4065 Manager, Grants Accounting

POSITION IDENTIFICATION

TITLE Manager, Grants Accounting

CLASSIFICATION NUMBER 4065

GRADE 46

CLASSIFICATION Exempt

IMMEDIATE SUPERVISOR Director, Grants and Capital Projects Accounting

GENERAL FUNCTION

The Manager,Grants Accounting supervises and performs professional accounting and administrative work necessary to maintain the financial accounting records for the University’s grants and contracts.  This position oversees and reports the expenditures that have been made on specific grants and contracts to various agencies, performs grants account reconciliations, reviews and approves sub recipients’ invoices, and issues invoices to agencies for payment, as well as exercises independent judgment and discretion in planning and carrying out details of work procedures and methods using generally accepted accounting principles; work is reviewed by internal, independent, and agency auditors.

MINIMUM ACCEPTABLE QUALIFICATIONS

Education: A Bachelor’s in Accounting or a related business field is required; a Master’s degree in Accounting or a related business field with at least twenty hours of coursework in accounting is preferred. An equivalent combination of years of experience and education may be considered for substitution of educational requirements.

Experience: At least four years of experience in accounting is required; two years of experience working with grants and contracts accounting is preferred.

Certification: Certification as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is preferred.

Skills: A high aptitude in accountancy and a good understanding of computers and programs, such as Excel, and their functions in accounting is required.  The ability to understand, interpret, and apply accounting principles as well as rules and regulations in grant proposals that apply to financial information is required.  The ability to work and communicate effectively with individuals possessing varying levels of accounting and budgeting knowledge is required. The ability to develop knowledge of, respect for, and skills to engage with those of other cultures or backgrounds is required.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Prepares and oversees the preparation of the financial reports needed for grants and contracts by compiling, researching, and analyzing data regarding the expenditures of the grants and contracts.

2. Oversees and provides fiscal management of grants and contracts, including compliance with federal and state regulations, account reconciliations, and journal entries.

3. Assists grant writers in the preparation of the grant application and the administration of grant monies by interpreting and applying the policies and procedures of the University and the granting agencies.

4. Improves cash flow by assuring timely billing of grant and contract receivables and consolidates federal fund draws.

5. Approves or confirms the appropriateness of expenditures of externally sponsored grants and contracts in accordance with federal, state, institutional, or other agency guidelines and performs reconciliations for principal investigators.

6. Monitors externally sponsored grants and contracts by reviewing or assuring the review of the daily and monthly financial transactions within these accounts and making accounting corrections as appropriate.

7. Review and approve sub recipients’ invoices for cost allowability and approve for payment.

8. Promotes University compliance with federal and state law and regulations by maintaining a current working knowledge of federal and state regulations relevant to grants and contracts and communicating regulatory information to appropriate University administrators, staff, and faculty.

9. Prepares and supervises audit work papers for internal, external, and agency auditors by researching and analyzing financial activity of externally sponsored grants and contracts.

10. Contributes to a work environment that encourages knowledge of, respect for, and development of skills to engage with those of other cultures and backgrounds.

11. Remains competent and current through self-directed professional reading, developing professional contacts with colleagues and attending professional development courses as required by the Director, Grants and Capital Projects Accounting.

12. Contributes to the overall success of Financial Services by performing all other duties as assigned, maintaining high levels of accuracy, maintaining a professional demeanor and appropriate levels of confidentiality, and providing excellent customer services.

13. Ensures the timeliness of the general ledger and subsidiary ledgers by monitoring the work of professional and support staff & students.

14. Develops a competent and efficient accounting staff by training the staff in new policies and procedures and supervising daily activities.

15. Assures compliance with recognized accounting standards, principles, and procedures by supervising and monitoring the work of professional accountants and/or support staff.

16. Prepares and supervises the preparation of audit work papers for the fiscal year audit by researching and analyzing the year-to-date accounting information.

SUPERVISION

The Manager, Grants Accounting supervises accounting professionals, clerical staff, students and part-time employees.

OFFICE OF HUMAN RESOURCES

JUNE 2023

JOB FAMILY 4

Factor 1: Professional Knowledge, Skill, and Technical Mastery

Level 4.0 - 2300 Points: Knowledge of the principles, concepts, practices, methods and techniques of an administrative, managerial, or professional field such as accounting or auditing, financial management, business administration, human resources, engineering, social sciences, communications, education, law, or medicine. Knowledge permits the employee to complete assignments by applying established methods to recurring types of projects/problems susceptible to well-documented precedents or to schedule, plan, and carry out precedented projects. Alternatively, knowledge at this level might also permit the employee to carry out precedented projects requiring considerable experience in specific areas within higher education. Knowledge at this level is typically acquired through a combination of formal education and/or training and experience that includes a requirement for a college degree in a specific technical or professional specialty along with significant related work experience. Alternatively, equivalent knowledge requirements at this level include a non-technical or general Bachelor's degree requirement with substantial work experience or a non-specific Master's degree requirement with substantial work experience. Knowledge requirements generally also include a significant amount of related work experience and may include administrative or supervisory experience.

Factor 2: Supervisory Responsibility

Level 4.0 - 470 Points: Supervision of (a) a moderate number of operative, administrative support, or paraprofessional employees who do not exercise a full range of supervisory responsibilities over other full-time employees, (b) a small number of professional employees who exercise limited supervision of others, or (c) large numbers of student workers or graduate assistants, or some equivalent combination of the above. The incumbent performs a full range of supervisory responsibilities including performance reviews of subordinates. The incumbent is responsible for training, planning, and directing the work of permanent employees, and generally controls hiring decisions. Supervisory responsibilities consume moderate amounts of work time and may include general work planning tasks.

Factor 3: Interactions with Others

Level 4.0 - 500 Points: Interactions with others are somewhat unstructured. The purpose may be to influence or motivate others, to obtain information, or to control situations and resolve problems. Interactions may be with individuals or groups of co-workers, students, or the general public, may be moderately unstructured, and may involve persons who hold differing goals and objectives. Individuals at this level often act as a liaison between groups with a focus on solving particular unstructured problems. Interactions at this level require considerable interpersonal skill and the ability to resolve conflict.

Factor 4: Job Controls and Guidelines

Level 3.0 - 500 Points: The employee operates under general supervision expressed in terms of program goals and objectives, priorities, and deadlines. Administrative supervision is given through statements of overall program or project objectives and available resources. Administrative guidelines are relatively comprehensive and the employee need only to fill in gaps in interpretation and adapt established methods to perform recurring activities. In unforeseen situations, the employee must interpret inadequate or incomplete guidelines, develop plans, and initiate new methods to complete assignments based on those interpretations. Assignments are normally related in function, but the work requires many different processes and methods applied to an established administrative or professional field. Problems are typically the result of unusual circumstances, variations in approach, or incomplete or conflicting data. The employee must interpret and refine methods to complete assignments. Characteristic jobs at this level may involve directing single-purpose programs or performing complex, but precedented, technical or professional work.

Factor 5: Managerial Responsibility

Level 5.0 - 2350 Points: Work involves primary accountability for a larger department, program, or process. Work activities involve managerial decisions that directly affect the efficiency, costs, reputation, and service quality of the department, program, or process. Work affects a limited range of professional projects or administrative activities of the University, influences internal or external operations, or impacts students, faculty, and/or staff. Work activities have a direct and significant impact on the department. Work activities also have a significant effect on the efficiency and reputation of the cost center and represent a relatively major function within the cost center. At this level would be jobs in which the incumbent may have responsibility for developing budgets, distributing budgeted funds, and exercising primary control over a moderately-sized budget.