Senior Business Administrator - College of Engineering - Civil and Environmental Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University•Pittsburgh, PA

4d•Onsite

About The Position

Carnegie Mellon University’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering seeks a Senior Business Administrator to manage day-to-day finance, accounting, and business operations in a research-intensive department. The role works closely with the Senior Director of Finance & Operations and acts for the Senior Director in their absence. It includes budget development and forecasting, labor planning and project accounting, purchase order and effort certification processes, and supervision of the department’s Administrative Coordinator. The position offers an opportunity to grow into senior academic business leadership. The administrator prepares budgets, forecasts, and financial review materials; supports leadership decision-making and dashboards; manages sponsored research labor planning and project accounting; oversees accounting controls and compliance; and supports hiring and other HR operations. Other duties may be assigned as required.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance, or business administration, or comparable knowledge demonstrated through a combination of education and relevant experience.
Three to five years of progressive experience in business administration, finance, and accounting, preferably at a research university.
Working knowledge of sponsored research finance and federal rules, including Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200) and effort reporting.
Experience building budgets and forecasts across multiple funding sources.
Advanced Excel skills.
Experience with Oracle Financials, Workday, and a business intelligence tool such as Tableau or Power BI.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Strong analytical skills.
Successful completion of a background check.

Nice To Haves

MBA, CPA, CMA, or CRA, or progress toward one.
Experience at CMU or a peer academic department.
Knowledge of SPARCS and CMU policies.
Track record of process improvement or automation.
Experience supervising or leading staff.

Responsibilities

Prepare budgets, forecasts, and exhibits for the University Financial Review, and lead monthly variance reviews with the Senior Director.
Assist with decision support for the Department Head and leadership, including annual reports, State of the Department materials, faculty hiring scenarios, and space scenarios.
Build and maintain leadership dashboards on research funding, expenses, and staffing using CIT Tableau, Power BI, or Excel.
Build and manage Oracle EPM budgets across operating, gift, endowment, internal, and sponsored funding sources, and produce department roll-up reports.
Lead labor planning on sponsored awards, including labor distribution forecasts and salary planning across PI awards, and prepare monthly account reports and forecasts for faculty.
Manage project accounting in Oracle, including setting up and maintaining project/task (PTA) structures, monitoring project balances and encumbrances, and reconciling project activity to department reports.
Own the department’s effort certification process in the new system; the Senior Director performs certification.
Act as a CEE liaison to the Research Accelerator and attend RAC and College research administration meetings.
Review and approve proposals and budgets in the Senior Director’s absence.
Own the purchase order process, initiate POs for Senior Director approval, clear encumbrances, and maintain PO procedures.
Approve purchase requests and expense reports in the Senior Director’s absence.
Oversee and approve cost transfers (PDAs and APRs) and journal entries; manage internal awards; and analyze AY salary return.
Approve financial transactions when needed or in the Senior Director’s absence.
Reconcile financial statements to project-level reports and make corrections as needed.
Manage accounting and reporting for CEE student organizations.
Supervise the Administrative Coordinator.
Serve as CEE’s Workday department initiator for regular staff, fixed-term staff, research staff, and adjunct hiring, which may include visa coordination with OIE.
Perform other duties as required.