Academic Budget Officer

Youngstown State University•Youngstown, OH

About The Position

Serves as the budget officer for the Division of Academic Affairs, reporting directly to the Provost and working closely with college deans. Provides primary financial support to Academic Affairs through budget preparation and management, planning, expenditure monitoring, and budget recommendations that support fiscal stability. Provides leadership, as delegated by the Provost, in academic resource planning, including personnel activities. Coordinates faculty assignments and ensures the accuracy of faculty workload information entered into Banner. The position supports the development, planning, and implementation of program, department, college, and division budgets; coordinates the annual budget process; develops and monitors the University budget in alignment with strategic plans and goals; and provides financial analyses, projections, reports, and decision-support tools. It maintains budget systems and records, advises University administrators and constituents on budget matters, and represents the Provost on budget-related issues. The role also enters and verifies transactions in Banner, manages position requests, supports faculty workload allocation and FLAC processing, processes fee requests, reconciles revenue-share invoices, and coordinates with Human Resources on personnel and salary matters. It prepares budget presentations, supports training on budget procedures and systems, serves on committees as assigned, and may supervise student employees. The position is based in Youngstown and typically works Monday through Friday.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, business administration, or a relevant field, plus at least five years of financial and/or budgetary experience; alternatively, an associate degree and seven years of such experience.
Experience using financial or budget management systems, financial software, and/or spreadsheet applications.
Knowledge of management theory, organizational structure, University policies and procedures, office practices, department and division goals and procedures, workplace safety, English grammar and spelling, records management, office management, project management, and Ellucian/Banner tables.
Skill in operating office equipment, typing, data entry, computer operation, and proficient use of Excel and other applicable software.
Ability to address problems involving several variables in familiar contexts; define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions; determine material and equipment needs; and calculate fractions, decimals, and percentages.
Ability to compile and prepare reports, use research methods to gather data, understand written and verbal communications, prepare accurate documentation, and maintain records according to established procedures.
Ability to travel to and access the work site; interact effectively with personnel and the public; train or instruct others; shift effectively between tasks; work independently and in a team; and maintain effective working relationships.
Must be able to perform sedentary work, primarily sitting, with occasional walking or standing and occasional exertion of up to 10 pounds of force.
This position is not eligible for sponsorship.

Nice To Haves

Experience in financial management, budget planning and analysis, or related areas.
Experience administering budget processes.
Experience in higher education administration and/or finance.
Knowledge of higher education organizational structure.
Accountant experience.
Banner experience.
PowerPoint and Microsoft Word experience.

Responsibilities

Provide direct support to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs in developing, planning, and implementing program, department, college, and division budgets.
Coordinate and lead the annual budget preparation process, including departmental fee-adjustment requests and analysis of unit spending plans.
Develop, communicate, execute, and monitor the University budget in concert with strategic plans and goals.
Serve as a resource to University administrators for budget implementation issues and problem resolution.
Conduct or evaluate financial projections, modeling, and other analyses to support decision-making and planning.
Develop and maintain budget systems; prepare cost projections and justifications; identify funding sources; review budget proposals; and distribute budget information.
Monitor the Current General Fund and select Current Designated Funds, and advise University constituents on budget processes, issues, and opportunities.
Review and improve budget processes, methodology, and reporting using existing and emerging techniques and technologies.
Enter transactions into Banner; make changes or build codes; prioritize and verify entries; and manage position requests from initiation through filling.
Run custom Banner processes and reports to allocate faculty workload and extract faculty assignments to the FLAC module, including part-time faculty, overloads, and full-time faculty summer assignments.
Work with department chairs to verify full-time faculty workload for reports and troubleshoot FLAC processing issues.
Process ODHE fee requests through the portal and reconcile revenue-share invoices for payment.
Instruct constituents in completing and submitting forms and documents, and communicate procedural updates.
Prepare and process confidential or sensitive documents, coordinate special projects, and provide information to administration.
Perform calculations and corrections to ensure accurate Banner data, including processing labor redistributions as needed.
Represent the Provost as liaison to University and external constituents on Academic Affairs budgets and budget management.
Develop proposed budget policies and related procedures.
Maintain the integrity of budgetary records and automated systems, including access authorizations and data availability.
Provide reports and fulfill requests for financial data.
Act as liaison between Human Resources and the Office of Academic Affairs on salaries, hiring, promotions, and job changes; review and approve position requests and other authorization transactions for funding and account accuracy.
Develop and implement decision-support systems, including pro forma analyses, assessments, projections, reports, and planning models.
Use decision-support tools to evaluate University projects, strategic plans, programs, and operating units.
Support strategic-plan development by collecting, organizing, and analyzing financial and statistical data about past, current, and forecasted operations.
Prepare budget presentations and deliver presentations to University constituents as needed.
Support training of the academic community on budget procedures, processes, and systems, and interact with University constituents on budget matters.
Serve on University committees as assigned, assist with training new hires, and perform other duties within the classification's level of responsibility.
May supervise student employees.