Senior Grants and Contracts Manager

Overview

POSITION: Senior Grants and Contracts Manager

POSITION ID: 8711

POSITION OBJECTIVE

Working under limited supervision, the Senior Manager of Grants and Contracts is responsible for grants management with emphasis on specific portfolio in the School of Medicine. The manager is responsible for the submission and monitoring of proposals, working directly with support staff, administrators and investigators (reviewing and submitting grant applications and interacting with sponsor representatives as needed). The manager oversees portfolio of grant activities (basic or clinical science) including award setup in internal systems and review of standard federal subawards. The manager provides compliance oversight and guidance as it relates to agency proposals, and communicates and interprets agency policies and requirements for investigative personnel. 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

1. Review, process and submit all grant proposals submitted by the school to federal and nonfederal sponsors with delegated signature authority from the Provost Office. This includes, but is not limited to No Cost Extensions, progress reports, carryover and Just in Times requests, supplemental and post submission requests from a variety of sponsors. Assure adherence to agency and university requirements (via SPARTA) and maintain up-to-date knowledge of agency and university compliance and research policies. Verify that budgets are appropriately and accurately drafted, properly accounting for effort and compensation. (20%)
2. Oversee and manage financial and administrative functions for the assigned portfolio for pre-award and award setup (basic science departments or clinical departments), including activity monitoring of compliance requirements and research progress, both internally to the university. Serve as a point of contact for external sponsors (NIH,CDC, DoD, others). (15%)
3. Oversee and coordinate portfolio, including proposal submission and award set up, with grants management specialist, assuring accurate account set up and department/Principal Investigator notification. Review and negotiate federal (FDP) contracts for sponsored projects for the School of Medicine. Prepare award setup documents for PeopleSoft, coordinated with SPARTA communications (NCE, carryover requests; preliminary account requests; petitions to continue projects, including fiscal review of previous awards and verifying/understanding of expenses in grant support from both federal and private sponsors). Assure proposal and award set up comply with federal policies as well as school and university requirements (human subject and other research compliance requirements). (19%)
4. Asist in the development of policies and procedures as they pertain to sponsored projects administration in collaboration with the Office of Research Administration. Contribute to the development and maintenance of the sponsored projects manual, which is an online document that contains information and web links to sponsored projects administration policies and procedures. Work with the Office of Research Administration staff, department administrators and school-based research administrators on an on-going basis to identify and implement improvements to existing sponsored projects administration. Attend conferences and meetings to sustain up to date knowledge of sponsor requirements. Review professional literature and communicate relevant changes to Senior Director with recommendations on how change will impact the university. Suggest updates accordingly to website. (10%)
5. Manage the central email account(s) as a part of proposal and award workflow in the Office of Grants and Contracts. Contribute to the goal of achieving excellence in pre award and account set up services. (10%)

NONESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

1. Assist the senior director to develop and implement strategies for communication, quality control and required reporting activities for individual projects and cores and for the overall grants. (5%)
2. Function as a technical resource and advisor on financial and regulatory issues for school faculty and staff.  Provide leadership, advice, and guidance regarding administrative policies and procedures for assigned portfolio. Develop expert knowledge of the university pre-award policy and account set up; agencies’ guidelines, polices, websites, and electronic submission procedures (Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health); and applicable systems, modules and forms (e.g. SPARTA pre-award system, NIH Form C application packages and NIH ASSIST, Workspace module) to serve as a resource for faculty and staff.  (5%)
3. Assist department administrators to develop and produce of multi-investigator and multi-institutional grant applications, reports, and advisory board materials. Develop and implement a pre-award and account set up manual providing detailed step-by-step procedures to assure the efficiency of the department. (5%)
4. Assist Senior Director to develop and enhance database and reporting systems for searching, organizing, and maintaining sponsor required information and developing targeted reports to meet sponsor requests as well as collaborators’ institutional and research needs. (5%)
5. Establish a pre-award training program for new and experienced staff, faculty, and administrators on a bi-annual basis.  Provide direction and training to support staff, faculty, and department administrators regarding grant proposals preparation, submission, and progress reports on a daily basis.  (1%)
6. Provide monthly, quarterly, and yearly reports to management regarding success rates, comparison of proposal portfolio over time and errors in NIH system data.  Analyze information and provide recommendations for improvements. (1%)
7. Develop and maintain effective working relations with internal and external contacts. (1%)
8. Develop and implement procedures to improve the grant review, submission and follow-up processes. (1%)
9. Participate and receive certification from the CAPS (CWRU Administrative Professional Series) within the first year of employment or achieve Certified Research Administrator (CRA) (1%)
10. Perform other duties as assigned. (1%)

