Grants Administrator II - McCance Center for Brain Health

Mass General Brigham•Somerville, MA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Mass General Brigham relies on a wide range of professionals, including doctors, nurses, business people, tech experts, researchers, and systems analysts to advance our mission. As a not-for-profit, we support patient care, research, teaching, and community service, striving to provide exceptional care. We believe that high-performing teams drive groundbreaking medical discoveries and invite all applicants to join us and experience what it means to be part of Mass General Brigham. The McCance Center for Brain Health in the MGB Department of Neurology is an interdisciplinary research center with the mission to promote healthy brain aging and prevent neurodegenerative disease through innovative research. We focus on clinical trials for Alzheimer’s Disease therapies including natural, drug, and lifestyle interventions. We are in an exciting phase of growth that includes launching a single site trial of a natural product combination and planning a platform trial to accelerate testing of multiple potential therapies for AD early intervention. Reporting jointly to the McCance Center Administrative Director and to the Sr Administrative Manager of Research in the Neurology Department, the Grants Administrator II (GA II) will be responsible for managing grant and gift-related activity in the McCance Center, supporting a portfolio of two faculty that is expected to grow over time. A substantial portion of the role will involve supporting sundry funds from philanthropic donors as well as clinical trial planning and execution. The GA II will be a key member of the team planning and managing multi-center clinical trials for Alzheimer’s disease. The GA II will work closely with McCance Center leadership as well as researchers, administrators, vendors, and sponsors to ensure effective financial planning, analysis, reporting, and compliance with funding regulations to support the success of the McCance Center’s programs.

Requirements

Associate's Degree Related Field of Study required.
Research administration experience 2-3 years required.
Proficient in spreadsheets, databases, accounting, and other computer applications.
Must possess advanced MS Excel, Word, Access, and PowerPoint Skills.
Excellent verbal and written communication, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills, and ability to build effective relationships with researchers, administrators, and finance teams.
Ability to work with large financial data sets with accuracy.
Good working knowledge of research agency, sponsor, and organization funding mechanisms, guidelines, and policies.
Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills to interpret financial data, identify trends, and provide strategic recommendations.
Detail-oriented and proactive approach with strong organizational and time management skills.
Familiarity with clinical trial protocols and regulatory compliance, including Good Clinical Practice.
Ability to communicate effectively and professionally at all levels.
Good negotiation skills.
Ability to make independent judgments and resolve problems.
Ability to manage a busy workload and reprioritize as needed.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's Degree Related Field of Study preferred.
Experience with systems such as Workday and OnCore a plus.

Responsibilities

Manages the grant and gift-related financial activity of the McCance Center for Brain Health.
Provides guidance, resolves issues, and helps navigate the research process, from pre-award (proposal submission and application) through post-award and close out.
Supports pre- and post-award grant management activities for clinical research studies, with emphasis on clinical trials.
Manages financial operations of clinical trials, such developing, negotiating, and managing budgets, developing budget justifications, developing queries and running monthly reports, ensuring sites and vendors are paid appropriately and on time, and participating in the contracting process.
May contact vendors to obtain quotes for services and to follow up on correspondence.
Ensures budgets and research billing terms are viable, financially feasible, and in compliance with MGB policies and procedures.
Assembles input from clinical trials directors and assemble scope of work and budget justifications for new clinical trial design agreements.
Develops and negotiates site budgets with sponsors and external sites; serves as the central point of contact for budget negotiations and payment terms with sites when appropriate.
Works with grants administration team and CTO office to prepare sub-agreements with sites.
Develops site payment schedules and processes.
Closely collaborates across MGB units e.g., research compliance, A/P, Supply Chain Operations to accomplish objectives.
Works with Principal Investigators and Departmental Grants leadership to process and prepare research proposals to internal and external sponsors.
In collaboration with PI and other team members, prepares budgets, justifications, and related materials.
Contributes knowledge and serves as Subject Matter Expert (SME) on federal funding guidelines and MGB policies related to scope of work.
May support Principal Investigators in creating accounts and submitting documentation on funding portals.
Manages awards and transactions, maintains grant/contract records in compliance with institutional and research sponsors.
Maintains a database of existing clinical trials with payment schedules, dollars received, and dollars outstanding.
Conducts financial analysis for projects, makes relevant budget updates, tracks expenditures, and prepares budget forecasts; supports Center leadership in financial planning.
Prepares accurate and timely financial reports in various formats (narrative, presentation, graphs, tables).
Maintains and communicates relevant project financial metrics to leadership.
Highlights performance issues, identifies problems, and proposes solutions.
Proactively approaches McCance Center grants administration and financial reporting; identifies and escalates concerns, contributes to problem-solving, and supports the development of financial processes and SoPs for the Center.
Documents the financial reporting process; cross-trains other identified staff to cover regular reporting responsibilities during time off.
Supports the McCance Center fundraising efforts; tracks progress towards fundraising goals, contributes to the preparation of stewardship reports.
Utilizes research and financial management systems and software for data entry, analysis, reporting, and other transactions.
Collaborates with McCance Center leadership and staff and other stakeholders to ensure effective communication and coordination of financial matters.
May communicate with grants teams at other sites.
Participates in the review and quality control of financial data.
Monitors expenditures and assures budgetary compliance; verifies, identifies, and evaluates excessive charges; and advises on allowability of costs to be charged to grant.
Analyzes processes and participates in ongoing process improvement initiatives.
May contribute to the review of service offerings, conducting due diligence on vendors, reviewing draft agreements, and the like.
May work with PI and study teams to review Medicare Coverage Analysis (MCA) for clinical trial billing coverage determinations.
May provide backup to other team members and/or serve as delegate in Workday for financial transactions (expense reports, corporate card reconciliation, reimbursements, CAPAS transactions).
Performs other duties as assigned.
Complies with all policies and standards.
Reviews proposals for compliance with sponsor and organizational guidelines; verify all sponsor requirements are met.
Is eligible for Institutional Signing Authority, which is subject to manager discretion and delegation.
Uses organizational research financial management applications to manage workflow and develop queries and reports.
Assists manager in the review of Grant Administrator I work and quality control review of data.