Research Grants Manager

**Schedule**
Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

**Education Level**
Master's Degree in relevant area

**Career Level**
TMG

**Department, Unit or Project Description**:
FHS Health Research Services provides leadership, counsel and fundamental services to the health research community. These efforts help ensure the eligibility of McMaster’s research community as a whole to obtain health research funding from the Federal and Provincial governments and other funding agencies and sponsors by ensuring compliance with internal and external regulations and policies particularly in terms of human and animal research ethics, biohazard and environmental regulations. The end result is a maximal share of available project and program funding for McMaster’s health researchers.

The HRS Grants Administration Unit directly administers health research grants, and regulatory compliance for the Faculty of Health Sciences and the University

**Job Summary**:
The Research Grants Manager is responsible for administering a wide range of complex granting programs with a high volume of work, with fluctuating peaks. The position is driven by constant, multiple and simultaneous deadlines, continuous change and shifting priorities. As a member of the Health Research Services Management team this position reports to the Director, Health Research Services and requires the ability to work independently, very strong time management skills, and superior organizational and communication skills.

The Research Grants Manager will be expected to determine appropriate internal submission procedures for various calls for proposals and to implement these procedures within the Faculty of Health Sciences. The position has a high level of interaction with faculty members, administrative staff, and other units at the university, and thus requires diplomacy, tact, and exceptional communication and organization skills.

**Accountabilities**:
**Pre-Award Administration**:

- Develops streamlined processes and services across functional areas in order to help minimize bureaucracy and thus maximize the time available to researchers to do their research.
- Collaborates with the Central university research office, with specific accountability for matters of research policy, and for annual internal and external reporting on the impact of external research funds and information management related to health research.
- Advises faculty members on appropriate research funding opportunities through a variety of mechanisms as appropriate (e.g. funding calls, website, information sessions).
- Educates researchers with regard to timelines and procedures related to the grant submission process.
- Interprets and implements University and sponsor policies, procedures and guidelines.
- Accountable for developing and maintaining efficient and effective award administration encompassing all steps required to bring a project funding proposal from concept to the operational phase where it is transferred to Research Finance. This includes but is not limited to developing and refining project budgets; organizing sub-agreements and transfers to and from other institutions; working with researchers and funding agencies to develop mutually acceptable milestones for selected projects; and authorizing the opening of new research accounts.
- Provides on-going management of the maintenance of grant files, and allocates resources for any amendment to the grants, including extensions.
- Accountable for the development and implementation of procedures and processes for the administration and stewardship required to operationalize awarded projects, in collaboration with Research Finance and for annual progress reporting (both institutional and project-based) to ensure compliance with external sponsors’ requirements.
- Ensures proper documentation and record retention for research administration and support.
- Working in collaboration with ROADS and MILO, keeps the McMaster health research community apprised of McMaster’s success in funding competitions through the timely and accurate delivery of competition results and McMaster’s performance in relation to other institutions.

**Outreach/Communication/Collaboration**:

- Develop and implements short
- and long-term plans for the grants unit to ensure the effective and efficient use of research infrastructure resources to support the strategic research plans for the Faculty.
- Keep abreast of major policy changes in the external environment; will interpret the impact of such changes on the McMaster research community and initiate action to manage such changes.
- Responsible for the effective and efficient operation of the Grants Unit and the delivery of services, including coordinating activities, overseeing workflow and volume in the context of numerous and concurrent deadlines, defining priorities and recruiting, providing direction to and evaluating staff.
- Keeps up to date on funding opportunities in what continues