Finance and Grants Officer - Pietermaritzburg at HSRC

Job Advert Summary    
The Centre for Community Based Research (CCBR) exists within the Division of Public Health, Societies and Belonging (PHSB). The mission of the CCBR is to understand, identify and improve community wellbeing by exploring, describing and addressing health, education, and quality of life through novel mixed-methods approaches that combines multidisciplinary capacities, and to serve as a hub for knowledge generation, capacity building and training.

Through engagement and advocacy for community-informed approaches, the CCBR is a champion for this work within the Division and across the HSRC. The CCBR currently have staff in both Durban and Pietermaritzburg with plans to grow activities and capacity beyond the borders of the Sweetwaters office.

The CCBR is looking for a suitably qualified persons to take on the responsibilities of a senior officer responsible for grants and contracts management for research projects implemented at the Sweetwaters office. The successful candidate will lead the provision of effective financial and administrative support services to all staff and sites, specifically in the areas of financial management, donor liaison and organizational administration. They will take on budgeting and financial operation of projects; grants management; assigned clerical and administrative tasks; at Sweetwaters. This position is offered on a 24 month contract.

Minimum Requirements    

• Applicants must be in possession of an Honours level qualification(NQF 8) in Public Administration, Finance/Accounting/Auditing, or Business Administration.
• At least five years of work experience, with focus on fundraising, international development, financial management or project management
• Organized, thorough and accurate approach to work
• Resilient with demonstrated ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Duties & Responsibilities    

• Support development of budgets working closely with the research team ensuring projects are correctly costed according to the study protocol
• Prepare budgets in line with schedule of events for submission to sponsors
• Developing a standard budget costing tool for clinical trials
• Ensure invoicing is done timeously and engaging with sponsors to ensure that the sites are reimbursed accordingly for closed studies
• Working with the Legal team to ensure that Clinical Trial Agreements/ Material Transfer Agreements are reviewed and all legal issues are addressed by the sponsors.
• Maintain and updating the list of clinical trial studies for each site
• Following up on payments of invoices with sponsors based on the age analysis
• Extracting financial reports on RMS and updating billing amounts according to contract amendments
• Communicate effectively with management, clinicians, and pharmaceutical companies.
• Work as part of the multidisciplinary team