamline operations.
• Schedules and contributes to evaluation of professional and clerical staff. Manages workflow of Contract and Grant Specialists and provides training in proposal and budget development, submission, sponsor guidelines, and other areas as needed.
• Increases and promotes institutional knowledge related to research grants and contracts administration and management and remain current with industry-wide grants management trends/regulations. Implements changes to UMB policies and procedures to incorporate research administration updates.
• Conceptualizes, develops, and provides ongoing in-service training to faculty and departmental support staff to ensure timely education and information related to research related issues.
• Primary liaison with campus Sponsored Programs Administration, Clinical Trials and Corporate Contracts, and Sponsored Projects Accounting and Compliance teams to ensure projects are set up and closed out accurately and in a timely manner. Interacts directly with designation sponsor representatives to clarify ambiguous terms and conditions, and to request supplemental funding, no cost extensions, and other administrative requests.

Performs other related duties and special projects as assigned.

Qualifications

Education: Bachelors business or public administration or another appropriate field, such as Project Management.

Experience: Five (5) years of experience working with contracts and grants including budget and proposal preparation.

Other:  No substitution of experience for minimum education requirement.

Financial Disclosure required.

Hiring Range: Commensurate with education and experience.

Apply for this postition at below website:

https://www.umaryland.edu/jobs/