Manager, MLPS Research Services

Position Number: 41174205

Payroll Title: Contracts and Grants Supervisor 2

Job Code: 006216

Job Open Date: 6/3/25

Application Review Begins: 6/18/25; open until filled

Department Code (Name): College of Letters & Science (LTSC)

Percentage of Time: 100%

Union Code (Name): 99 (Non-Represented)

Employee Class (Appointment Type): Staff (Career)

FLSA Status: Exempt

Classified Indicator Description (Personnel Program): MSP

Salary Grade: Grade 24

Pay Rate/Range: The budgeted salary range that the University reasonably expects to pay for this position is $100,000 to $127,500/year. Salary offers are determined based on final candidate qualifications and experience; the budget for the position; and the application of fair, equitable, and consistent pay practices at the University. The full salary range for this position is $94,400 to $176,800/year.

Work Location: Cheadle Hall

Working Days and Hours: Monday - Friday, 8am-5pm

Benefits Eligibility: Full Benefits

Type of Remote or Hybrid Work Arrangement: Hybrid schedule considered after completion of training/onboarding period.

Special Instructions

For full consideration, a resume and a cover letter must be included as part of your application.

Department Marketing Statement

UC Santa Barbara is an exciting place for students, faculty and researchers in mathematics and the sciences. The division of Mathematical, Life and Physical Sciences (MLPS), part of the College of Letters & Science, is home to world-renowned scientists and researchers, including four Nobel Prize winners (two in physics and two in chemistry). As one of only 63 institutions in the American Association of Universities (AAU), UC Santa Barbara is among the elite research universities of North America. Our faculty have received a multitude of awards, including one National Medal of Science, a National Medal of Technology, and a Millennium Technology Prize. More than 30 professors are elected members of the National Academy of Sciences. UC Santa Barbara's extramural funding comes predominantly from the National Science Foundation (NSF), and it is among the top 25 institutions funded by that foundation.

Benefits of Belonging

Working at UC means being part of this vibrant institution that shines a light on what is possible. People make UC great, and UC recognizes your contributions by making this a great place to work. Excellent retirement and health are just one of the rewards. Learn more about the benefits of working at UC

Brief Summary of Job Duties

The Division of Mathematical, Life, and Physical Sciences (MLPS) Research Services Manager oversees all aspects of contract & grant administration for the MLPS Research Services team. Areas supported include all departments within MLPS. The position oversees analytical, financial and training activities in support of contract and grant proposals and budget development and award administration. Activities include pre-award proposal initiatives, management of funds post-award, and closeout activities for federal, state, local and private sponsors. Provides post-award financial management services for an assigned group of faculty. Provides oversight of team processes and workflow, develops and maintains a thorough training program, and oversees a rigorous quality control program. The position ensures post-award financial management services are compliant with all relevant regulations and serves as the internal first-line contact for compliance issues. Responsible for writing standard operating procedures and ensuring that activities are compliant with all policies and procedures. Supervises all Pre-Award Research Administrators and Research Finance Analysts in the division.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in related area and / or equivalent experience / training.
• 5+ years experience in financial management, operations management, strategic planning and building strong relationships within a large complex organization.
• 3+ years direct administration of extramural funds, especially federal contract and grants, preferably in an academic setting.
• 3+ years experience interfacing with a broad range of constituents, including staff, faculty and administrators.
• 3+ years experience producing complex financial reports and providing analytical summaries.
• 3+ years experience with research proposal submission, funding agency requirements, processes and regulations.
• 3+ years supervisory or management experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience managing extramural funds at UCSB.
• Experience in higher education.
• Experience with financial applications including Gateway/Jaggaer, Concur, UCPath, FlexCard, Data Warehouse/FDI, Oracle Financials Cloud.

Special Conditions of Employment

• Satisfactory conviction history background check
• UCSB is a Tobacco-Free environment

Misconduct Disclosure Requirement

As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegation or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

"Misconduct" means any violation of the policies or laws governing conduct at the applicant's previous place of employment, including, but not limited to, violations of policies or laws prohibiting sexual harassment, sexual assault, or other forms of harassment, discrimination, dishonesty, or unethical conduct, as defined by the employer. For reference, below are UC's policies addressing some forms of misconduct:

