Assistant Director, Award Setup Services

University of Washington Medical Center•Seattle, WA

9d•$126,000 - $150,000

About The Position

The Assistant Director provides operational leadership for centralized award setup and modification services within the Research Administration Collaborative (RAC) in the Office of Research. Reporting to the Executive Director, this role establishes, manages, evaluates, and continuously improves a shared-service capability that delivers accurate, timely, consistent, and accountable research administration services for participating University units. The Assistant Director oversees day-to-day service operations, including workload management, prioritization, resource allocation, procedures, service standards, quality controls, and performance monitoring. The role leads and develops the service team; implements and improves workflows, controls, documentation, and quality-assurance practices; and uses operational measures and data to assess service effectiveness and identify risks and improvement opportunities. Working with RAC colleagues, the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP), GCA, academic units, and other stakeholders, the Assistant Director coordinates cross-functional service delivery, communicates operational expectations and changes, and resolves issues. The position also supports service scaling by evaluating capacity and readiness, planning expansion to additional units or service areas, and recommending staffing, process, workflow, and technology investments.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in business administration, public administration, finance, research administration, higher education administration, or a related field; or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience in business administration, finance, research administration, or public administration.
Five years of experience with business administration, finance, research administration, or higher education administration.
The application must demonstrate that the applicant meets both the minimum qualifications and additional qualifications listed in the posting. Equivalent education and/or experience may substitute for minimum qualifications except where legal requirements apply.

Nice To Haves

Five years of progressively responsible experience in research administration, sponsored programs administration, program operations, or a related administrative field.
Experience supervising staff and managing operational workflows, workload priorities, and service delivery.
Ability to interpret complex policies, exercise independent judgment, solve operational problems, and implement effective business processes.
Strong analytical, communication, relationship-management, and performance-management skills, including using operational data and metrics to support decision-making.
Advanced degree and/or professional certification relevant to research administration, program management, organizational leadership, or business operations, such as CRA, MBA, or MPA.
Significant experience with sponsored research administration, particularly post-award administration, award setup, award modifications, or sponsored-project financial management.
Experience leading shared-services, centralized-service, service-center, or other high-volume operational environments.
Experience leading process improvement, organizational change, service redesign, workflow optimization, or implementation of new operating models.
Experience using operational performance measures, workflow technologies, automation, case-management systems, or AI-enabled tools to improve service delivery.

Responsibilities

Lead the overall operation and performance of centralized award setup and modification services.
Direct day-to-day service operations, including workload management, prioritization, resource allocation, and service delivery.
Establish and maintain operating procedures, service standards, quality controls, and escalation practices.
Monitor service performance and address operational issues, risks, bottlenecks, and emerging priorities.
Ensure services comply with University requirements, institutional controls, and established operating practices.
Recruit, supervise, coach, and develop staff; set performance expectations and conduct ongoing feedback, evaluation, and performance management.
Develop workforce capabilities through onboarding, training, cross-training, and professional development; assess staffing needs and allocate resources.
Lead implementation and continuous improvement of redesigned workflows, procedures, controls, and operating standards.
Partner with RAC colleagues and stakeholders to reduce administrative burden, streamline processes, and improve service outcomes.
Maintain operational documentation, decision frameworks, and quality-assurance practices; identify recurring issues and implement corrective actions.
Support evaluation and adoption of technology, automation, and decision-support solutions.
Establish and monitor key performance indicators, service levels, productivity measures, and quality metrics; use operational data to identify trends, risks, capacity needs, and improvement opportunities.
Provide leadership with regular assessments of service performance, operational risks, and improvement priorities.
Partner with OSP, GCA, academic units, and other stakeholders to resolve cross-functional issues and improve service delivery.
Communicate operational expectations, process changes, and performance outcomes to stakeholders.
Evaluate service effectiveness, capacity, scalability, and operational readiness; develop plans for expanding centralized services to additional units and service areas.
Support onboarding and transition activities for participating units and recommend investments needed to support future growth.
Contribute to RAC planning, pilot evaluation, governance activities, and broader operational excellence initiatives.