Associate Vice President for Research Administration

Required Qualifications

• Master’s degree.
• At least 10 years of experience in research administration leadership roles with progressively increasing responsibility within a major research university, federal government, or another entity engaged in sponsored research.
• Track record of effectively managing professional staff within a large organization of 25+ individuals.
• Specific experience in administering federal research grants and contracts, corporate-sponsored research, and clinical trial agreements.
• Experience in developing, implementing, and using grants management information systems.
• Ability to handle a high-intensity research administration operation characterized by 10,000+ proposals and agreements annually.
• Demonstrated experience, with specific examples, of leading teams through process and organizational change.
• Proven success in delivering a customer-centric approach to research administration.
• Specific leadership examples demonstrating the use of data analytics and artificial intelligence applications for research administration.
• Experience in designing and delivering an effective training curriculum to a diverse audience across an institution.
• Significant professional experience in serving on and leading university-wide committees in the research administration domain.
• Multiple years of experience in policy development and interpretation, particularly in the domain of federal grant agencies.
• Established track record of working with organizations such as NCURA, COGR, APLU, AAU, and other relevant groups.

The Associate Vice President (AVP) for Research Administration leads university-wide research administration, policy development, and compliance activities. This position oversees the University of Minnesota’s Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA) and Office of Cost Analysis (OCA) functions. Partnering with their leadership teams, the AVP delivers a customer-centric approach to research administration and leverages data analytics, key tools and systems to develop innovative solutions to facilitate operational excellence across pre- and post-award processes. They work closely with various offices, departments and colleges across the entire University of Minnesota system to ensure adherence to federal, state, and institutional standards for research proposals and awards. The AVP acts as a policy owner for university-wide research administration policies, including regular updates and comprehensive reviews. They also serve as the institutional approver/signatory for F&A rate agreements, effort compliance, F&A waiver requests, exceptions to financial policy, and other relevant documents. Finally, the AVP provides research administration expertise to the university by serving on key institutional committees including the Senate Research Committee, Research Security Committee, and Institutional Conflict of Interest Committee, among others.

Key Responsibilities

• Research Administration Leadership
  • Lead a customer-focused research administration organization of approximately 60 staff. Provide guidance to the leadership team to effectively manage staff and operations, resulting in strong employee retention, effective budget utilization, and high employee engagement metrics.
  • Mentor the SPA and OCA leadership teams to provide opportunities to build their professional profiles and networks and participate in regional and federal activities for research administration.
  • Ensure the optimal functioning of research administration systems, especially the new MN-GEMS system, while driving ongoing improvements to enhance user experience and efficiency. This includes providing regular and timely updates to meet the essential needs of the university research community.
• High-Level Visioning and Strategic Planning
  • Develop strategic plans and metrics for university-wide research administration, to facilitate operational excellence across pre- and post-award processes.
  • Leverage data analytics to regularly measure operational success to drive continuous improvement, equitably allocate workloads, and ensure a high level of customer satisfaction.
  • Devise innovative solutions that ensure efficient, high-quality services while managing financial, legal, and reputational risks.
• Education and Outreach
  • Oversee the development of a structured curriculum to increase knowledge of SPA regulatory procedures and functions across the University and create processes for regular curriculum delivery.
  • Educate and engage the research community with regular presentations on funding agency policy updates, uniform guidance, and other key topics in research administration.
  • Serve as a visible liaison for SPA, OCA and the Research & Innovation Office (RIO) by holding regular meetings with system campuses to ensure cross-campus navigation and system consistency.
• Policy Management and Compliance Activities
  • Prepare and manage responses to NIH, agency Offices of the Inspector General, and other notifications requiring official responses, partnering with Office of General Counsel (OGC) as needed.
  • Monitor agency regulations for reporting requirements and adjust university policies as needed.
  • Build strong relationships with key state and federal agency officials and serve as an institutional representative for regulatory and compliance partnerships.
  • Act as a policy owner for university-wide research administration policies, including regular updates and comprehensive reviews.

The University of Minnesota's Research and Innovation Office oversees and supports the University's research enterprise by fostering collaboration, ensuring compliance, and driving innovation. This office serves as the central resource for conducting, managing, and sponsoring research, while also overseeing key administrative and compliance functions that cultivate a culture of research integrity.

Within this framework, the Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA) is authorized to submit research proposals, receive external awards, and act as the fiduciary for grant-related matters on behalf of the Board of Regents. SPA focuses on creating a seamless project lifecycle, reducing administrative burden, enhancing knowledge, and offering robust support for externally funded research and programs. Additionally, the Office of Cost Analysis provides expertise in analytical processes, cost accounting, and effort reporting to ensure sponsored activities comply with federal principles and standards.

Together, these units contribute to the broader Research and Innovation Office mission to address society's most complex challenges, advance interdisciplinary collaborations, and bring University of Minnesota innovations to market to improve lives worldwide.

Applications must be submitted online. To be considered for this position, please click the Apply button and follow the instructions. You will be given the opportunity to complete an online application for the position and attach a cover letter and resume.