Job Title: Executive and Operations Assistant
PVN ID: VR-2112-004452
Category: Clerical/Office Services
Location: OFFICE OF VC FOR RESEARCH

Job Description

General Description

The City University of New York (CUNY) is seeking an Executive and Operations Assistant for the Office of Research. 

In a single integrated system of 25 institutions, the Office of Research (OR) is responsible for the strategic leadership, development, and implementation of University-wide initiatives aimed at building research capacity for members of the CUNY community, from students to senior faculty. Their research, scholarly, and creative pursuits are supported through three OR divisions: Research Development and Programs; Innovation and Entrepreneurship; and Research Integrity and Compliance. Jointly, these divisions encourage collaborative and transdisciplinary research innovations; foster startups and commercialization both within and beyond the CUNY community; and ensure adherence to the standards that govern research ethics and sponsored program administration. 

To promote the Associate Vice Chancellor for Research’s (AVCR) vision of a unified and engaged Office of Research, a skilled, proactive and entrepreneurial professional is needed to serve as the Executive and Operations Assistant. Reporting to the AVCR, the Executive and Operations Assistant performs specialized administrative and analytical responsibilities that support cross-functional operations; policy and program development; team culture-building and cohesion; and the reporting, evaluation, and improvement of OR-wide systems, procedures, and processes. The Executive and Operations Assistant will cooperate with the AVCR’s team and the three divisions of CUNY OR to enhance the value and outcomes of their shared priorities. 

In addition to the CUNY Title Overview, other key duties include, but will not be limited to the following:  

  • Assists with managing the daily operations of the AVCR’s office to enhance organizational effectiveness and ensure confidentiality in all activities. 
  • Prioritizes issues for the AVCR and contributes to their solutioning/resolution alongside colleagues. 
  • Manages the AVCR’s daily schedule and calendar, and coordinates dates and all logistical arrangements for meetings, events, and travel. 
  • Analyzes operational and fiscal activities and prepares executive reports, presentations, and briefs. 
  • Drafts executive communications, briefing materials, and responses. 
  • Manages the collection, retention, and distribution of confidential and time-sensitive information and documents. 
  • Cultivates cross-OR team cohesion and shared purpose through culture-building initiatives. 
  • Supports the implementation of new digital tools to enhance the hybrid office operations of OR. 
  • Manages office expenditures, fiscal and procurement transactions, audits and reconciliations. 
  • Assists with planning and implementing various strategic initiatives, programs, projects, meetings and events. 
  • Serves as an internal and external resource on administrative policy and procedural matters to various constituents. 
  • Receives inquiries and resolves them, or refers them to appropriate staff, using discretion and sound judgment. 

Other Duties

CUNY Title Overview 

  • Provides support to a Campus or University Executive, organizing and supervising unit activities. 
  • Creates appointment and meeting schedules, arranges meetings, and prepares for a variety of special events. Maintains an ongoing calendar of reports, deadlines, and key dates and incorporates these into a schedule. 
  • Coordinates Executive communications, including those requiring a high degree of sensitivity. May respond to public inquiries as well as requests from within the Campus/University community. 
  • Organizes, creates, and distributes key, complex management reports with a high degree of accuracy. 
  • Organizes, manages, and tracks written and email correspondence, maintaining logs and records of follow-up activities. 
  • Procures required internal and external resources and services and manages their utilization. 
  • May supervise office staff, performing basic Human Resources functions such as recruiting and interviewing. 
  • May perform related duties as assigned; may participate in special projects and efforts to improve unit effectiveness. 
  • Job Title Name: Executive and Operations Assistant 

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications 

  • Bachelor’s degree and four years of relevant experience performing administrative, operational, and financial management work in support of higher education institutional effectiveness. 
     

Preferred Qualifications 

  • Fluency with public university procedures, and comfort with navigating and problem-solving higher education central office practices and challenges. 
     
  • Experience with short- and long-range administrative and academic planning, as well as event and program management. 
     
  • Familiarity with higher education research and sponsored programs customs and norms
  • Strong work ethic and character with a high degree of personal integrity to maintain confidentiality and work with professional poise and discretion. 
     
  • Exceptional orientation to detail and accuracy, with strong quantitative, analytical, research, evaluation, and writing skills. 
     
  • Enthusiastic, flexible, and customer-focused with strong interpersonal communication skills to work effectively with diverse members of the university community and external constituents. 
  • Proactive drive to experiment with and initiate new approaches for team and culture-building in a post-COVID hybrid office.
  • Strong organizational and follow-through skills to develop and execute work plans, prioritize work, manage multiple assignments and meet deadlines. 
     
  • Strong grasp of contemporary administrative, financial or academic systems, databases, and software programs. 
     
  • Ability and eagerness to learn and integrate new digital tools for organizational effectiveness as post-COVID hybrid operations evolve. 

RFCUNY Benefits

RFCUNY Employee Benefits and Accruals

About the Research Foundation

The Research Foundation of The City University of New York (RFCUNY) was established as a not-for-profit educational corporation chartered by the State of New York in 1963. RFCUNY supports CUNY faculty and staff in identifying and obtaining external support (pre-award) from government and private sponsors and is responsible for the administration of all such funded programs (post-award).

RFCUNY stands between CUNY’s principal investigators (PIs) and the sponsors who support them and strives to fulfill its essential responsibilities to both groups. Working closely with individual PIs and Grants Officers on the campuses, RFCUNY oversees employment, accounting, audit, reporting, purchasing, and special responsibilities that include management of a planned giving program; liaison with governmental agencies and foundations; negotiation of agreements; facility construction and renovation; protection and commercialization of intellectual property; and compliance with applicable standards in research involving human subjects, animal care, environmental and radiological safety, and conflicts of interest.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The Research Foundation of the City University of New York is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Americans with Disabilities Act/E-Verify Employer. It is the policy of the Research Foundation of CUNY to provide equal employment opportunities free of discrimination based on race, color, age, religion, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, national origin, disability, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic violence victim status, arrest record, criminal conviction history, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.

Key Features

Department
CUNY Office of Research
Status
Full Time
Annual Salary Range
$70,000.00 - $75,000.00
Closing Date
Apr 11, 2022 (Or Until Filled)
Bargaining Unit
No

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