Work in Washington Veterans Jobs

Req #: 234523

Department: APPLIED PHYSICS LABORATORY

Posting Date: 05/21/2024

Closing Info: Open Until Filled

Salary: $7,500 - $10,000 per month

Shift: First Shift

Notes: As a UW employee, you will enjoy generous benefits and work/life programs. For a complete description of our benefits for this position, please visit our website, click here. (https://hr.uw.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2018/02/benefits-professional-staff-librarians-academic-staff-20230119_a11y.pdf)

As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state, and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills, and dedication to building stronger minds and a healthier world.

UW faculty and staff also enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities, and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits, and natural beauty.

The Ocean Physics Department at the Applied Physics Laboratory at the University of Washington is hiring – See Yourself at APL (https://seeyourselfapl.uw.edu/) !

The Applied Physics Laboratory is a research unit at the University of Washington. Our research expertise is in ocean physics and engineering, ocean and medical acoustics, polar science, environmental remote sensing, and signal processing. We conduct research and development that is sponsored by a variety of federal and state agencies and take great pride in our long-standing status as a US Navy-designated University Affiliated Research Center (UARC). Our work takes place not only on the University of Washington campus and medical centers, but in field locations around the world – at sea, in the air, and on polar ice caps. We apply rigorous scientific inquiry and engineering excellence in pursuit of solutions to important problems for the good of our region, nation, and world.

Diversity is a core value at the University of Washington and the Applied Physics Laboratory shares this commitment. We are focused on building and sustaining an inclusive and equitable research environment for all students, staff, and collaborators. We believe every member of our team enriches our community by exposing us to a broad range of ways to understand and engage with the world, identify challenges, and to discover, design, and deliver solutions.

The Ocean Physics Department is a unit of the Applied Physics Laboratory at the University of Washington (APL/UW). Department investigators pursue research focused primarily on small-scale and meso-scale oceanographic processes, design and build unique instruments to facilitate these studies and educate undergraduate and graduate students through instruction and research opportunities.

Working closely with the OPD Department Head and the Research Department Administrator, the Research Administrator provides full-cycle management of the grant and contract program and financial reporting of grants, contracts, and sub-awards. This position will function as a skilled professional in the implementation of complex APL administrative areas, including but not limited to budgeting, finance, pre- and post-award grant and contract management, procurement and sub-award administration, support payroll processes, space planning, and administrative systems.

This position will independently provide administration and day-to-day management, as assigned, of all research activities, assuring operational efficiency for the PIs and staff of the OPD research group. The person in this position is in regular contact with sponsor agencies, investigators within the University of Washington as well as directors and investigators at other research organizations (domestic and international). The Department Head will rely on this position to answer all key questions and manage issues related to research administration.

This position responds to administrative inquiries and requests requiring a high level of research administration expertise and must be able to use discretion and independent judgment when representing their views. The Administrator is responsible for keeping informed of the activities of their assigned PIs’ projects. Knowledge of a project’s goals, direction, and results is critical to managing this program. Independent judgment is required to manage the day-to-day operations and oversee a project’s financial management, including expenditures required for salaries, equipment, travel, etc.

The Research Administrator serves as a liaison between APL Business & Finance staff and the OPD PIs and staff to coordinate information, respond to requests, and resolve issues to ensure the goals of the research projects are met. This person is responsible for the coordination of issues between the research group, sponsor agencies, and University offices. The Administrator works closely with researchers and University officials regarding compliance with federal regulations and will research future funding opportunities and advise OPD staff.

