Assistant Director - Analytics & Research Finance

Louisiana State University

22h

About The Position

The LSU Agricultural Center is a statewide organization with offices in every parish of Louisiana. We are currently seeking extraordinary candidates for the position outlined below. This position will be domiciled in Efferson Hall on the Baton Rouge Campus.

About the LSU Agricultural Center: The LSU AgCenter is one of 8 campuses within the LSU enterprise. The LSU AgCenter includes the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station, which conducts agricultural-based research, and the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service, which extends the knowledge derived from research to the people of the state. The AgCenter is headquartered in Baton Rouge and has 12 academic departments and five regions which are made up of 15 branch research stations and an extension office in each parish. More information can be found at www.lsuagcenter.com.

Position Description: The Asst Director – Analytics & Research Finance position’s primary purpose is the monitoring and management of state, federal and other funds with respect to the research function of the LSU AgCenter. In addition, this position provides overall support and reporting for the Budget & Finance Division of the LSU AgCenter, support for all Cost Center Managers in the organization, and is an integral member of the Senior Vice Chancellor’s Executive Team. This position reports to the Associate Vice President of Finance.

Requirements

• Baccalaureate degree in a related field such as accounting, business management or agriculture and five years of related experience in accounting, budgeting or other field related to the duties of the position. Other degrees may be accepted combined with additional appropriate experience of closely related coursework.
• Successful candidate must have excellent interpersonal, administrative, and organization skills, along with strong computer skills.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in the public sector and/or a university setting is desirable.
• Previous experience with Workday preferred.
• A related master’s degree, CPA or similar credentials are desirable.

Responsibilities

• Works closely with the Director of the Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station (LAES) to prepare and maintain the annual budget for state, federal, and self-generated funds.
• Monitors operation budget throughout the year tracking funds and making appropriate recommendations for change.
• Provides regular status reports and compiles appropriate data for the preparation of the annual budget request.
• Regarding federal funds, updates budget by research project.
• Identifies expenditures to be charged to project numbers, ensures only current projects are used, and prepares applicable entries.
• Prepares required annual reports on federal appropriations.
• Ensures all documentation for cost-sharing commitments on grants.
• Ensures expenditures are allowable by NIFA guidelines.
• Administers self-generated funds, prepares overall LAES estimates, summaries, and reports.
• Administers a variety of special accounts related to livestock, technology, special funds and other restricted accounts for LAES.
• Performs a variety of other administrative and business activities as needed and requested.
• Supports Accounting Services with regards to journal entries and CARD approvals.
• Support all units in use of Workday.
• Recommend communications to be issued in response to changes or areas where additional training is needed.
• Assists in trouble shooting and problem resolution.
• May make presentations at meetings such as administrative support.
• May represent Budget & Finance on various committees and meetings.
• Process Payroll Accounting Adjustments for all departments of the LSU AgCenter.
• Works with departments to ensure Cost Sharing and Key Personnel Commitments are properly documented for Sponsored Agreements.
• Designs revenue and expense business analysis and data recording systems for use throughout the administration, departments, and units.
• Maintains data warehouses and performs updates as necessary to ensure accuracy.
• Builds and regularly examines data reports to locate and resolve issues throughout all departments of the AgCenter.
• Create business reports providing insight into key data points.
• Synthesize insights providing interpretations of data through visualizations such as charts, graphs, and dashboards.
• Create compelling presentations and reports of share analysis and recommendations with Executive Team.
• Translate technical findings into layman terms through clear very and written techniques.
• Attend meetings as an integral part of the Executive Team
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• The LSU AgCenter has an attractive benefits package with a wide variety of benefit options. Benefits offered include retirement, multiple medical insurance options, supplemental insurances (dental, life, long-term disability, accident, vision, long-term care, etc.), Tax Saver Flexible Benefits Plan (saves tax dollars on some childcare and medical expenses), university holidays (14 per year), generous annual (vacation) and sick leave benefits, Employee Assistance Program, and possible educational leave and tuition exemption for coursework at campuses of the LSU System.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director