UC Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy

UC Anti-Discrimination Policy

Abusive Conduct in the Workplace

Job Functions and Percentages of Time

• Research Administration/Fiscal Management (25%): Oversees and manages daily operations of the team to ensure compliance, consistency, and effective collaborations. Independently resolves or provides guidance/direction in resolving administrative, operational, and compliance issues within the latitude of established guidelines and policies.
  • Provides direct supervision of team processes.
  • Provides oversight for overall post-award financial management and directly provides support for an assigned group of faculty.
  • Organizes high volume workflow and follows through to completion.
  • Develops and maintains a quality control/quality assurance program for the team.
  • Applies professional knowledge/experience to review and/or approve financial transactions, including Gateway, Concur, UCPath, and FlexCard, for sponsor compliance, specifically: reasonableness, allocability, consistency, and allowability.
  • Reviews post-award financial analyses, budgets, billings, and reports for accuracy, completeness, consistency and compliance.
  • Resolves escalated post-award financial administration and management issues.
  • Serves as the internal first-line contact for compliance issues.
  • Ensures analysts provide timely status updates to Principal Investigators (PIs).
  • Develops problem-solving methodologies or strategies, and recommends solutions. * Reviews award terms and conditions.
  • Independently gathers information as needed to perform financial analysis. Prepares journal entries; maintains and reconciles ledger accounts.
• Policies and Procedures (25%): Participates in the development and monitoring of policies and procedures for team operations. Suggests ways to improve operations: techniques to improve performance, processes, etc. Attends necessary meetings and training to keep up with current UC and sponsor policies, regulations, and procedures related to post-award financial administration and management.
  • Develops best practices and keeps operations current with policy changes.
  • Drafts standard operating procedures.
  • Establishes and recommends changes to policies, which affect the team.
  • Functions as point person for policies and procedures related to pre-award and post-award financial administration and management.
  • Identifies key team performance metrics in conjunction with management.
  • Develops systems and structures to implement and collect metrics.
  • Analyzes key metrics for trends and uses data to maximize operational efficiency and compliance.
  • Tracks and monitors key deliverables for development and approval. Proactively communicates any time constraints and projected impact to management, sponsors, and PIs.
  • Prepares ad hoc reports as needed.
  • Expertly applies university policies and procedures and sponsor laws, regulations, policies, and procedures. Serves as technical expert for campus.
  • Develops and implements new systems and tools for improved financial management.
  • Participates in Office of Research and other relevant workgroups to provide input on how to streamline and improve processes and systems.
• Budgeting, Projections, and Reporting (15%):
  • Prepares, reviews, approves and provides complex, special sponsor financial reports or non-standardized supporting documentation for centrally prepared reports.
  • Performs data extraction.
  • Applies professional concepts to provide projections, analyze spending, and recommend adjustments.
  • Collaborates with departmental and campus staff in the setup of accounting infrastructure for project monitoring.
  • Provides highly complex projections, analysis, and recommendations with independent information gathering as needed to support. Applies professional concepts to perform highly complex analysis to understand past performance and determine present and future performance and/or resource allocation.
• Compliance & Fiscal Oversight (15%): For the assigned portfolio of high-volume and advanced-complexity of sponsored projects, independently performs the following:
  • Assists in support of audit as directed by EMF and other campus entities. This may entail providing further justification for the details in ledgers.
  • Provides guidance and counsel to PIs and department administrators on research administration matters, including compliance regulations.
  • Reduces risk to the University by ensuring departmental compliance with research administration policies and procedures and sponsor laws, regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Management and Supervision (20%): Manages and oversees the Academic Affairs Research Administration and Finance Team.
  • Recommends hiring of new employees, salary actions, terminations, and performance ratings. Conducts recruitments. Evaluates performance and competency and defines development goals. Serves as a role model for assigned staff of technical expertise, professionalism, and excellent communication.
  • Provides direct supervision of pre-award administration services provided by the team and provides backup to analysts, as needed.
  • Provides ongoing feedback and professional development planning to address performance issues and professional development.
  • Schedules and manages day-to-day work assignments to address workload issues and ensures resources are assigned to post-award administrative milestones as needed.
  • Approves time cards and leave requests.
  • Provides training and professional development, either formally or on-the-job for staff to ensure subject matter knowledge in appropriate areas (e.g., sponsored project administration, post-award administration, etc.). Delivers specialized training and / or develops content for education workshops in the area of research administration and other related activities.
  • Develops and maintains a thorough training program and resources for new hires and existing staff members.
  • Develops new programs on special or emerging areas of interest or concern. Serves as a resource and advisor to faculty involved in research.
  • Responds to organizational inquiries regarding research issues.
  • Meets with and provides consultation to PIs and research staff on regulations and policies related to pre-award and post-award financial administration and management.
  • Communicates regularly with management on team activities and on pertinent operational or human resources issues. Acts as advisor to management on complex contract proposals and awards.
  • Responsible for maintaining expert knowledge of crucial campus systems, including OFC, PGM, EPM, Gateway, Concur, and UCPath. Recognized as a technical expert in PGM.
  • Responsible for quality control review of own work, especially as required before critical tasks identified in the office procedures.
  • Responsible for meeting published office service level agreements.
  • Act as liaison to PIs, lab staff, department heads, EMF, and other partners, maintaining regular communication.

UC Vaccination Programs Policy

As a condition of employment, you will be required to comply with the University of California Policy on Vaccinations Programs.

As a condition of Physical Presence at a Location or in a University Program, all Covered Individuals* must participate in any applicable Vaccination Program by providing proof that they are Up-to-Date with any required Vaccines or submitting a request for Exception in a Mandate Program or properly declining vaccination in an Opt-Out Program no later than the Compliance Date (Capitalized terms in this paragraph are defined in the policy.). Federal, state, or local public health directives may impose additional requirements.

For more information, please visit University of California Policy on Vaccinations - https://policy.ucop.edu/doc/5000695/VaccinationProgramsPolicy

*Covered Individuals: A Covered Individual includes anyone designated as Personnel or Students under this Policy who physically access a University Facility or Program in connection with their employment, appointment, or education/training. A person accessing a Healthcare Location as a patient, or an art, athletics, entertainment, or other publicly accessible venue at a Location as a member of the public, is not a Covered Individual.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state or federal law.

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