Senior Research Portfolio Administrator

By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community that advances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways, inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds skills and expertise. We are dedicated to creating a diverse and welcoming environment where everyone can thrive.

Harvard Medical School's mission is to nurture a diverse, inclusive community dedicated to alleviating suffering and improving health and well-being for all through excellence in teaching and learning, discovery and scholarship, and service and leadership.

You’ll be at the heart of biomedical discovery, education, and innovation, working alongside world-renowned faculty and a community dedicated to improving human health. This is more than a job - it’s an opportunity to shape the future of medicine.

The central Office of Research Administration (ORA) at Harvard Medical School (HMS) seeks a talented and experienced Senior Research Portfolio Administrator (SRPA). The SRPA will provide pre- and post-award management for interdisciplinary faculty with complex portfolios, whose funding sources range from NIH, NSF, DoD, DOE, ONR, DARPA, ARPA-H and other federal and private sources. The ideal candidate will be responsible for interpreting and communicating University and sponsor guidelines, policies, and procedures, and use a high degree of judgment and problem-solving skills to ensure compliance throughout the sponsored project life cycle.

This is a full-time hybrid position (we will consider a fully remote individual but prefer some hybrid presence), reporting to ORA, and working directly with the Department of Biomedical Informatics (DBMI). The SRPA will provide outstanding customer service and work closely with DBMI’s senior and junior faculty, staff, post-docs, and students, and other internal and external stakeholders. This includes special projects and duties as assigned.

• Identifying and disseminating funding opportunities and review of application requirements
• Working on proposal and budget development.
• Preparing the application and route for institutional review, authorization and submission to sponsor, and interaction with ORA.

• Daily monitoring of grants and contracts to ensure expenses are paid within budget limits and timelines and according to agreements and government regulations.
• Budget and fund reconciliation.
• Financial analysis and update of projections for sponsored awards.
• Coordination and submission of timely effort reporting.
• Submission of timely payroll changes for faculty, staff, and students.
• Reviewing agreements and drafting of other research-related documents (billing agreements, etc.).
• Oversight of subrecipients including monitoring of spending and special terms and conditions.
• Preparing progress reports and prior approval requests and route them for institutional review, authorization, and submission to sponsor.
• Reviewing and approving vendor invoices and reimbursement.

Although this role is expected to function with a great deal of autonomy, the SRPA will collaborate and maintain strong relationships with colleagues in the HMS Office of Finance, the HMS Office of Research Administration (ORA), the Office for Sponsored Programs (OSP), and other Harvard and external colleagues as needed.

As part of your application, we recommend including a cover letter that will help us better understand your qualifications and background. This can provide valuable insight into your experience and interest in the role.

• Five or more years of experience in pre-and post-award management, including both federal and non-federal awards, or related experience required. Higher education may count toward years of experience.

• Bachelor’s degree strongly preferred.
• Certified Research Administrator (CRA) preferred but not required.
• Demonstrated experience with NIH and NSF proposal submissions and electronic grant submission systems (ASSIST, Workspace, Research.gov, Proposal Central etc.).
• Working knowledge of research compliance policies…