Director, Post-Award Operations & Compliance

University of North Texas - Denton; Fort Worth (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of North Texas Health at Fort Worth seeks a Director of Award Management to lead the post-award research administration, ensuring compliant and efficient management of sponsored awards from acceptance through closeout.

You will oversee the Post-Award team, collaborate with the AVP, and drive strategic initiatives, process improvements, and risk management while supporting investigators and institutional leaders.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and five (5) years of related experience, or equivalent.
• Experience in post-award administration for sponsored programs.
• Knowledge of federal/state/sponsor regulations (e.g., 2 CFR 200, FAR).
• Strong leadership, coaching, and performance management skills.
• Ability to develop strategic priorities and service standards.

Responsibilities

• Directs and oversees post-award administration activities, including award setup, financial monitoring, prior approvals, award modifications, reporting coordination, closeout, and sponsor communications.
• Provides leadership, coaching, and performance management for post award staff while fostering a collaborative, customer-focused culture of continuous improvement and professional development.
• Partners with the AVP to develop strategic priorities, operational goals, performance metrics, and service standards for sponsored programs administration.
• Ensures compliance with federal, state, sponsor, and institutional regulations including Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200), FAR, DFARS, UGMS, and sponsor-specific requirements.
• Champions operational excellence by leading process improvement initiatives that enhance efficiency, strengthen internal controls, improve customer service, and reduce institutional risk.
• Develops, implements, and maintains policies, procedures, guidance documents, and standard operating procedures supporting post-award administration.
• Oversees institutional post-award compliance activities including award monitoring, financial risk mitigation, audit support, and corrective action implementation.
• Collaborates with Division of Research Teams and other institutional partners to ensure seamless administration throughout the sponsored project lifecycle.
• Utilizes data and reporting to identify trends, monitor workload, evaluate operational performance, and recommend process improvements.
• Serves as a resource for complex sponsored programs issues requiring interpretation of sponsor regulations and institutional policy.
• Assists with planning for departmental staffing, organizational development, succession planning, and future operational needs.
• Represents the Office of Sponsored Programs on institutional committees, cross-functional initiatives, and sponsor engagements related to post-award administration and research administration operations.

Skills

Team Leadership

Cross-functional Collaboration

Regulatory Compliance

Financial Oversight

Process Improvement

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree preferred

CRA certification preferred

Job description

The University of North Texas Health at Fort Worth seeks a Director of Award Management to lead the post-award research administration, ensuring compliant and efficient management of sponsored awards from acceptance through closeout.

You will oversee the Post-Award team, collaborate with the AVP, and drive strategic initiatives, process improvements, and risk management while supporting investigators and institutional leaders.