Financial Specialist Sr. (Post-Award)

Arizona State University•Tempe, AZ

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

The School of Life Sciences is seeking a collaborative, service-oriented Financial Specialist Sr. – Post Award to join its Research Advancement team. Under the supervision of the Research Advancement Administrator Sr., Post-award, this position supports post-award Workday processing, account and payroll monitoring, account reconciliations, and financial management of sponsored projects. The role participates in financial meetings and expense planning for sponsored accounts in partnership with project investigators and works closely with the School of Life Sciences business operations team. The position manages an assigned portfolio of faculty investigators and sponsored projects, providing financial guidance and overseeing account monitoring, forecasting, compliance, reporting, and post-award administrative actions. It collaborates with university offices, investigators, and departmental staff on award modifications, invoicing, closeouts, negotiations, reporting, and fund approvals. The role is based in person at the Tempe campus, with a hybrid arrangement allowing two remote days per week. The stated salary range is $55,000–$65,000 annually.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree and three years of experience appropriate to the area of assignment or field, or an equivalent combination of experience and/or training demonstrating comparable knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Nice To Haves

Experience in research administration, particularly post-award financial management.
Demonstrated experience managing cost-share commitments, tracking, documentation, and reporting.
Experience interpreting and applying Uniform Guidance, federal agency terms, and audit requirements.
Advanced skill in budget development, multi-year financial planning, and scenario modeling.
Experience with financial management systems, HR-related systems, forecasting tools, and analytics reporting.
Experience using advanced Excel functions, including pivot tables, as well as OneNote, MS Word, MS Teams, Skype, Zoom, and Slack.
Strong analytical skills, including financial forecasting and variance analysis.
Experience with effort reporting, payroll certification, and related compliance requirements.
Demonstrated ability to work effectively with faculty, researchers, and cross-functional administrative units.
Excellent communication skills, including the ability to explain complex financial concepts clearly.
Experience working in environments with competing deadlines, sensitive information, and frequent priority changes.
Ability to work independently and effectively amid regularly changing priorities and strict deadlines, with regular follow-through.

Responsibilities

Serve as the primary post-award contact for an assigned portfolio of faculty investigators and sponsored projects.
Provide investigators with financial guidance on sponsored project expenditures, projections, allowability, sponsor requirements, and compliance.
Review and interpret award documents, sponsor terms and conditions, funding restrictions, and reporting requirements.
Manage sponsored project accounts and approve expenditures in accordance with ASU policies, sponsor requirements, and applicable federal regulations, including Uniform Guidance.
Monitor, reconcile, and forecast project accounts, including salary commitments, projected expenses, subaward activity, burn-rate analysis, expense transfers, and effort reporting.
Provide administrative support for post-award actions, including at-risk requests, pre-award costs, re-budgets, no-cost extensions, renewals, and periodic reports.
Ensure ongoing compliance with university, sponsor, regulatory, and financial requirements; identify compliance concerns and assist with their resolution.
Collaborate with ORSPA, Knowledge Enterprise Award Management, the Business Office, investigators, and departmental staff on award modifications, invoicing, closeouts, negotiations, reporting, and fund approvals.
Prepare standard and non-standard financial and accounting reports for research investigators.
Resolve fund management issues, correct errors, and support accurate invoicing to ensure timely revenue collection.
Maintain project records and files, determine appropriate handling of financial transactions, and approve transactions within designated authority limits.
Provide process guidance or training to investigators, business staff, and post-award Research Advancement staff.
Perform other duties as assigned.