ABOUT UNIVERSITY

Khalifa University is a world-class, research-intensive institution in Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The University’s mission is to seamlessly integrate research and education to produce world leaders and critical thinkers in science, engineering, and medicine, and also to be a catalyst towards Abu Dhabi’s 2030 vision for a knowledge-based economy. Khalifa University has two campuses in the city of Abu Dhabi – the KU Main Campus and the Sas Al Nakhl Campus, the latter housing two of KU’s flagship research institutes: Masdar Institute and Petroleum Institute.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

The Manager of Internal Awards & Collaborations is responsible for the management of internally funded research activity including award setup, fiscal and non-technical reporting oversight, as well as collaborator management.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION    

Strategic Responsibilities

• Contribute to the development of the Department’s strategy, as well as annual KPI plans
• Contribute to the development of the Department’s policies and procedures, in line with the overall research objectives of the University, ensuring they promote leading practices and excellence
• Contribute to the development and management of the Department’s budgets and report back on a timely basis to ensure that divergences are addressed promptly

Operational Responsibilities

• Manages (based on best practices) policies, procedures, and processes for award management including monitoring research reporting, financial performance, and collaborator interactions
• Establish internal controls to ensure the accuracy and integrity of financial data and/or systems that support grant accounting
• Manage the internal and external review of research project reports to monitor project performance and any related challenges
• Oversee the harvesting of project output data, return on internal research investment metrics, and KPI status providing recommendations to the Director to ensure funding programs are achieving their maximum impact
• Manage internally funded sub-award agreements once executed including invoice payments, reporting, agreement amendments, and collaboration closeout
• Support the Director in determining fiscal requirements and preparing budgetary recommendations
• Ensure internal project faculty leads have timely access to project fiscal data using the relevant institutional software (Oracle-based finance system as well as a bespoke Research Management System)Work closely with the other research offices (Research Services, Technology Management & Innovation, Research Labs, and Research Computing) to ensure alignment where necessary
• Ensure the operational effectiveness and efficiency of the internal awards & collaboration processes, including identifying and implementing process improvements
• Use an appropriate reporting system to provide support and training to research end-users to ensure adherence to developed processes and procedures, primarily through the Research Management System
• Facilitate the smooth flow of approvals, ensuring adherence to all institutional policies
• Manage the workload allocation of team members in line with unit needs to best maximize office resources considering the ebb and flow of funding cycles
• Adhere to the University’s information security and confidentiality policies and procedures, and report breaches or other security risks accordingly
• Perform any other tasks assigned by the Line Manager

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Provide coaching, guidance, and mentoring as required to enhance the internal capabilities of the team and ensure the achievement of established objectives and plans
• Recommend appropriate training courses as per the pre-determined training needs, evaluate their effectiveness, and monitor their results
• Carry out performance appraisals for subordinates according to planned schedules and recommend necessary actions as per the applied practices
• Conduct periodic meetings with subordinates to ensure that priorities are clear and workflow is running smoothly
• Follow-up on employees’ administrative affairs such as vacations, leaves, and other administrative and related affairs

JOB REQUIREMENTS    

Required Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree preferably in Finance, Management or Engineering
• Experience working in a research-awarding environment such as a research funding agency, foundation, or university internal funding function managing research projects

Required Experience

Expats: A minimum of 12 years of relevant experience

UAE Nationals: A minimum of 8 years of relevant experience

HOW TO APPLY

Should you require further assistance or if you face any issue with the online application, please feel to contact the Recruitment Team (recruitmentteam@ku.ac.ae)