POSITION OBJECTIVE
Working with a high degree of independence, the Grants Manager for Funded Projects will provide overall administrative management and coordination of a variety of business-related functions: finance, budget, and grant administration for various departments within the School of Medicine. The grants manager will be assigned a research portfolio made up of multiple grants and contracts, based in multiple research departments with annual expenditures between $4.5m and $5.5m. These assignments will change as needed based on changes in funding levels, staffing needs and other dynamics. The grants manager is expected to function as the financial and business manager across their assigned portfolio and will work directly with faculty and staff as it relates to grant submissions, financial reporting, tracking of expenses, determining optimal staffing levels based on available resources, and ensuring compliance with post-award management for multiple NIH institutes, other Federal and State agencies, industrial and non-profit funding agencies. The grants manager will develop and implement plans for optimizing the management of resources, exercising discretion and independent judgment to assigned departments related to managing revenues and expenses, as well as working across units within the Office of Finance and with administrators across the School of Medicine and Case Western Reserve University. The grants manager has authority to accomplish objectives within established guidelines and policies with the expectation of only referring special problems to the director.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
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Serve as the financial and business operations director for their assigned portfolio which will range between $5m-$7m in annual direct spending. Extract data from multiple university sources and systems and perform continuous financial modeling for implementation. Review spending patterns in order to project future trends and prepare long-range operational forecasts and cash flow analysis. Develop monthly forecasts for each principal investigator outlining all projects in their portfolio and meet with them monthly to review trends. Develop and implement strategies to avoid over and under spending. Review and monitor spending levels and commitments. Be the main contact and primary administrator to departmental staff, faculty and chairs for all things related to funded projects Delegate tasks to other hub employees as needed and follow up with colleagues, departmental staff and faculty to assure tasks are completed in a timely manner. Create efficiencies to improve accuracy. (30%)
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Provide multi-institution, complex proposal development for collaborative research, industry and clinical-trials grants and contracts. Provide background research to emphasize the connection between the research needs statement and the interests of the funder. Manage contract and grant proposal preparation processes for the more demanding and reporting-intensive sponsors with varying policies, restrictions and deliverables. Advise faculty on complex contract and grant terms that may impact the administration of a project involving multiple institutions in both the U.S. and international sites. Facilitate terms and conditions of awards, budget augmentation, and project period with the principals. Ensure compliance with all state and federal agency regulations, industry, non-profit organizations, and university procedures. Develop, and implement a system to ensure all projects closeouts are done timely. Maintain files of sponsored projects financial reports and close out packages. Provide multi-institution, complex proposal development for collaborative research, industry and clinical-trials grants and contracts. Provide background research to emphasize the connection between the research needs statement and the interests of the funder. Meet with principal investigators, chairs and executive director to discuss/initiate corrective actions prior to proposal submissions. Serve as a resource to assigned departments by identifying potential funding sources, interpreting proposal guidelines, providing guidance in navigating federal web based submission platform, and managing the internal routing process through Sparta. (25%)
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Manage the salary spend across the portfolio by balancing the resources available to each individual faculty. Determine appropriate and affordable staffing based on grant budgets and projections of clinical trial revenues. Approve all staff hires. Initiate reorganizations and layoffs when funding resources change or are eliminated. Override the instructions of principal investigators if necessary. Complete monthly effort/salary distributions for exempt employees. Complete salary adjustments as needed while working collaboratively with human resource administrators and the hub director. Be the main resource to all faculty and staff as it relates to HR issues. (20%)
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Present the School of Medicine's position, utilizing independent judgement, as it relates to compliance management, billing, and payments for shared research endeavors with administrative staff at affiliate hospitals to be ensure effective financial management of clinical trials. Monitor clinical trials closely to assure revenue is received, budgets are increased and payments to affiliate hospitals are done in a timely manner and in accordance with the various Affiliation Agreements. Working across Case Western Reserve University and with the appropriate affiliate staff representatives, monitor, review and approve various crossbills and reports with University Hospitals, the Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth Medical Center to ensure accuracy and funding availability. (10%)
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Prepare administrative reports for submission to sponsoring agencies including interim and final financial reports. Interpret school and university policies and procedures pertaining to grant management and expenditures and ensure compliance by all staff. Communicate any changes to policies and procedures to appropriate staff to ensure implementation. Ensure compliance with federal regulations as outlined in -21, A10 and A133. Maintain a database of all sub-recipients and note all sub-recipients subject to the Single Audit requirements. Gain an understanding of compliance programs of sub-recipients and communicate additional expectations to comply with the university's compliance program. Monitor receipt due date of audit reports and if reports are not received request the audit reports from sub-recipients. Review audit reports and follow up with sub-recipient to determine if corrective actions have been taken on findings related to the university. Monitor on a regular basis sub-recipient activities for compliance with program and university requirements. Monitor sub-recipient expenditures to ensure compliance with applicable regulations. Assist sub-recipients with resolution of financial noncompliance. (10%)
NONESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
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Serve an active role, including chairing committees on various leadership teams in developing long- and short-term departmental strategy goals. Cross train with HR specialists and purchasing managers to ensure smooth daily management of grants and contracts and during times of absence. Cross train with all other grants managers for changes in assignments and absences. (5%)
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Perform other duties as assigned. (<1%)
CONTACTS
Department: Daily contact with faculty and research personnel in assigned departments and the School of Medicine Office of Finance and Planning, Grants and contracts and all administrative offices, and School of Medicine administrators regarding administrative management of funded projects.
University: Daily contact with purchasing, Accounts Payable, HR central administrative departments to exchange.
External: Weekly contact with University Hospitals, MetroHealth and Cleveland Clinic physicians, administrators, research personal and residents. Regular contact with Federal funding agencies and institutes, industrial and non-profit funding agencies regarding funded projects.
Students: Frequent contact with graduate students and student employees to exchange information.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY
No direct responsibility.
QUALIFICATIONS
Education/Experience: Bachelor's degree and 5 or more years of related experience, or Associate's degree and 7 or more years of related experience required. Operational finance management and grant management experience preferred. Master's degree preferred.
REQUIRED SKILLS
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Demonstrated experience in managing strategic and organizational planning activities within a complex organization, preferably in an academic or public health setting.
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Experience developing or managing budgets.
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Knowledge of university policies and procedures preferred.
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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 good presentation skills and the ability to articulately and accurately relay information to others in a formal and informal setting.
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Strong organization skills: ability to multi-task, prioritize and meet deadlines. Must demonstrate attention to detail and accuracy, time management skills, and follow-through.
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Effective management skills: ability to lead, train, work with, and elicit cooperation from team members and staff.
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Ability to work effectively independently and collaboratively within a team. Must be highly motivated, responsible, dependable and a self-starter.
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Effective problem-solving skills; must demonstrate excellent analytical skills, sound judgment and good decision-making.
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Must demonstrate innovation and the ability to develop new ideas, procedures and systems in order to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.
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Must demonstrate flexibility and ability to work under pressure; must be able and willing to conform to shifting priorities, demands and timeline.
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Proficiency in Microsoft Office, database applications, and with internet navigation. Experience with PeopleSoft and/or Oracle a plus.
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Must demonstrate willingness to learn new concepts, procedures, processes, and computer programs as needed.
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Ability to demonstrate successful support, education, and advocacy for all students, aligned with the values, mission, and messaging of the university, while adhering to the staff policy on conflict of commitment and interest.
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Ability to meet consistent attendance.
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Ability to interact with colleagues, supervisors, and customers face to face.
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Willingness to learn and work with artificial intelligence (AI) tools and technologies.
WORKING CONDITIONS
General office environment.