CONTACTS

Department: Daily contact with colleagues and supervisor within the Grants and Contracts Office, Research Office, Finance and Planning, Institutional Development, and other administrative offices; with principal investigators and with administrators to explain requirements and provide information.

University: Daily contact with administrators outside of the School of Medicine. Contact with central offices such as: Office of Research Administration, Sponsored Projects Accounting, Foundation Relations, and the Controller’s Office to respond to requests and provide information.

External: Regular contact with agency and agency’s technical support personnel.

Students: Contact with students working in other departments.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY

Supervise one grants specialist. Supervise pre/post award activities, partnering on assigned/shared portfolio.

QUALIFICATIONS

Experience:  6 years of related work experience in grants administration, research administration, business administration or related field required. Experience in a medical school, university, or biomedical setting preferred.

Education/Licensing: Bachelor’s degree required. Coursework in business, finance or accounting preferred. Certified Research Administration (CRA) preferred.

REQUIRED SKILLS

1. Knowledge of federal and non-federal regulations, including OMB Circular A-21, also knowledge NIH’s SF 424 Application Guide and grants policy.
2. Familiarity with Grants.gov, eRA Commons, PADS and Spiderweb, including grant submission involvement.
3. Professional and effective oral and written communication skills; and good interpersonal skills with the ability to work and communicate with various individuals within and external to the university.  Must demonstrate the ability to interact with investigators, explaining requirements and assisting in resolving problems in a positive and diplomatic manner.  Must be clear and tactful in all dealings with investigators and administrators to facilitate the application process.
4. Strong organization skills; ability to multi-task, prioritize and meet deadlines.  Must demonstrate attention to detail and accuracy, time management skills, and follow-through.  
5. Ability to work effectively independently and collaboratively within a team.  Must be highly motivated, responsible and dependable. Must have a strong customer service ethic to all personnel.
6. Must demonstrate flexibility and ability to work under pressure; must be able and willing to work in a fast-paced, changing environment, and conform to shifting priorities, demands and timeline.  Must have the ability to work under strict deadlines and manage multiple priorities. 
7. Effective problem-solving skills; must demonstrate excellent analytical skills, sound judgment and good decision-making. 
8. Proficiency in Microsoft Office, specifically with Microsoft Word and Excel programs, and familiarity with the internet as a source of information.
9. Familiarity with Peoplesoft and Sparta would be a plus.
10. Must demonstrate willingness to learn new techniques, procedures, processes, and computer programs as needed.
11. Ability to meet consistent attendance. 
12. Ability to interact with colleagues, supervisors, and customers face to face.

WORKING CONDITIONS

General office environment.  This position will be required to work under major deadlines requiring extended work hours as needed and managing multiple priorities.

DIVERSITY STATEMENT

In employment, as in education, Case Western Reserve University is committed to Equal Opportunity and Diversity.  Women, veterans, members of underrepresented minority groups, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

REASONABLE ACCOMODATIONS

Case Western Reserve University provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.  Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the Office of Inclusion, Diversity and Equal Opportunity at 216-368-8877 to request a reasonable accommodation.  Determinations as to granting reasonable accommodations for any applicant will be made on a case-by-case basis.

NOTE

CWRU offers a flexible benefits package including tuition waiver for employees and dependents; Respond in confidence, including salary history: CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY, Human Resources Job Code #8711 apply to: jobs.case.edu

APPLY AT

http://www.case.edu/finadmin/humres/employment/career.html