Research Administration Manager

• Pre- and Post Award Research Administration

Provide comprehensive research administration to ensure the overall effective coordination of research administration services, systems, policies, processes and compliance for a complex portfolio of large awards with a major international subaward component.

Provide lifecycle pre- & post-award research administration ensuring the fulfillment of all grant and/or contract requirements. Major duties include financial management and compliance for overall award and subrecipients but will also include proposal development, review and submission; submission and management of other research-related agreements; other award management duties including effort, expenditures, modifications, and closeouts; in addition to regularly communicating with the projects’ stakeholders.

Assist PI/faculty in the development, preparation, and submission of proposals to a variety of sponsors. 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. Assists the PI in the development of budgets and budget justification. Facilitates processing of post-submission updates, and liaises as necessary with DSP, IFAS SPA, or other core offices.

Review award documents to determine the budget, restrictions, and other pertinent information and communicate that information to pertinent key personnel. Complete award setup and budget reconciliation in UFIRST and sets up projection and tracking tools necessary for award management. Provide 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. Reconcile expenditures to ensure costs are allowable, allocated, reasonable and consistent with funding agency regulations. Work closely with C&G to ensure timely close-out of projects.

Coordinate prior approval requests through core office. Work with the Associate Director to ensure concurrence between financial and technical reporting. Facilitates quarterly, biannual, and annual financial reports and ad-hoc reports for submission by the appropriate office.

• Subaward Management

Provide oversight, monitoring and support for complex subaward portfolio. Ensure subrecipients are following the terms and conditions of the subaward agreements, reviewing subrecipient invoices to ensure invoices are within the parameters of the subaward budget, all necessary support documentation is complete, consistent and correct, requesting clarification from the subrecipient regarding any unusual or excessive charges invoiced by the subrecipient, Ensures the timely submission of subrecipient invoices to C&G for approval and facilitates approval by PI for payment.

Provide support to subrecipients in the administration of subawards including but not limited to onboarding new subrecipients, develop training materials and provide training on the administrative requirements of the funding; act as a resource for international partners regarding the funding and requirements, remind subrecipients of due dates for invoices, provide invoice templates, track invoices received, advise subrecipients of needed changes and requirements for resubmission.

Identify need for, and prepare, prior approval requests for USAID-funded awards for submission by DSP. Facilitate amendments to existing subaward agreements (time extensions, budget revisions, etc.) and entry into UFIRST.

• Financial Management

Provide expenditure reports, analyze and interpret financial information for planning purposes, ensure compliance and adherence of expenditures with approved budgets and funding restrictions; monitor cash flow and proactively identify financial issues and risks and develop strategies to mitigate them including the creation of templates, reporting checklists, trainings, etc., for all funding sources.

Advise LSIL Director and Associate Director on the long-term financial viability of the department given multiple externally funded awards from various sources with differing project end dates and supports leadership with information necessary for annual and long-term strategic planning.

• Department Administration

Provide day-to-day oversight and supervision of 2-4 support staff. Contribute to team initiatives as set forth by the Director & Associate Director, provide training and technical assistance to the staff and resolve complex project administration issues by working closely with unit leadership and all other parties involved.

Provide budget development and oversight including monitoring operating budgets to ensure effective utilization of financial resources for all funding sources including state appropriations, externally funded awards and other types of funding.

Ensure effective department administrative operation. Oversees asset management/inventory, space allocation and act as the department security administrator (DSA).

Maintain and updates the Innovation Lab’s procedural manual. Manage all departmental human resources functions, including salary distributions, FARs and effort reporting. Review and assist in preparing and processing documents associated with new hires, staff performance evaluations, raises, and reclassifications.

Oversee procurement and accounts payable/receivable including setup of consulting agreements and payment of consultant invoices, vendor check requests, travel advances and transfer requests in accordance with UF policies and procedures. Reviews and approves travel requests, expense reports and requisitions to confirm funding and compliance.

• Compliance

Research, interpret and apply relevant UF policies, international, federal and state laws, and sponsor regulations, guidelines and standards to ensure compliance. Interpret, translate and apply University policies and procedures as they relate to specific terms within agreements. Independently identify compliance concerns and engage with various IFAS and University core offices when necessary to ensure the sponsored activity and terms of the agreement adhere to policies, laws, and regulations.

Maintain familiarity with a variety of other guidance for sponsored research administration, 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.

• Other Duties As Assigned