Sr Post Award Administrator

About the Opportunity

The Hub, a shared administrative and business service unit operating within Northeastern’s central sponsored programs office (NU-RES), assists faculty and research investigators across the University’s global research network by providing department-level administrative support. The Hub serves as a critical researcher-NU-RES interface and directly supports faculty throughout the proposal-award life cycle. Team members of the Hub provide direct assistance to faculty and research investigators; cross-function support to Hub and NU-RES team members; and work closely with all units reporting to the Senior Vice Provost for Research. 

Reporting to the Associate Director, Research Finance, the Senior Post Award Administrator position is a unique, central-level position providing college and department-level financial research administration services to Principal Investigators while collaborating with the central research finance office. As such, the Senior Post Award Administrator serves as a subject-matter expert, pivoting between multiple college and departmental units and liaising across multiple departments to maximize efficiencies and ensure holistic support to Principal Investigators. This position collaborates significantly with a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including, but not limited to, faculty, college administrators, internal and external research administrators, and finance personnel. Exceptional service-mindedness and the ability to perform with tact, diplomacy, and discretion are essential.

Northeastern University, a dynamic, innovative, and entrepreneurial University with a diverse, complex, and growing award portfolio, is committed to inclusion and diversity; and hiring and developing personnel who enjoy working in a high-performing culture that rewards excellence. In addition, Northeastern is a global university, and NU-RES supports its team working remotely. Remote locations and work schedules are determined based on operational needs and consultation with NU-RES team members, consistent with University policies and guidelines.

To learn more about Northeastern’s unique academic environment and generous benefits, please see http://www.northeastern.edu/hrm/. 

• scheduling and attending routine meetings with PIs to review account activities and projections

• processing financial and effort-related transactions; reviewing expenditures for compliance

• monitoring account balances; providing monthly or ad hoc financial reports to PIs and departments

• coordinating cost-share; requesting award extensions; supporting financial reporting and award closeout activities

• liaising with various internal and external constituents and college or department administrators to maximize efficiencies, address areas of overlap between research and non-research activity to prevent gaps or duplications, and ensure coverage of all aspects of post-award financial research administration responsibilities

• participating in and providing training to faculty, staff, or others on best practices related to post-award financial research administration

• serving as a key contributor in meetings, process improvement working groups, and other committees as needed to establish best practices, understand and improve operational efficiencies related to post-award research administration

Essential skills for the Sr. Post Award Administrator position include interpersonal, communication, organizational, time management, problem-solving, decision making, collaboration, presentation, and customer service. This position requires flexibility and agility, often pivoting between central and non-central roles or between multiple projects and tasks rapidly to meet deadlines. Additionally, the Sr. Post Award Administrator must be resourceful and learn various systems and applications with a willingness to support organizational and operational changes as a part of ongoing process improvement initiatives. Tolerance for and the ability to work with varying levels of ambiguity is essential.

A Culture of Service:

The Sr. Post Award Administrator works with a broad range of constituents, providing direct support to Principal Investigators, and coordinating or liaising with internal and external colleagues to include the NU-RES Hub, Research Finance, colleges, departments, and others. The Sr. Post Award Administrator must keep abreast of federal and sponsor regulations and be willing and able to train others on applying these regulations. The ability to create and maintain a culture of service, accountability, and timeliness is essential.

Compliance and Stewardship:

This role must treat effective compliance as an equal priority, stay abreast of sponsor rules, regulations, and policy changes, as well as institutional best practices in research administration and finance. The Sr. Post Award Administrator will participate in sponsored research initiatives and projects as assigned and lead the adoption of best practices to promote continuous improvement, ensuring the highest quality standards in performance individually and as part of a team.

• Bachelor’s degree or 4-6 years relevant work experience required

• Research administration experience required, CRA or CFRA highly desired

• Financial analysis experience, with familiarity with GAAP, Uniform Guidance, or other regulations

• Active DoD Secret clearance (or other necessary level) or ability to obtain clearance at the Secret level required.

• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with exceptional attention to detail

• Advanced Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) skills

• Able to independently learn and utilize a variety of systems, applications, and resources

• Service-mindedness with proven customer service skills

• Excellent written and interpersonal communication skills

• Demonstrated ability to interact with tact and diplomacy with constituents at all levels of an organization

• Able to create and deliver presentations and training for a diverse audience via virtual or in-person platforms via public speaking and or recorded sessions

• Must be able to work effectively both independently and in a team-oriented environment

This position requires the candidate to have high-speed internet and other utilities to facilitate connectivity as a fully remote position. Additionally, as this position supports personnel and processes across multiple campuses and time zones, this position may require flexibility in scheduling accordingly to meet deadlines, provide service, or attend meetings or training. 

• Providing overall financial management of a complex and growing portfolio comprised of a grant, contracts, and cooperative agreements from a variety of federal and non-federal sponsor types
• Monitoring account balances, term dates, and activities
• Collaborating with central NU-RES offices to prepare and submit requests for prior approval requests, award extensions, post-award budget revisions, child/related funds, etc.
• Scheduling and attending quarterly (or more frequently, if needed) meetings with PIs to review accounts, including balances, activity, projections, terminations/closeouts
• Coordinating with NU-RES subaward team on subrecipient setup, monitoring, and invoicing
• Coordinating with Research Finance, Research Administration, or other units to address issues or questions relating to account setup, activity, reporting, closeout, audit, etc.
• Performing college/department level reconciliations of accounts

 Transactional (25%)

• Monitoring and approving transactions, including reviewing for appropriate backup and business purposes in Concur, Workday, email, or other platforms
• Reviewing and approving subrecipient invoices within the Workday financial system
• Preparing and submitting cost transfer forms or other required documentation to support transactional activities
• Collaborating with PIs and college to identify extra compensation availability and planning; prepare, submit, and track extra compensation requests

Reporting & Analysis (25%)

• Running and distributing monthly account activity reports to PIs
• Performing financial analysis on accounts, identifying burn rates and projections; communicating burn rates and projections to PIs and departments
• Coordinating with department administrators and Research Finance on effort allocations, changes, and reporting

Training & Support (15%)

• Seeking and attending training, meetings, etc. focused on federal regulations, research administration, or other relevant areas to keep abreast of changes and maintain fluency in areas specific to the Sr. Post Award Administrator role
• Providing training and presentations, attending meetings and workshops, communicating new policies and regulations relevant to research
• Participating in cross-training initiatives or workgroups as a subject matter expert or end-user to promote well-rounded perspectives, seamless transitions, and processes, to ensure adequate internal controls of research administration

Other (5%)

• Routinely participating in ongoing professional development activities with a focus on continuous professional growth
• Completing ad hoc or miscellaneous projects as needed or assigned

Position Type

Additional Information

Northeastern University considers factors such as candidate work experience, education and skills when extending an offer.  

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Compensation Grade/Pay Type:

Expected Hiring Range:

With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role. Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change.