Research Billing System Analyst

Billing Systems Analyst I – Colorado School of Mines

At Mines, the Billing Systems Analyst I is responsible for the billing management of sponsored research projects in the Office of Research Administration ("ORA"). This is a key member of the research team and serves as a resource to sponsors, faculty, and campus administrators.

Billing for sponsored research is complex and includes many different components which requires critical thinking skills in addition to a strong accounting background. The Billing Analyst will apply accounting theories and understand generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") in order to meet the job requirements and responsibilities.

Essential responsibilities include cash management, billing, accounts receivables, financial reporting, systems monitoring, and customer service. You will work independently, use your ability to research and resolve issues, strategically analyze financial reports, and consistently review processes and procedures, making recommendations for improvements. You will be responsible for handling a large amount of data, where attention to detail and timeliness is essential.

• Billing set-up and modifications
  • Create new billing schedules and amend existing ones in the School’s financial system and ORA’s enterprise project tracking system. Utilize information from the legal agreement, proposal documents, and other project related documents. Assign appropriate invoice type to awards as it aligns with the project instrument and billing payment terms.
  • Register to sponsor sites as necessary to perform drawdowns or invoice submittal on a biweekly/monthly basis.
  • Become familiar with Sponsor agreement format, financial terms and conditions to perform billing setup appropriately.
  • Become familiar with the School’s financial system to perform billing schedules correctly and to make corrections.
• Invoicing
  • Process, review, and submit the monthly, quarterly, and annual sponsor billing.
  • Navigate sponsor websites for submitting invoices or drawing down payments; understand sponsor identification numbers; ensure invoices are approved and paid without difficulties.
  • Complete complicated sponsor required payment remittance forms, reconciling Mines’ chart of accounts with sponsor predetermined cost categories. Proficient in Excel with ability to write formulas and create checks and balances.
  • Retrieve supporting documentation from the Mines financial document storage system(s) to attach to invoices upon submission as required.
  • Recognize and research short payments; follow up with ORA staff to resolve in a timely manner.
  • Work with the Controller’s office on issues caused by incorrect balances between the general ledger and sub‑ledger account receivable activity.
  • Monthly reconcile the School’s financial system unbilled report; analyze discrepancies and take required action. Read and interpret standard accounting reports.
  • Process disbursements for refunds by reviewing award transaction history and verifying payments.
  • Complete billing review for award closeout verifying accuracy and no unresolved discrepancies.
  • Ensure sponsor contact information is current and invoices sent to correct contact.
  • Participate in the closeout process of an award in partnership with Research Accountants.
  • Develop or update ad‑hoc reports using data from Mines Financial System, Cognos or other database applications.
  • Familiar with Mines fiscal policy and federal regulations related to billing and unallowable expenses.
• Apply Payments
  • Daily monitor and record cash receipt transactions; integrate electronic bank statement into Mines’ financial system.
  • Perform payment application with precision; validate source for award to be credited.
  • Recognize when payment differs from amount due; determine steps to ensure financial correctness.
  • Monthly review grant holding account and verify payments posted to correct award.
  • Maintain proper supporting documentation for each cash receipt.
  • Communicate issues to others timely.
  • Perform correction to misapplied payments, ensure a proper audit trail.
  • Become familiar with sponsor payment types.
• Accounts Receivable Collections
  • Prepare, understand, analyze, review, and…