"Associate Director of Finance & Administration"

Overview

Reporting to and collaborating with the Director of Finance and Administration, SEAS, the Associate Director of Finance & Administration (Senior Operations Manager) is a strategic administrative partner to SEAS department chairs, the chief financial steward, and leader of administrative support services for a portfolio of departments within the School of Engineering & Applied Science.

The Associate Director will oversee a portfolio of SEAS departments and institutes supporting ladder & non-ladder faculty and oversee annual expense budget of over $25M from multiple funding sources, including GA, UR, Gift and sponsored income. They will use considerable latitude for exercising discretion and independent judgment and ensure that faculty, students, and staff in the departments receive high-quality administrative support in a manner compliant with university policies and procedures and marshal and leverage available resources (financial or otherwise) to help advance the mission of the departments and institutes within their portfolio.

The position will enable faculty and program leadership to maximize their focus on program activities by managing and implementing assigned financial and administrative support services. The position will manage and be responsible for the finances, budget, and forecasting for the departments and institutes in their portfolio. They will provide direct professional support for financial and administrative activities within the department, serving as the leader of the business office and faculty support staff. The Associate Director will assess the unit's operational challenges and opportunities, working to develop and implement solutions with the Director of Finance and Administration for SEAS and others as appropriate, and serve as a critical conduit for strengthening the interface between department needs and university services provided.

The Associate Director will oversee the financial management of all non-sponsored accounts, and work in close partnership with FRMS on sponsored awards to ensure they have been managed appropriately in a timely manner, meeting both federal sponsors and University guidelines, policies, and procedures. They will prepare and manage the YBT budget and Q2 preparation and submission and oversee FRMS input to these deliverables for the departments and institutes within their portfolio and be a driver of the fiscal year end close processes.

In addition to overseeing departmental operations and finances, the Associate Director will manage the departmental support staff. The primary focus is to supervise daily operations and ensure the efficient use of staff resources. Other key responsibilities include staff hiring, training, scheduling, development and performance management.

In addition to sharp financial acumen, strong communication skills are a requirement of this position. Applicants are asked to provide a cover letter with their application.

Required Skills and Abilities

1. Well-developed managerial, decision-making, planning, organizational, problem-resolution, and leadership skills with the ability to inspire a high level of commitment and performance. Demonstrated ability to manage people on a day-to-day basis, motivate and develop teams, inspiring a high level of commitment and performance.
2. Excellent written and oral communication skills, with the ability to adapt communication styles and negotiate skillfully to address the needs of individuals at all levels within the University.
3. Strong financial reporting and quantitative skills, with the ability to create and analyze financial reports, budgets, and forecasts using tools such as Excel and database management systems.
4. Solid understanding of internal control concepts and the implementation of internal control systems in a complex business environment, with the ability to anticipate and manage change proactively.
5. Proven ability to manage time and resources effectively, measure and monitor progress and redirect efforts as needed with great capacity for flexibility. Ability to anticipate changes in the business environment and proactively manage change.

Preferred Skills and Abilities

1. Minimum of a Bachelor's Degree and five years of related work experience, including demonstrated leadership, project management, and financial experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience. A Master's Degree in business administration and leadership or other advanced business degree is preferred.
2. Understanding of Yale's Financial and Administrative systems, including Workday, YBT, YDX, and PowerBI and familiarity with university policies and procedures.
3. Experience in sponsored awards research environment or finance administration within an academic or highly regulated setting, with knowledge of federal, state, and sponsor regulations.
4. Strong Excel skills and proficiency with financial reporting tools; experience integrating complex financial information to identify themes, trends, and issues.
5. Demonstrated ability to manage relationships, influence outcomes, and work effectively in a complex organization.

Principal Responsibilities

1. Administrative Services Manager: Provides efficient and effective delivery and integration of administrative services (academic, financial, research and/or clinical) for which (s)he is accountable. Serves as the unit's point of contact to/from service providers (e.g. Facilities, HR, IT, Procurement, Student Services, Faculty Affairs), ensuring providers are apprised of unit needs and relevant information, acting where needed. Monitors the adequacy of service delivered by outside providers. Escalates issues/concerns related to administrative and operational services to the LA.
2. Financial Analyst and Manager: Partners with the LA to build financial plans for the unit. Provides comprehensive financial information, analysis and reporting to monitor and evaluate the application of the unit’s financial resources, e.g. performance against budget. Recommends adjustments; acts as appropriate. Oversees daily financial monitoring and authorizes transactions per policy. Provides support to unit's Dean/Director/Chair for financial inquiries. Identifies available financial resources (current/future) and recommends how to deploy efficiently to support unit objectives. Prepares all funds budgets including gathering historical information, providing analysis and quality control. Helps the unit, including faculty, research and analyze funding challenges and opportunities and presents possible options with LA.
3. Risk Manager: Implements/maintains strong internal controls in areas of assigned responsibility to provide reasonable assurance of effective and appropriate resource use, accurate financial information, and adherence to contractual obligations and agreements, policies, procedures, and external regulatory requirements. Takes corrective action to protect Yale’s assets, resources, information and reputation. Identifies, communicates, and addresses issues/concerns in a timely manner. Ensures all faculty and staff are knowledgeable of the regulations, policies, procedures and Yale requirements as they pertain to their scope of activity. Escalates issues to the LA as appropriate.
4. University Citizen: Connects the unit and University through communication, alignment of priorities, implementation of initiatives, and active engagement in University administrative priorities. Engages in initiatives generated by the LA and the University. Represents unit needs, challenges, and opportunities at the LA and/or University level. Creates opportunities to enhance the image and value of the unit. Shares knowledge and best practices with others.
5. Talent Manager and Developer: Utilizes effective practices for attracting, retaining, and developing high quality Business Office talent and other unit non-faculty personnel as assigned. Works with HR partners to participate in selection, performance management and career development processes, as well as to address employee relations issues in line with University guidelines and contractual agreements. Partners with the LA in the assessment of current unit non-faculty personnel and future talent needs. Makes recommendations for the movement of administrative talent and the development of Bus. Ops. staff. Cultivates a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives in the unit.
6. Strategic Resource: Partners with the LA (and, when appropriate, with the Dean/Director/Chair) to shape the unit's administrative and operational priorities and support strategic planning process. Translates unit strategy into actions. Recommends resources needed to achieve short and long-term goals; identifies any factors that may impact the unit’s ability to successfully meet its mission and goals. Assesses level of financial and non-financial resources available to achieve the unit's goals, e.g., funding, space, technology, staff capabilities and capacity. Recognizes and raises potential issues, ideas and solutions to LA.
7. May perform other duties as assigned.

Required Education and Experience

Minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree and five years of related work experience including demonstrated leadership, project management and/or supervisory experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.