Research Coordinator

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Job Summary

Reporting to the Administrative Officer, the incumbent will be responsible for coordination activities in support of the Department of Surgery’s research program.

Responsibilities include a broad range of functions such as supporting the preparation and submission of competitive applications to research funding agencies, liaising with researchers to determine research needs, providing guidance on potential funding sources, assisting with research accounting activities and providing feedback on research applications in advance of their submission.

In all of these activities, the incumbent will act as liaison with internal and external granting agencies as well as the Queen’s Office of Research Services.

The incumbent will also provide administrative support to the Division of Orthopedic Surgery and the Postgraduate Surgical Residency training program and lead special projects in support of the Division’s academic mission.

Job Description

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES :

Research Program Support

• Act as resource person, liaison, and communicator for research-related matters, such as grants and contracts, ethics, research accounting, finance, human resources, and procurement.
• Support the preparation and submission of competitive applications to research funding agencies by providing appropriate guidance and assistance to researchers in the completion and submission of funding applications.
• Organize letters of support and any extra material required; provide guidance on research expenses for budget preparation;
• submission of TRAQ DSS, prepare research common CVs, proofread and format manuscripts and grants; verify references and;

send, upload and submit manuscripts, abstracts, grants, copyright transfer agreements and submission forms. Ensure applications are complete, accurate, well presented, submitted on time, meet the objectives of the funding agency and comply with agency guidelines.

Ensure that opportunities for research funding are investigated and distributed appropriately to researchers who may be interested.

Distribute information about established and new sources of research funding to the appropriate Queen’s researchers, monitor the websites of primary funding agencies and work with researchers to find sources of research funding.

• Act as administrative liaison between researchers and external funding agencies. Communicate with external funding agencies on behalf of researchers with regard to funding opportunities, to resolve research inquiries, to clarify policy, and to receive research results.
• Assist Departmental PIs towards understanding their Statement of Operations and financial positions; pull reports regularly;

assist by responding to inquiries as required. Track status of research accounts to assist PIs in abiding by the Research Administration Policy.

Act as the liaison between Departmental PIs and central Research Accounting as needed. Perform research accounting activities such as accounts payable (cheque requisitions and p-card payments), purchase orders, cheque requisitions, travel expense reports, monthly monitoring of account activity reconciliations to ensure accuracy and validity of account transactions.

• Coordinate and provide administrative support to the Department’s Research Committee meetings; prepare agenda and back-up materials, send out information packages to participants, take and compile minutes for distribution, and follow-up on action items as necessary.
• Gather and review research information for the annual departmental report.
• Set-up and maintain filing systems, and maintain a running database of all research projects, grants, as well as Departmental publications, awards, presentations;

gather and organize data, verify accuracy and allow for efficient access when required.

Assist in planning and coordinating annual research events (i.e. Resident Research Day, Sorbie Day, the Bruce Lectureship, the McGuire Lecture, and the Ashworth Lecture Series).

Postgraduate Residency & Fellowship Training Program Support

• In collaboration with the Department of Surgery’s PGME office, help prepare the Academic Schedule(s) for Orthopaedics including : drafting, updating and distributing the annual schedule for weekly Grand Rounds, Academic Specialty Days, Journal Clubs, and Service Rounds and manage the calendar of events / courses in MedTech.
• Organize all aspects of Ortho Speciality Days and ensure efficient program delivery including scheduling guest speakers (their travel, accommodation and honorarium), booking classrooms, anatomy and simulations labs, liaising with company representatives for the equipment required for the labs, preparing the agenda, and catering.
• Oversee the production of the OSCE exams including : booking the Clinical Education Centre, reviewing and formatting exam questions and answers, scheduling the examiners and residents and preparing marks.

Orthopaedic Divisional Support

• Assist in the development and management of the budget for the Division of Orthopedics, ensuring financial objectives are achieved, administer and oversee the Division’s financial accounts by monitoring resource allocation, ensuring the accuracy and validity of account transactions, reconciling monthly financial statements, and analysing data to prepare reports and statements.
• Provide administrative support for the Division of Orthopaedics to ensure all guidelines are met.
• Act as secretary to the monthly Division meetings, quarterly Research Rounds, annual Division Staff Retreat and Resident Retreat including preparing agenda, minutes, reports, slide presentations, and appropriate follow-up.
• Manage the nonclinical meeting schedule for the Chairman of Orthopaedic Surgery
• Oversee clinical allocation and redistribution of special request clinics for the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery.
• Review the Orthopaedic Chairman’s CV and Annual Report and check the accuracy of the annual reports for all the members of the Division.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS :

• Completion of a University degree, plus several years of experience in an area relevant to the position involving research coordination, project management or financial management.
• Previous experience in office administration.
• Previous experience in financial administration.
• Knowledge of university policies and procedures will be considered an asset.
• Knowledge of university structure and financial / computing systems will be considered an asset.
• Working knowledge of PeopleSoft systems is considered an asset.
• Consideration will be given to an equivalent combination of education and experience.

SPECIAL SKILLS :

• Excellent organizational and time management skills and the ability to work under pressure with multiple deadlines.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both oral and written for assisting in drafting correspondence, reports, proposal and related documents, preferably for submission to granting councils foundations and / or contracting agencies.
• The ability to take initiative and to assess and establish priorities while working in an environment with multiple interruptions and strict deadlines.
• Incumbent must be able to work independently and collaboratively.
• Discretion in dealing with confidential and sensitive administrative and research (including financial) information.
• Analytical skills in order to make the most of information at hand.
• Knowledge of both university and hospital structures including policies, procedures and administrative systems considered an asset.
• Ability to perform financial administration activities.
• Advanced computer knowledge, specifically of the Internet, Microsoft Office, including Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel as well as database programs.
• Ability to work non-traditional hours to support events periodically.

DECISION MAKING :

• Set priorities and determine which project requires the most attention, within inflexible time constraints.
• Determine coordination required in preparing grant and contract proposals. Determine timelines to ensure critical deadlines for submission are met.
• Determine content of application proposals, budgets and reports based on University and granting agencies.
• Make recommendations regarding improvements to grant applications; suggest and help implement changes. If appropriate, choose formats for reporting.
• Determine when and who to identify and inform of new grant funding opportunities. Determine information required to pursue opportunities.
• Determine appropriate use of PeopleSoft to track and report data for individual research accounts.
• Determine appropriate chart fields to be charged and what documentation is required for processing cheque requisitions and travel expense claims to research accounts.
• Problem solve and resolve issues related to research financial transactions and research accounts within established guidelines determining when to refer issues to senior staff.
• Advise researchers, staff and students regarding expenditures, best methods for handling expenses, and prepare reports on a regular basis.
• Determine appropriate response to research inquiries and decide when new information calls for further action such as distribution or verification.
• Determine how, when and to whom information should be distributed.
• Make daily operations decisions and recommendations and resolve administrative problems within guidelines as they arise, referring only highly unusual problems to more senior staff.

Employment Equity and Accessibility Statement

The University invites applications from all qualified individuals. Queen’s is committed to employment equity and diversity in the workplace and welcomes applications from women, visible minorities, Aboriginal Peoples, persons with disabilities, and persons of any sexual orientation or gender identity.

In accordance with Canadian Immigration requirements, priority will be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

The University provides support in its recruitment processes to applicants with disabilities, including accommodation that takes into account an applicant's accessibility needs.