Major Duties and Responsibilities: Pre- and Post-Award Grant and Contract Administration: • Manage assigned departmental grants and contracts. Monitor, initiate, and advise on expenditures to grants and contracts and departmental administrative budgets. Develop critical systems to track department resources and expenditures. Prepare long-range department and individual, customized, Principal Investigator financial plans that track expenditures against approved budgets, and recommend financial strategies for completing the work within funds available that meet contractual obligations, provide maximum flexibility, and stable funding. Consult and advise Principal Investigators on complex financial matters (e.g., subcontracting, cost-sharing), particularly for research projects that involve multi-organization and international participation, fieldwork, or design and fabrication of unique research equipment. Recommend solutions for complex financial matters. Advise on compliance issues concerning Federal, state, and University laws, rules, and policies. Serve as liaison on department financial issues to APL Business Administration, to UW Office of Sponsored Programs, to UW Office of Grant and Contract Accounting, etc., on financial matters. • Advise principal investigators on funding opportunities. Develop strategies for obtaining funding and make recommendations to principal investigators on the development of proposals. Edit proposals with an emphasis on positive, concrete, clear descriptions of proposed research, and recommend improvements. Help develop grant and contract proposal budgets, budget justifications, and other administrative documents with attention to sponsor and UW requirements, current APL overhead rates, and other budgeting practices. Coordinate preparation and assembly of proposals, which may involve multiple UW departments, other U.S. agencies/organizations, and international collaborators over multiple years. Maintain up-to-date PI vitae, publication lists, and current and pending support documents for use in proposals. • Advise the Department Head and Principal Investigators of funding shortfalls and help make adjustments. Analyze and track financial accountability to help minimize the risk of improperly charged salaries, purchases, and travel expenditures. • Participate in negotiating contractual arrangements such as invention disclosures, Federal contracts, small business subcontracting plans, and fabrication tasks. Work with APL-UW and UW purchasing departments to achieve compliance with spending categories as outlined in the proposals. • Initiate and maintain contacts with directors and program managers of research sponsoring agencies, and with high-level scientists of other research organizations, requiring skill in negotiation of critical issues and persuasion. Act on behalf of Principal Investigators regarding budget changes, requests for approval of deviations from the original budget, and requests for no-cost extensions. Assist PIs with the preparation and submission of progress and final reports. • Provide liaison for the department’s research scientists with program sponsors and program managers as well as UW Office of Sponsored Programs personnel. Participate in negotiating contractual arrangements such as federal contracts, small business subcontracting plans, subcontracts, and fabrication tasks. Work with the UW Office of Sponsored Programs and Office of Grant and Contract Accounting as well as with purchasers, APL-UW, and UW purchasing departments to achieve compliance in all spending and reporting aspects of such arrangements. Prepare periodic reports to sponsors. • Participate in the planning and administration of research projects, including resource allocation advice, preparation of project management schedules, and technical progress and final reports. Coordinate joint research activities with foreign research institutes, other U.S. universities and research agencies, and research affiliates on campus. Often these programs involve extensive fieldwork in remote and sometimes hazardous regions. • Work with Principal Investigators on coordination of field logistics for research programs including procurement, shipping/receiving, negotiating service contracts, and development/maintenance of operational and procedural documents. Provide liaison with UW Purchasing and Risk Management. Be available to respond immediately to staff who are in the field and need assistance. • Implement appropriate salary coverage for those PIs with academic department support, grant support for graduate students, and Sea & Remote Research pay. Monitor efforts on sponsored programs via the University’s Employee Compensation Compliance (ECC) system. • Review and approve purchasing requests in Workday. Partner with APL Purchasing and UW Procurement to maintain fiscal compliance with department, state, federal, University, and sponsor regulations as outlined in the proposals. •

Administration and Financial Management: • Develop and implement departmental policies and procedures; implement solutions or recommend potential solutions for issues involving departmental operations (e.g., space, equipment, technology/computing, department-level purchases); maintain all departmental records and documentation (financial, grant/contract, equipment inventory, file server access, and user accounts, etc.) to ensure continuity of departmental operations during the transition to a new Department Head every two years. At the request of the Department Head, represent OPD on APL's various teams, committees, and workgroups (e.g., Research Department Administrators workgroup, UW Financial Transformation teams, business process improvement teams, APL IT Policy Working Group, etc.). Evaluate administrative work practices versus the capabilities of current technology. Implement solutions or recommend potential solutions to the OPD Scientific Committee. • Initiate and approve expenditures; develop critical systems to track department resources and expenditures. Prepare, monitor spending on, and advise on the use of annual departmental administration, development, gift, and cost-overrun budgets as applicable. • Provide backup coverage for the OPD Research Department Administrator, and participate in the APL Research Administrator “buddy system” by assisting colleagues in the other APL research departments on an occasional as-needed basis. • Attend campus meetings that address research administration issues (ex: APL Research Administrator Meetings, MRAM, GCA Forums, etc.) and keep current with sponsor developments via webinars and mailing lists.

Requirements: Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Accounting, or related field, and 4-5 years of increasingly responsible administrative experience at a research University in managing federally funded research, scientific, or high technology groups.

• 4 years of experience with grant and contract management experience, federal agency experience, proposal preparation, and post-award experience required. • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to work with diverse people at many levels. • Requires extensive experience with PC operation, database software, and Microsoft Office applications, especially Excel. • Experience using fiscal, accounting, finance, and/or similar systems to perform research administration activities. • Proven ability to work independently, identify priorities, and make critical decisions.

Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except when there are legal requirements, such as a license/certification/registration.

Desired: • Extensive experience in managing multiple projects and budgets simultaneously. • Experience with Workday and SAGE. • Experience with the preparation and submission of grant proposals for the National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Office of Naval Research. • Background in science, oceanography, and engineering. • Master’s degree in Business Administration. • Fabrication experience. • Certificate in Research Administration.

Application Process: The application process may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These assessments may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment, you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.

University of Washington is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, among other things, race, religion, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.