Research Administrator III - University of Florida

This position requires a highly motivated, service-focused, self-starting professional to support scientists who are working diligently to discover solutions to some of the most vexing problems in Florida and the world. As a Research Administrator in The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), you are expected to provide comprehensive research administration to a portfolio of faculty/principal investigators (PIs) in various units to ensure the overall effective coordination of research administration services, systems, policies, processes, and compliance.Position will provide lifecycle pre- & post-award research administration ensuring the fulfillment of all grants and/or contract & compliance requirements. Major duties include proposal development, review and submission and Submission and management of other research related agreements, award management including effort, expenditures, modifications, and closeouts, in addition to regularly communicating with the projects’ stakeholders. The position reports to the Assistant Director of IFAS Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA).The Research Administrator III is a upper-level position with an in-depth understanding of the professional field; can independently perform full range of responsibilities within the function; possesses broad job knowledge; analyzes problems/issues of diverse scope and determines solutions; functions with a high degree of autonomy and limited supervision; coaches and reviews the work of lower level professionals; problems faced are difficult and sometimes complex.Every member of our community is expected to foster a psychologically healthy work environment by communicating across differences; being cooperative, collaborative, and welcoming; showing respect and empathy; engaging and supporting others regardless of background or perspective; speaking up when others are treated inappropriately; and supporting work/life integration for all.

Classification Title:	Research Administrator III
Job Description:	Pre-Award Management Manages pre-award activities for an assigned portfolio of Principal Investigators (PIs) within the Sponsored Programs Administration (SPA) team using knowledge of grant and contract management rules and regulations, technical expertise, and analytical skills. Pre-award activities include, but are not limited to, • Assists departmental faculty/PI in the development, preparation, and submission of proposals to federal, state, and private funding agencies. • Reviews requests for proposals (i.e., RFP, RFA, FOA, PA) and identifies the specific funding agency’s requirements while ensuring the policies are within or consistent with those of the sponsor, federal, state, UF and IFAS guidelines. • Ensures all proposal submissions meet published timelines and deadlines and are entered and routed in a timely manner for further review. • Assists the PI in the development of budgets and budget justification which includes proofing the budget for inconsistencies and ensuring accuracy. • Reviews budgets for consistency with sponsor, monitors compliance with agency and University regulations regarding submission; verifies all financial information to include application of the appropriate overhead rate for the project. • Advises the PI on administrative requirements in preparing proposal submissions and on budget adjustments and revisions necessary to meet the sponsor requirements. • Coordinates and reviews certain proposal elements (biosketches and facilities & resources) for consistency, accuracy, and completeness. • Reviews proposals for consistency with sponsor guidelines on budget, format, font size, page limits excluding narrative content (obtain and review sponsor guidelines). • Confers with PI and Pre-award support staff at collaborating institutions to secure necessary sub-awards documents for proposals. • Obtains signatures as needed. • Monitors proposal status and advises PI on requirements and deadlines associated with research protection protocols. • Facilitates processing of post-submission updates, agreements, and award release. • Liaises as necessary with DSP, IFAS Core Offices, or other central university departments.   Post Award Management: Manages post-award activities in support of an assigned portfolio of grants and contracts within one or more units (i.e., school, department, division, institute, or center) using knowledge of grant and contract management rules and regulations, technical expertise, and analytical skills. Post award management requires routine, careful, and detailed fiscal analysis to forecast each award’s financial trajectory in the assigned portfolio. Financial analysis and projections should be reviewed with PIs on a consistent basis (a minimum of once per semester) to ensure accuracy and budget adherence. Post award activities include, but are not limited to, • Review award documents for acceptance and processing • Reviews grant and contract award terms and conditions while using and interpreting award documents to determine the budget, restrictions, and other pertinent information and communicating that information to pertinent key personnel. • Completes award setup and budget reconciliation in UFIRST and sets up projection and tracking tools necessary for award management. • Provides comprehensive award management and monitoring of post award activities