DIRECTOR, GRANTS MANAGEMENT

JOB SUMMARY:

The Director of Grants Management provides strategic direction and leadership of the end-to-end grants cycle for all private donor grants, including individuals, corporations, and professional foundations. Reporting to the Associate Vice President, Operations, Planning and Analysis, and working closely with all private revenue fundraising teams, the position manages a team of Grant Managers responsible for stewarding some 200+ restricted grants worth $250 million. Additionally, the Director will carry a portfolio of complex grants issued by professional foundations and Major Gifts donors.

In addition to stewarding the many project-specific private donor grants received by CARE each year, the Director also supports the proposal development efforts of the private revenue channels, with a focus on budget review, cost recovery and negotiation for complex submissions. In this way, the position contributes directly to the achievement of CARE USA’s restricted fundraising goal. The position also serves as a subject-matter expert on all aspects of the grants management process at CARE USA.

The Director leads the Grants Management team’s collaborative efforts with Relationship Managers, Business Operations, Finance and Program counterparts to design and implement comprehensive, efficient systems that allow CARE to fulfill donor stewardship and reporting requirements.

The ideal candidate will be a highly-motivated self-starter with excellent organizational, management and communication skills. Experience in grants management and budget development and review are required.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Staff management and quality control

• Manages a team of Grants Managers, who are responsible for overall stewardship of Professional Foundations, Corporate and Major Gifts grants. Responsible for managing performance, hiring, terminating, developing and coaching employees in the course of their duties. One of the position’s most important responsibilities is providing leadership, guidance and overall strategic direction to the team.

Direct management of a portfolio of complex grants

Successfully manages a portfolio of grants across the full award cycle (Pre-award; Award negotiations, approval and setup; Award Implementation and Monitoring and Award close out) and serves as point of contact for assigned grants.

• Works with fundraising and donor relationship teams to collect and compile Go/No-go decision documentation required for identifying proposal development opportunities, including Pre-IPIAs as needed.
• Reviews proposals to ensure budget is aligned with proposal cost elements for accuracy and completeness.
• Ensures proposal budgets are accurate and reasonable, comply with donor requirements, and are adequate to fulfill proposed program activities. Special attention should focus on validating that: a) home office technical support is budgeted as appropriate, b) home office agreement management support is included, c) if match is required, that it is allowable per donor regulations, and d) indirect costs and other shared costs (the latter as appropriate) are calculated correctly.
• Facilitates approval in coordination with the Relationship Manager, as required, of relevant CARE policy related documentation (e.g. match/cost share & budget exceptions checklist, ICR waiver, etc.
• Reviews donor agreements and facilitates approval of Agreement Approval Checklists.
• Working with the Shared Service Center (SSC), ensures that donor agreements are correctly set up in PeopleSoft. Specifically, the SGM submits proper documentation to acquire Fund Codes (FCs) and Project IDs (PIDs); prepares and submits budget information using the proper donor reporting line items (i.e. Activity IDs); and validates accuracy of budget upload to PeopleSoft thereafter.
• Communicates assigned FC/PID to relevant staff, including RMs, COs, and Gift ProcessingTeam. Ensures that the FC is added to donor management software (Salesforce) and funds are applied accordingly.
• Prepares Budget Agreement Memorandum (BAM) to share grant terms with and facilitate funds allocations to COs, and verifies proper accounting entries are made by SSC.
• Regularly monitors objectives, milestones and time frames, and budgets including over and under-expenditure and provides recommendations to resolve.
• Working closely with SSC and implementing COs/HQs, ensures that narrative and financial reports have been submitted on time. Reviews financial reports prior to SSC finalizing these to send to the donor. Coordinates with Resource Development Communications (RDC) team, as needed, to edit narrative reports to ensure donor readiness.
• Monitors payment schedules and ensures payments are made on a timely basis.
• Works closely with the implementing unit to prepare agreement budget modifications, when required for donor approval.
• Processes modifications of donor agreements (i.e. grants and contracts) including budgets.
• Prepares waivers and exceptions for submission to the donor or internally, as appropriate.

Grants lifecycle process improvements

• Develops, evaluates and maintains processes critical to the effective management of grants.
  The Director will assess and improve the workflow systems that support successful grants management at CARE, working collaboratively with other units involved.

Special projects and organizational insights to support fundraising success

• The Director will take on special projects such as supporting the stewardship around unrestricted ‘grants’ or other initiatives the require the project management, relationships, and expertise level of grants managers.
• The Director will also develop dashboards and monitoring tools to allow more visibility into status of grants and help CARE continuously improve.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree with specialization in finance, accounting or business management.
• 8+ years in a grants management or finance position
• 5+ years managerial/supervisory experience
• Strong analytical skills
• Strong skills in financial analysis and reporting
• Management and training
• Proven communication skills, including written (drafting and editing) and oral
• Computer skills, including proficiency with Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and Outlook
• Relevant experience reviewing budgets and grant agreements
• Evidence of strong time management, organizational and customer service skills
• Evidence of ability to work in an adaptable manner as a member of a small team
• Research (primarily on-line) and analytical skills