Job no: 508810
Work type: Staff Full Time
Location: UMass Amherst
Department: Chancellor's Exec Area Admin
Union: PSU
Categories: Accounting/Finance/Budget, Administrative/Office Support

About UMass Amherst

UMass Amherst, the Commonwealth's flagship campus, is a nationally-ranked public research university offering a full range of undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees. The University sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts and offers a rich cultural environment in a bucolic setting close to major urban centers. In addition, the University is part of the Five Colleges (including Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College), which adds to the intellectual energy of the region.

Job Summary

The UMass Amherst Center at Springfield (UMCS) provides a physical space for providing students with access to a first-class education at an affordable cost from a Tier One Research institution. It also provides a central location for convening industry, government, and community-focused stakeholders towards a shared purpose of economic development, equity, and educational opportunities. Through a combination of traditional in-classroom learning, advanced telecommunications, and other technology investments, the UMCS provides college-course-specific opportunities not previously available in the area as well as research and community engagement opportunities for the University.

The Administrative & Fiscal Support Specialist performs a broad range of administrative and fiscal duties for the UMCS including operations and logistics, finance and accounting, human resources/personnel document processing, contract management, reporting, and general office administration support functions.

Essential Functions

Finance & Accounting

Provide direct support of the UMCS through the handling of accounts payable and receivable and perform the functions of analysis, reporting, and processing for:

• Travel and expense reimbursements
• Procard reallocation, reconciliation, and log submission
• Invoices
• Correction journals and cost transfer justifications
• Budget preparation
• Invoicing and collections for event billing

Human Resources/Personnel

Assist in the processing of personnel and labor actions, including:

• Internal and external communications regarding job postings, new hires, terminations, graduate students
• Document review
• Document management and file maintenance
• Support on new training and initiatives
• Time and effort reporting

Contract Management

Support the management of contract instruments for both procurement and provision of services, to include:

• Initial contract and budget review
• Document management and contract log maintenance
• Communications with sponsors, vendors, and UMass staff
• Requests for establishment of awards, sponsors, and vendors in PeopleSoft
• File creation and management

Scheduling

• Maintain schedule of classrooms for academic uses as a priority of the Center
• Maintain schedule of classroom, break-out and conference room reservations for special events
• Communicate scheduling needs for room setups to appropriate internal and external stakeholders

General Office Tasks

Provide direct support to the UMCS and its employees through the following functions:

• Administrative support for overall operations, logistics, and human resources
• Academic schedule communications and planning
• Opening/closing operations
• Manage telephone and in-person reception duties including responding to requests for information from students and the general public
• Perform timely mail delivery
• Management of adequate office supply inventory and special orders
• Communication with office equipment vendors for service, supplies, contracts, etc.
• Meeting set-up/breakdown

Miscellaneous

Support for additional project or event tasks. Examples include:

• Administration and finance process improvement initiatives
• Assistance with proposal preparation
• Participate in specialized on-campus training.

Other Functions

• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)

• Bachelor’s degree preferably in business administration, accounting, or related field.
• 1+ years working directly with organizational financial information including budgets and/or accounts payable or receivable.
• Strong knowledge of MS Office products (particularly MS Outlook, MS Word, and MS Excel) and Google Apps.
• Demonstrated ability to understand and learn new financial concepts and analyze information.
• Demonstrated strong organizational, analytical, and communication skills.
• Demonstrated time management and prioritization skills to ensure the meeting of deadlines.
• Utmost appreciation of, and ability to utilize discretion in handling confidential information and material.
• Experience in meeting the demands of complex professional environments where timeliness and availability of information is considered critical. Must be able to work effectively to resolve problems under stressful conditions where the rapid restoration of normal operations is critical.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Must be flexible with the ability to change focus and attention between a wide variety of tests and responsibilities rapidly.

Preferred Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)

• Experience and/or knowledge of fiscal management including project monitoring; automated accounting systems; PeopleSoft; grants and contracts; policies, procedures, and regulation of federal and state funding.
• Prior experience with organizing and scheduling of public meetings/events.

Physical Demands/Working Conditions

Typical office environment activity

Additional Details

Position reports to the Director of the UMass Amherst Center at Springfield.

Work Schedule

37.5 hours per week. Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM.

Salary Information

Professional Level 24

UMass Amherst Exempt Salary Ranges

Special Instructions to Applicants

Please include with your application a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three professional references. The position will remain open until filled.

UMass Amherst is committed to a policy of equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, disability, military status, or genetic information in employment, admission to and participation in academic programs, activities, and services, and the selection of vendors who provide services or products to the University. To fulfill that policy, UMass Amherst is further committed to a program of affirmative action to eliminate or mitigate artificial barriers and to increase opportunities for the recruitment and advancement of qualified minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and covered veterans. It is the policy of UMass Amherst to comply with the applicable federal and state statutes, rules, and regulations concerning equal opportunity and affirmative action.

Advertised: Jun 14 2021 Eastern Daylight Time
Applications close: