Compliance Specialist, Finance & Banking

Compliance Specialist – Office of Sponsored Programs (Montana State University)

Position Information:
Announcement Number STAFF – VA – 26184.
For questions regarding this position, please contact:
Katie Olson
kolson

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Position Overview:

The Compliance Specialist represents a great opportunity in the Office of Sponsored Programs for a dynamic candidate with exceptional multi‑tasking and organizational skills. The individual in this position will provide direct financial and administrative support to the OSP Subaward area.

• Creates and maintains electronic and paper records on an average portfolio of over 450 unique subaward accounts. Prepares, routes, and tracks a wide variety of forms and documents both internally and externally related to subaward funding, ensuring agreements and modifications are processed in a timely manner, that all supporting documentation is received, up to date, and in accordance with sponsor requirements.
  
  Includes managing subaward administrative and financial closeout processes and archiving.
• Performs accounting functions for all subawards funded through OSP. The portfolio of subawards is growing rapidly and currently includes over 450 subawards with expenditures of $41 million in FY25.
• Ensures the accuracy of subrecipient invoicing through pre‑audit review, verifying expenditure of funds in accordance with federal, state and private rules and regulations, approves the release of subrecipient payments, reconciles subaward payments between the OSP Subaward Application database and Banner, identifies and corrects accounting errors and develops methods to avoid recurring errors both internally and with external subrecipients.
• Researches, analyzes, and monitors subaward budgets to ensure compliance with granting agency requirements from various funding sources.
• Evaluates existing practices against the changing needs of subaward management. Takes initiative to develop and implement changes to accommodate growth, increase efficiencies, and to support increasingly electronic processes.
• Assists in development, implementation and enforcement of fiscal policies and procedures to ensure all subaward processes and transactions are following University, State and Federal regulations.
• Participates in relevant departmental and university process improvement initiatives. Communicates and implements these changes as they relate to the subaward function.
• Tracks cost overruns, cost sharing and IDCs on subaward accounts and evaluates subaward fiscal and compliance disposition prior to proceeding with new awards or amendments to existing awards. Follows up with subrecipients, MSU PIs and MSU Compliance offices on any issues including budgets and allowable costs, Human Subject work, research involving Animals, Controlled Research, and Technology Transfer concerns. Ensures proper approvals are in place and documented per the Uniform Guidance requirements in the Code of Federal Regulations, Montana State University policies and procedures, and State of Montana policies and procedures.
• Assists with training and outreach of OSP Subaward policies and procedures on an individual or campus wide basis as needed.
• Provides management of subrecipient registration requirements in SAM.gov, ensuring registration type is appropriate for business purposes, helping entities navigate the registration process by providing education, information and troubleshooting guidance.
• Manages the content of all subrecipient communication – transmittal templates for new awards, amendments, and multiple types of information requests.
• Serves as the liaison between the OSP Subaward team and MSU’s Central Offices, including University Business Services, Procurement, and Fiscal Shared Services. Works with these groups both high‑level and in‑detail to facilitate effective processes and procedures between the teams and to troubleshoot business process issues and transactional issues.

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Management or related field, or an equivalent combination of education and/or experience.
• Demonstrated experience with…