Duke University:

Duke University was created in 1924 through an indenture of trust by James Buchanan Duke. Today, Duke is regarded as one of America’s leading research universities. Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke is positioned in the heart of the Research Triangle, which is ranked annually as one of the best places in the country to work and live. Duke has more than 15,000 students who study and conduct research in its 10 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. With about 40,000 employees, Duke is the third largest private employer in North Carolina, and it now has international programs in more than 150 countries.

Position Summary

This position serves as the Director Research Development at the Duke University Population Research Institute (DUPRI) and is involved in the core functions that support the Institute’s administrative and research activities. This position reports to the DUPRI Director. It is involved in central administration and operations and in facilitating strategic planning for the Institute. It serves as primary liaison between DUPRI, its parent organization (Social Science Research Institute, SSRI), the Duke campus and beyond. The person in this position will (1) work with the DUPRI faculty directors (DUPRI Director and Associate Director) and interact with DUPRI faculty scholars to meet the research needs and coordinate activities associated with principal investigators and senior research staff; (2) support the DUPRI faculty directors to assess center-wide needs, and develop, implement, and evaluate strategies to meet those needs; (3) manage DUPRI staff (Program Coordinator and staff assistants); (4) coordinate with DUPRI computational, database and web management staff; (5) provide liaison with grants management staff and other relevant University administrative units.

Responsibilities

Institute Administration 65%

• Serve as primary liaison between DUPRI and SSRI on programmatic and administrative issues
• Support the Institute faculty directors in administration of the Institute, including:
• Responding to requests for information about the Institute and its two Centers: the Center for Population Health and Aging (CPHA) and the Duke Population Research Center (DPRC).
• Reviewing operational and financial reports and conducting analyses setting forth progress, adverse trends and appropriate recommendations, and preparing budgetary recommendations for fiscal year requirements.
• Develop and implement Institute protocols, procedures, calendaring and operating policies.
• Work with the DUPRI faculty directors in coordinating the preparation of progress reports and the renewal of the Institute’s infrastructure grants.

• Monitor and identify funding opportunities and potential collaborations to support new initiatives (e.g. new cross-disciplinary activities, new infrastructure funding), the NICHD and NIA Centers grants that fund DPRC and CPHA respectively, progress reports, portfolio diversification.
• Facilitate strategic planning meetings with faculty and PIs on new initiatives.
• Coordinate and facilitate pre-award activities including proposal preparation and budget development for complex projects (e.g. the NIH P30, P2C, R24, and other infrastructure grants) and provide guidance to PIs of NIH research grants (e.g. R01, R21, etc) in pre-award activities such as proposal submission.
• Assist PIs to ensure compliance with policies set forth by the University and external agencies.
• Serve as primary liaison to the Duke Campus Grants Management Team to ensure that the Institute’s grants are administered in accordance with University policies and the sponsors’ requirements regarding records, reports, controls and conditions governing expenditures of funds.
• Identify and support partnerships between the Institute and other academic and community organizations internal and external to Duke.
• Develop liaisons and coordinate activities with related University functions.
• Attend national meetings of research and business managers of DUPRI’s major infrastructure grants, usually held at the Population Association of America.

Desired Qualifications

The individual in this position should have 1) experience working in a research environment, including initiating, planning, and managing the research process; 2) administrative experience including strategic planning, hiring and supervising staff as well as setting standards and monitoring performance, budget planning, and coordination of people and resources; 3) demonstrated oral and written communication skills.

Familiarity with Duke’s financial and personnel systems or willingness to quickly learn these systems, including SPS, SAP/R3, Duke@Work, etc.

The individual in this position will be expected to work mainly on Duke University campus in Durham, North Carolina, with the possibility of considering a few hybrid options in line with the needs of the Institute.

Bachelor's degree in English, communications, science, business or a related field. Advanced degree is highly desirable with demonstration of an understanding and familiarity with a broad range of science or technical subject matter.

Seven years of experience working with extramural grants and contracts. OR AN EQUIVALENT COMBINATION OF RELEVANT EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE

Duke is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual's age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.

Essential Physical Job Functions: Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essentialjob functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.