including payroll distributions, commitments, cost share, Effort, FARs, budget transfers, budget modifications, incremental and supplemental budget requests, subaward monitoring, no cost extensions, and cost transfers. • Manages payroll distributions and effort for the assigned PIs and all employees paid on sponsored programs funding. • Ensure project effort commitments on Faculty Assignment Reports (FARs) are accurate, understanding current federal and university Effort Reporting policies, reviewing and distributing effort for sponsored programs in effort reports in myUFL per faculty input, notifying PI or key personnel specifically named in the notice of award if effort is reduced by 25 percent or more from the level that was approved at the time of award and facilitating requests to sponsor to reduce effort level, ensuring the reports are completed in a timely manner and certified by the appropriate individual, identifying and troubleshooting effort report issues, and ensuring committed cost sharing is captured on the effort report. • Reconciles expenditures to ensure costs are allowable, allocated, reasonable and consistent with funding agency regulations. • As required, reviews/monitors grant spending and works with the appropriate parties to manage and/or resolve any issues or concerns. • Assists PI in their subrecipient monitoring responsibilities, including reviewing subrecipient invoices to ensure invoices are within the parameters of the subaward budget and questioning expenditures if necessary, ensuring subrecipient invoices are approved by the PI and returned to C&G in a timely manner, and requesting clarification from the subrecipient regarding any unusual or excessive charges invoiced by the subrecipient. • Advises principal investigators and departmental administrators on university, state and federal guidelines governing expenditures and other award activities. • Works closely with C&G to close-out projects, including transferring of residual accounts.   10% Research Compliance: • The employee must develop an understanding of the OMB Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR 200) to effectively manage sponsored awards. • In addition, familiarity with a variety of other aspects of sponsored research administration will be required, including cost accounting standards (CAS), Institutional Review Board (IRB) for human subjects in research, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) for animal subjects in research, financial conflict of interest (FCOI), export control, and other specific UF policies. The employee will ensure a proper understanding of the award parameters and any special requirements of the award that need to be brought to the faculty member’s attention due to programmatic and/or compliance restraints. • In the event of a sponsored award(s) review or audit, this position would assist the Director and Core Offices in response to requested documentation. For this reason, it is imperative that the incumbent maintain sufficient documentation for all expenses of sponsored awards under their management. Documentation should justify the benefit, appropriateness, and allowability of expenditures to a sponsored award.   Agreement Support and Management: The employee will assist PIs with the submission and monitoring of documents related to all activities that route to DSP through the UFIRST Agreements module. The employee will be a point of contact between the PI and DSP to ensure consistent communication and progress on agreement negotiations.   Other duties as assigned: Acts as liaison for departmental faculty and staff and the Division of Sponsored Research for pre-awards and post-award guidance, education, actions and processes. Assist Director and Assistant Director with special projects as needed.
Expected Salary:	$65,000-$75,000
Minimum Requirements:	Bachelor’s degree and three years of experience in grant and contract administration; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Preferred Qualifications:	• Familiarity with PeopleSoft, UFIRST, and other UF systems • Superior attention to detail and an innate curiosity • Strong written and verbal communication skills • Ability to understand, interpret and communicate policies and procedures • Self-starter, diplomatic, pro-active, and able to manage stress • Excellent analytical skills and the ability to exercise independent judgement • Strong problem solving and time management skills, including the ability to adapt to frequent changes in work assignments, prioritize, and manage competing priorities to meet deadlines are strongly preferred • Follow internal procedures and manage multiple priorities simultaneously, all while meeting strict deadlines • Show tact, diplomacy, and helpfulness in interactions with internal and external stakeholders • Possess high-level computer proficiency using web-based tools, with experience using the Microsoft Office Suite, especially Excel • Ability to multitask, take initiative and work independently, consulting with appropriate parties as needed • High degree of personal integrity and ethics with uncompromising standards • Must be precise, thorough, and reliable and perform daily activities with minimal supervision
Special Instructions to Applicants:	In order to be considered, you must upload your cover letter and resume.  Application must be submitted by 11:55 p.m. (ET) of the posting end date.
Health Assessment Required:	No