Grants & Contracts Specialist

The Grants & Contracts Specialist will provide entry level professional sponsored funds management for a USAID-funded international program being implemented in India with specific responsibility for pre and post-award functions that include, but may not be limited to: processing routine financial transactions, budget development, account reconciliation, billing/invoicing, reporting, compliance, monitoring and closeout. This individual will work closely with both the Johns Hopkins team, both in the USA and India, and subaward collaborators to ensure adherence to intuitional and federal financial, donor and operations policies. S/he will understand university policy and/or sponsoring agency guidelines, including USAID rules and regulations, and other donor requirements as needed and work to ensure transactions complies with those policies. S/he will perform duties of a sensitive and confidential nature.

Job Scope/Complexity:

Employees in this role function independently when working on less complex grants and contracts responsibilities. General proficiency with grant/contract preparation and management is expected. The Specialist has some involvement with more complex grant management, under the direction and oversight of a more senior member within the research function. The specialist will work with a highly-skilled financial consortium to lend vital support to the USAID ACCELERATE program with international stakeholders, collaborators and support the operations in India.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

• Understand and utilize institutional policies for pre-award grant process and sponsor guidelines.
• Prepare and process online check requests and invoices, purchase order requests and other payments, travel reimbursements, employee reimbursements, and submit monthly financial transactions such as journal entries, and non-payroll cost transfers.
• Prepare and assist in the development of the budgets and budget justifications to ensure their relationship to budgeted dollars.
• Assist in completing the Federal Financial Reports (FFR) and Performance Progress Reports.
• Administer the expenditure of funds, ensuring that funds are expended according to sponsoring organization’s stipulations and appropriate university guidelines.
• Prepare required documentation for the setup of new vendors, service agreements, subagreement, etc. and with monthly invoice review and processing.
• Assist with interim fiscal reports and closeout processes to ensure compliance with the sponsor requirements, including USAID and Elton John AIDS Foundation.
• Identify imbalances on financial reports, sponsored projects coming to a close, over expenditures, or revenue needing to be billed.
• Monitor, identify, and communicate expenditure analysis to supervisor to resolve funding shortfalls.
• Under the direction of the program financial director, work with the Financial Manager in India to create and submit quarterly reports of project spending to the funding sponsor.
• Generate data and financial reports and submit the relevant reports to the finance director and team leader, as requested
• Manage and maintain electronic filing system and records for reconciliation.
• Ensure proper recordkeeping to comply with JHU and federal audit policies.
• Interpret policy and procedure for project based on understanding of university policy and receipt of payments.
• Confer with appropriate internal and external administrative offices to ensure that required procedures are followed. Offices include Accounts Payable, Supply Chain, Sponsored Projects, Internal Audits, Johns Hopkins University Research Administration, and other JHU departments and service centers.
• Review all sponsored project proposals for assigned grants of moderate complexity, prior to them being forwarded to the ACCELERATE Finance Director and ORA for signature.
• Review involves accuracy, content, adherence to all relevant guidelines.
• Serve as liaison between research units, central offices and funding agencies for grants of moderate complexity.
• Prepare budgets and related justification for appropriateness and completeness of content.
• Ensure that all applicable and indirect costs have been applied.
• Involve more senior members of the project team for direction, as needed.
• Ensure compliance in all other areas related to grant and contract management, including sponsoring organization guidelines, internal protocols, accurate protocol information within grant documents, conflicts of interest, etc.
• Coordinate related details for all assigned grant submissions to ensure timeliness and accuracy.
• Maintain ongoing updates and communications related to current grants and contracts, this includes regular auditing and reporting to principal investigators and research management. May assist with closeouts as needed.
• Assist with award setup details, after grant number is assigned.
• Support all relevant post-award responsibilities, as requested by senior members of the grants & contracts team, including budget distribution, account reconciliation, effort reporting, financial reporting, cost-transfers, paying invoices, closeouts and related faculty support.
• Assist with special project and other duties as assigned. Be able to prioritize work on multiple tasks, communicate effectively, and foster a positive and collaborative work environment.
• Give and receive feedback gracefully.

Minimum Qualifications (Mandatory):

• Bachelor’s degree
• 1 year of administrative/budgeting experience

Special Skills/Knowledge:

• General knowledge of accounting and budgeting theory and practices required. General knowledge and understanding of The Johns Hopkins University accounting system and related fiscal offices preferred.
• Ability to understand when additional direction/expertise is needed on matters of complexity. Able to make decisions on a daily basis, within pre-determined guidelines and parameters.
• Ability to work with flexibility on several tasks simultaneously and to meet various concurrent deadlines.
• General understanding of external Federal Guidelines and procedures regarding grants and contracts.
• Strong computer skills including intermediate to advanced Excel required. Excellent written and verbal communication and presentation skills with ability to clearly explain basic financial information, draft routine correspondence and successfully carry out highly detail oriented responsibilities.
• Knowledge of JHU systems, such as SAP, or ability to quickly learn and successfully work within those systems.

Classified Title:Grants & Contracts Specialist
Working Title: Grants & Contracts Specialist
Role/Level/Range: ATP/03/PB
Starting Salary Range:$43,530-$59,795
Employee group: Full Time
Schedule: M-F 8:30-5pm
Exempt Status: Non-Exempt
Location: 04-MD:School of Medicine Campus
Department name: 10002813-SOM DOM Infectious Disease
Personnel area: School of Medicine

The successful candidate(s) for this position will be subject to a pre-employment background check.

If you are interested in applying for employment with The Johns Hopkins University and require special assistance or accommodation during any part of the pre-employment process, please contact the HR Business Services Office atjhurecruitment@jhu.edu. For TTY users, call via Maryland Relay or dial 711.

The following additional provisions may apply depending on which campus you will work. Your recruiter will advise accordingly.

During the Influenza ("the flu") season, as a condition of employment, The Johns Hopkins Institutions require all employees who provide ongoing services to patients or work in patient care or clinical care areas to have an annual influenza vaccination or possess an approved medical or religious exception. Failure to meet this requirement may result in termination of employment.

The pre-employment physical for positions in clinical areas, laboratories, working with research subjects, or involving community contact requires documentation of immune status against Rubella (German measles), Rubeola (Measles), Mumps, Varicella (chickenpox), Hepatitis B and documentation of having received the Tdap (Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) vaccination. This may include documentation of having two (2) MMR vaccines; two (2) Varicella vaccines; or antibody status to these diseases from laboratory testing. Blood tests for immunities to these diseases are ordinarily included in the pre-employment physical exam except for those employees who provide results of blood tests or immunization documentation from their own health care providers. Any vaccinations required for these diseases will be given at no cost in our Occupational Health office.

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