Contract Administrator III

State of Colorado•Denver, CO

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Contract Administrator III serves as the Division of Community Programs’ (DCP) division-wide contracting, procurement, and payment administration specialist. Under the work lead of the Budget and Policy Analyst III, the position independently performs professional contract administration from initial procurement and contract development through execution, monitoring, payment, reconciliation, modification, renewal, and closeout. It prepares contracts, purchase orders, interagency agreements, amendments, option letters, requisitions in CORE, and related procurement documents; coordinates solicitations and contract execution with CDHS Central Procurement and Contracts; maintains contract and encumbrance tracking; monitors contract terms, deliverables, expenditures, and expiration dates; processes invoices and other payments; and reconciles contract and payment activity against CORE and other fiscal records. The position is DCP’s primary operational resource for contracting and vendor payment matters. It researches and resolves inquiries from division staff, vendors, and grantees about invoices, payment status, warrants or checks, payment issuance or receipt, encumbrances, coding, and other contract-related fiscal transactions. It analyzes records across contracts, invoices, CORE, and other available fiscal systems to identify discrepancies, determine corrective action, and ensure accurate recording and reconciliation. The position works independently within applicable statutes, State Fiscal Rules, procurement rules, federal requirements, Department policies, contract terms, and professional standards. Complex or unprecedented matters requiring changes to established policy or program objectives are elevated to the Budget and Policy Analyst III or another appropriate authority. The position has weekly hybrid working arrangements, with a minimum of two days in the office and a maximum of three days working remotely. Arrangements follow current Office of Children, Aging and Community Services practices and are subject to change. Applicants must be Colorado residents at application and remain residents throughout employment.

Requirements

Six years of relevant experience in an occupation related to the work assigned to the position; alternatively, a combination of related education and/or relevant experience equal to six years.
Colorado residency at the time of application and throughout employment.
Successful completion of a standard background check and reference check.

Nice To Haves

Professional experience using CORE or similar state or governmental financial and accounting systems.
Direct experience administering the full contracting and procurement lifecycle within a state government agency, local government, or heavily regulated public-sector environment.
Experience with high-volume invoice review, payment processing, and financial reconciliation across multiple funding sources.
Relevant years of state service experience.

Responsibilities

Independently administer the contracting and procurement lifecycle for DCP contracts, purchase orders, interagency agreements, and other purchasing mechanisms.
Analyze program needs, funding requirements, procurement rules, and agreement circumstances to determine the appropriate contracting process and documentation.
Prepare scopes of work, performance requirements, deliverables, budgets, terms, purchase orders, amendments, option letters, and other contracting documents in compliance with applicable requirements and funding restrictions.
Prepare requisitions and supporting documentation in CORE, ensuring accounting codes, funding sources, encumbrances, and supporting records are established before routing.
Coordinate formal solicitations, including RFPs, RFAs, DQs, and other procurement methods, with DCP program staff and CDHS Central Procurement and Contracts.
Review solicitation and contracting materials for completeness and compliance, and resolve deficiencies before routing for approval.
Maintain division-wide contract tracking and monitoring systems for agreement status, funding and encumbrance levels, deliverables, amendments, option periods, expiration dates, and closeout requirements.
Determine when modifications, option letters, purchase order changes, or other actions are needed and initiate processes to prevent lapses in contractual authority or services.
Provide DCP program staff technical guidance on contracting processes, documentation requirements, procurement timelines, and appropriate contracting mechanisms.
Administer invoice and payment processing for DCP contracts, purchase orders, grants, and other vendor transactions.
Review invoices and supporting documentation against budgets, contract terms, deliverables, funding restrictions, encumbrances, and accounting records to assess allowability, accuracy, coding, and payment readiness.
Create receiving reports and complete payment authorization activities in CORE or other applicable fiscal systems.
Process and reconcile Purchasing Card transactions and other authorized payments.
Track payments and expenditures against contract balances and funding sources, and reconcile transactions to CORE and other fiscal records to identify discrepancies, duplicate payments, incorrect coding, outstanding transactions, and other issues.
Research and respond to vendor and grantee inquiries concerning invoice status, payment issuance, warrants or checks, receipt or cashing of payments, outstanding payments, payment amounts, coding, and other transaction matters.
Coordinate with program staff, vendors, grantees, Accounting, and other Department units to research transactions and resolve discrepancies.
Maintain payment and expenditure tracking and provide the Budget and Policy Analyst III timely information about expenditures, remaining contract balances, encumbrances, and identified fiscal issues.
Identify expenditure trends or concerns that may affect contract administration or division budget management and escalate them as appropriate.

Benefits

PERA Defined Benefit Plan or PERA Defined Contribution Plan, plus 401(k) and 457 plans.
Medical and dental health plans.
Employer-supplemented Health Savings Account.
Paid life insurance.
Short- and long-term disability coverage.
Eleven paid holidays per year, plus vacation and sick leave.
State of Colorado Employee BenefitHub Resource Center.
Employee Wellness program.
Work-life programs, including flexible schedules and training.
Remote work arrangements for eligible positions.
Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.