Director of Operations

Summary:

The Department of Psychology in the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences (CHS) invites applications for the Director of Operations. The Department of Psychology is an innovative unit in the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences with a robust research portfolio and is a diverse department with almost 50 faculty members from varying backgrounds. The department serves a student body of over 1,700 undergraduate students and over 130 graduate students. The Director of Operations has significant leadership and operational management responsibilities. This individual provides leadership for the management and coordination of the department’s complex state, research (direct and indirect), student fee and foundation accounts including oversight and leadership overseeing a $10 to 12M+/year federal grant portfolio, ensuring fiscal team compliance with Commonwealth and university policies as well as grant requirements and guidelines. The position reports to the Chair of the Department of Psychology, and has a dual report to CHS fiscal leadership.

The role provides key leadership for the department, and interfaces with other leaders in the department and institution on setting the unit’s strategic agenda, with key attention to fiscal resources and policies, including working with the leadership team to establish and manage the annual budget. The individual is responsible for providing high-quality finance, accounting, budgeting, forecasting and procurement leadership and team management for the Department.

The role will coordinate with principal investigators, supporting timely and efficient faculty access to research and professional development support, providing leadership for the effective management of graduate student tuition and stipend resources and payments, and engaging with other intersecting administrative leaders in the department and College (e.g., HR, central fiscal and grants admin). This position leads a team with post award grant responsibilities (e.g., award verification, NCEs, prior approvals, re-budgeting, index reconciliation, coordinating closeout paperwork, and etc.) that maintains records for, and collaborates with, CHS-SPO as needed on proposal development and submission (e.g. budget development, review/interpretation of funding announcements, coordinating proposal submissions, and etc.).

The position ensures necessary support and budget/expenditure oversight for assigned projects including oversight of grants and contracts funding and support of appropriate personnel actions, purchasing, monthly reconciliation, budget status, monitoring for unallowable costs, administrative actions, and other reporting requirements, etc. Coordinates and assists with post-award actions including NCEs, prior approval requests, re-budgeting requests, and etc. Assists and supports their team in resolving grant accounting issues by working collaboratively with department and university office staff. Communicates with external sources to discuss financial processes or issues related to assigned grants/contracts.

The VCU job series for this position is Administrator/Senior Administrator in the Financial Services job family. For more information, please see the VCU Human Resources’ Job Family and Salary Ranges site at https://insidehr.vcu.edu/guidelines/compensation/job-families-and-salary-ranges/.

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Typical Duties

•The Director of Operations ensures daily fiscal planning and operations of the Department of Psychology are promptly carried out following established policies and procedures
•Serves on the Departmental Leadership Team (Chair, Associate Chair, Director of Operations, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Director of Graduate Studies, and Director of Academic Operations) to advise and support strategic department planning
•Ensures departmental resources are effectively managed to support the mission and faculty, staff, and students
•Responsible for oversight of all financial transactions of the unit across funding sources: E&G, sponsored awards, and foundation accounts
•Serves as the Primary Effort Coordinator for the department
•Point of contact for department audits
•Works with Chair on annual budget process