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Job Description
The Desert Research Institute (DRI) seeks a highly motivated, well-organized person for the position of Business Manager in the Division of Hydrologic Sciences (DHS); DHS is one of three research divisions at DRI. DRI is the non-profit environmental research campus of the Nevada System of Higher Education with campuses located in Reno and Las Vegas. This on-site position is located at the Reno campus. Occasional travel to DRI’s Las Vegas campus may be required.
The Business Manager reports to and works closely with the Executive Director of DHS as part of a division leadership team. The Business Manager also works directly with faculty, staff, and administration to coordinate the development of grant proposals and contract bids; assists faculty in responding to RFP guidelines; creates budgets; reviews proposal packages for accuracy and compliance; and authorizes and submits final proposals. This position is responsible for pre- and post-award administration of research grants and contracts for the division, and reviews and negotiates their terms and conditions in compliance with DRI and NSHE policy. Project accounts are set up in a grants and contracts database, and expenditures for each project are tracked and authorized by the Business Manager. The position requires preparation and monitoring of sub-awards, requesting contractual amendments from sponsors, and developing recharge rates for specialized service centers as needed. The deadline driven nature of some of the Business Manager’s responsibilities will occasionally require work outside normal business hours.
In addition to sponsored research duties, the Business Manager ensures that divisional operations run efficiently by assisting the Executive Director and division faculty with hiring and employment policies; prepares fiscal year budgets; tracks and authorizes expenditures; and provides analyses, trends, and metrics for division budgets.
The position currently supports approximately 35 faculty members who submit 50+ proposals per year and administers approximately 170 internally funded accounts and 150 externally funded research project accounts with fiscal-year sponsored project expenditures of $21M (for all of DHS). The Business Manager works collaboratively with a DHS Business Manager located in Las Vegas, the Business Managers of the other research divisions, the Sponsored Projects Office, the Human Resources Office, the Financial Services Office and other Administrative Departments to help drive success. The Business Manager supervises the Reno division business staff, which includes a team of 3 employees (Senior Research Administrator and two Program Specialists).
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
Five (5) years of full-time relevant experience in a sponsored-research environment or business environment, including government, university, or private-sector positions or four (4) years of experience in sponsored research administration with an MBA degree.
Excellent interpersonal, organizational, management, and supervisory abilities
Strong oral and written communication skills
Experience with state and federal governmental grant or…