"Research Development Specialist Intermediate"

The Research Development (RD) Specialist will advance the research mission of the University of Michigan-Dearborn by assisting the Director of Research Development with research development efforts and functions. The Research Development Specialist will work with colleagues across all UM campuses to advance external grant efforts. The Research Development Specialist will support individual faculty and faculty teams through proposal/project management services to increase readiness and competitiveness for external funding opportunities, as well as plan, support and/or deliver ideation sessions, skill-building workshops, forums, seminars, and other events. This position will also support operations within the ORD, including coordinating external RD services, developing and maintaining online resources, etc.

This is a hybrid position. The Research Development Specialist will be expected to spend 1-3 days a week in the office and to be on campus to support events as needed.

The Research Development Specialist will work with the Director of Research Development to help connect researchers to resources and increase the investigators competitiveness in obtaining extramural research funding.

Major responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Supporting the administration of the internal seed funding programs (Campus Grants);
• Coordinating consultation and writing services from a third-party consulting company for Dearborn principal investigators;
• Assisting with proposal development training;
• Assisting with program design and implementation;
• Streamlining processes to support the research development infrastructure;
• Contributing to updates and maintenance of RD resource template materials;
• Facilitating collaboration between faculty and relevant institutional offices that support research development.
• The ideal candidate will also be able to review agency program goals and guidelines to ensure proposals align with both agency and institutional goals and capabilities;
• Assist in the development of external proposal applications; support the development of non-technical supplementary materials, and edit proposals to enhance the communication of ideas.
• The RD Specialist will support the UM-Dearborn limited submission process, which requires coordination with and participation in the UMOR internal competition and institutional peer review.
• The RD Specialist will provide project management support for the design and delivery of educational workshops, events, and training for faculty and research staff, and will coordinate and/or assist with marketing, communications, and other activities, surveys, special projects, and reports.
• Strong initiative and demonstrated ability to work independently and in collaborative settings is essential. Must be able to work in a sensitive and confidential manner using independent judgment and professionalism.

Bachelor's degree in English, communications, business or other relevant field required; demonstration of understanding of and familiarity with a broad range of science or technical subject matter a plus. Three plus (3+) years of directly related work experience in research development, program development or contracts and grants job function with a background in project and program management, or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience. High-level relationship-building skills, independent judgment and strong organizational skills, excellent written and verbal communication skills, and ability to effectively provide training to others in the form of workshops and individual instruction. Superior customer service and ability to effectively interact with individuals at all levels in and outside the organization. Ability to manage multiple tasks and prioritize work, perform well under pressure and to meet internal and external deadlines, work both independently and on a team, and work with and/or quickly learn how to work with technology, software, and content management systems for website development, including MS Office applications, storage/file sharing systems (GoogleDrive, Dropbox, etc.), data collection software (e.g., Qualtrix), video conferencing (Zoom, GoToMeeting, Webex, Microsoft Teams), Drupal, etc. Experience with InfoReady preferred but not required.

Master's or other advanced degree, knowledge of federal and non-federal research sponsors' common requirements and anticipated funding goals, demonstrated success working with teams to submit large-scale proposals, training in facilitation strategies, e.g., Liberating Structures, Strategic Doing, etc.

This position may be underfilled at a lower classification depending on the qualifications of the selected candidate. Research Development Specialist Intermediate salary range is $54,000-$60,000; Research Development Specialist Associate salary range is $48,000-$55,000.