Senior Analyst, Post-Award Support

About the role

The University of Chicago is an intellectual community and a globally renowned research institution dedicated to fostering innovative and impactful research in various domains, including the Biological Sciences. The Biological Sciences Division is at the forefront of cutting-edge research and the Research Administration Office plays a pivotal role in supporting and facilitating the faculty who conduct research.

Responsibilities

• Payroll Costing and Allocation Analysis

• Analyze and manage payroll costing allocations charged to sponsored research accounts to ensure accuracy and compliance with sponsor requirements.
• Review salary distributions for faculty, staff, and trainees to confirm alignment with effort commitments, approved budgets, and project timelines.
• Identify discrepancies in payroll allocations and work with departments to implement timely corrections or adjustments.
• Provide guidance on appropriate salary charging practices, effort commitments, and payroll allocation strategies for sponsored projects.
• Monitor payroll projections to ensure sufficient funding remains available to support personnel commitments through the life of the award.

• Sponsored Project Financial Management

• Manage the financial oversight of a portfolio of sponsored research awards from federal, foundation, and industry sponsors.
• Monitor project expenditures to ensure alignment with approved budgets, sponsor terms, and institutional policies.
• Prepare detailed financial analyses, forecasts, and projections to support responsible award management.
• Review transactions including payroll distributions, cost transfers, procurement charges, and subaward activity.

• Compliance and Risk Management

• Ensure compliance with sponsor guidelines, federal regulations (e.g., Uniform Guidance), and institutional policies.
• Identify potential compliance risks and work proactively with faculty and departments to resolve issues.
• Review effort reporting, cost sharing commitments, and allowability of expenses.
• Support audit preparation and respond to sponsor or internal audit requests.

• Reporting and Analysis

• Prepare financial reports for principal investigators, departments, and central administration.
• Analyze award spending trends and provide recommendations to ensure funds are utilized appropriately within project timelines.
• Assist with closeout preparation including final financial reviews and reconciliation.

• Systems and Process Improvement

• Utilize institutional financial systems (e.g., enterprise financial platforms, research administration systems) to track award activity.
• Develop and maintain reporting tools and dashboards to improve financial visibility.
• Identify opportunities to improve post-award processes, data accuracy, and operational efficiency.

• Mentorship and Leadership

• Provide guidance and training to junior analysts and departmental administrators.
• Contribute to the development of best practices and standard operating procedures for post-award management.
• Solve complex problems in support for the research enterprise within a department or unit, including pre- and/or post-award administration for all sponsored activity.
• Serves as liaison between PIs, University administrative offices, and external agencies.
• Recommends service and communication to PIs, standardized information, best practices development, and that all faculty and research staff are aware of any new grant policies and changes.
• Maintains awareness of industry trends and remains current with agency and regulatory changes.
• Monitors department/unit compliance with University, Divisional, and Department policies and procedures and implements corrective actions for issues identified.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Qualifications

• Education:

• Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.
• Preferred qualifications include a Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, business administration, public administration, or related field.
• Master’s degree in business, public administration, or related field, strongly preferred.

• Experience:

• Experience working in higher education research administration.
• Familiarity with enterprise financial systems such as Oracle Cloud and Workday.
• Professional certification such as Certified Research Administrator (CRA).