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Job Summary |
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This position is in the Support Programs to Advance Research Capacity (SPARC), an office which is part of the Office of Research Services (ORS), within the Vice President Research and International Office (VPRIO). The CIHR Research Development Officer is responsible for managing, coordinating, delivering, evaluating and communicating health research grant development support services, developing collaborative research applications that will involve engaging researchers across the university's campuses (Point Grey, Okanagan and Academic Hospitals) and external stakeholders as required, and liaising with granting agencies (e.g., Canadian Institutes of Health Research, CIHR), units within the VPRIO and the non-academic community. Overall, this role requires working with UBC's Faculties, Departments, Centres and Institutes, as well as the VPRIO's Health Research Advisor, to provide services to increase faculty members' abilities to secure CIHR and other health-related funding |
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Organizational Status |
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Reporting to the Director , ORS/SPARC, the incumbent works closely with faculty members from all Faculties, Departments and Schools at all UBC campuses. |
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Work Performed |
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- develops and provides authoritative information on research funding administrative processes relating to CIHR Project Scheme grants in particular, and other CIHR and health-related funding opportunities as required, which involves setting priorities and goals for the specific funding opportunity, including forecasting the requirements to develop and maintain support, and establishing a budget, if required;
- provides leadership in the development and delivery of SPARC programs (e.g., internal peer review, SPARC editorial review, educational services), primarily for the CIHR Project Scheme stream of funding opportunities, and secondarily for other CIHR and health-related opportunities, with the aim of improving UBC's research funding success;
- manages and handles communication of SPARC programs and corresponding funding opportunities and results (e.g., CIHR Project Scheme) via a number of communication channels: "SPARC Connects" electronic newsletter, websites (e.g., SPARC, ORS, VPRIO) and in meetings with faculty administrators (e.g., Deans and Associate Deans, Research), in conjunction with the VPRIO's Health Research Advisor
- manages and coordinates the internal peer review process for the CIHR Project Scheme competitions ;
- provides strategic criteria and editorial review feedback on CIHR Project Scheme grant proposals, on a range of health topics (e.g., biomedical, clinical, health systems/services, population/public health);
- manages and coordinates the delivery of educational programs (e.g., information sessions, strategic grant development workshops) for the CIHR Project Scheme competition, which may involve recruiting guest speakers (e.g., CIHR/UBC peer reviewers, CIHR administrators from Ottawa), program development in collaboration with other Faculties, Departments and sites, and travel (e.g., hospital sites, UBC-Okanagan);
- liaises with CIHR and other funding sponsors to ensure applications meet the requirements of the funding agencies, and communicates with faculty members, Associate Deans, Research and professional support staff (e.g., Grant Facilitators, Development Officers) at all UBC campuses regarding agency requirements;
- maintains an online and in-house library of successful CIHR Project Scheme grant proposals obtained from UBC researchers;
- provides one-on-one consultations to faculty and associated team members with the aim of improving the strength and competitiveness of funding proposals, which may include matching funding opportunities to research activities and researchers, and coordinating grant development;
- analyzes and interprets data and makes recommendations, which may involve presentation of trend analyses and interpretation to a group of academics/senior administrators or distribution in the form of a written report;
- management, coordination and provision of support for the CIHR Foundation Scheme, CIHR New Investigator Salary Award and other CIHR Strategic funding competitions, as needed, which may include assisting with providing editorial feedback;
- manages the CIHR Health Professional Student Research Award program, directly supporting the application, selection and activation processes;
- manages and coordinates SPARC support services to improve funding success for researchers applying to other health-related funding opportunities, as required;
- provides enabling leadership on various research funding programs and initiatives, including those sponsored by the federal Tri-Councils (i.e., Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC); Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) Classic/Knowledge Mobilization/Centres of Excellence for Commercialization and Research (CECR), Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF)), as required;
- coordination and development of complex, institutional funding proposals (i.e., CERC, NCE, CFREF), as required;
- provides liaison and support for multi-investigator teams, as required, including coordination and integration of contributions by multiple authors on team proposals;
- develops, edits and finalizes institutional letters of support, as required;
- promotes services and programs offered by the SPARC Office; |
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Supervision Received |
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Works with wide latitude and from generally defined goals of the University Strategic Research Plan and SPARC, ORS and VPRIO. |
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Supervision Given |
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Provides direction and technical knowledge to a research team or functional direction in developing a highly competitive funding proposal. Also, may from time to time manage students, employees on contract and/or consultants. |
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Consequence of Error/Judgement |
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A high degree of judgment and initiative is required to develop, deliver and manage effective grant development services, including internal peer review, at the University. Tact and diplomacy is essential to foster faculty member buy-in to these critical support services, both as applicants/participants and experts/reviewers. Incorrect management of SPARC programs could result in an ineffective system that is not supported by Faculties/Departments, investigators or reviewers, thereby limiting UBC's ability to compete effectively in CIHR and other health agency competitions. Research grant applications which are not developed or reviewed properly may result in a loss of funding or may commit the University to unacceptable award conditions. The potential losses may vary from a few thousand to multi-million dollar arrangements.
Poor management or improper decisions could compromise the ongoing success and effectiveness of SPARC's portfolio of support programs, and could damage the reputation of SPARC, ORS, VPRIO and the University.
Exercises extensive judgment and decision making in the development and implementation
of support programs, including the peer review and editorial review processes, and in the development of corresponding policies and procedures. |
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Qualifications |
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Post-graduate degree or equivalent professional designation if responsible for a research project otherwise Undergraduate degree if not responsible for a research project. 4 years or equivalent combination of education and experience if responsible for research project otherwise 6 years or equivalent combination of education and experience if not research work. Preferred working experience at a University, preferably at UBC. Grant writing experience essential. Knowledge of CIHR and its funding opportunities, primarily the Project Scheme, is essential. Proven ability to generate presentation material, and give presentations to both small and large groups of academic and non-academics. Intermediate to advanced ability to use a variety of computer programs (e.g., Outlook, MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, other media software) and website content management systems. Ability to clearly describe and explain complex funding application guidelines and procedures. This will involve the ability to deconstruct program guidelines into clear descriptions of actions and essential steps for new faculty members. Ability to analyze and interpret data, conduct trend analysis and provide recommendations (at meetings, in written reports). Ability to understand and apply policies, procedures and instructions. Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing, and to summarize relevant information in clear and succinct English. Ability to liaise with funding agencies (e.g., government, foundations, other stakeholders) and gather additional program information. Ability to read difficult or complicated health text analytically and critically, and make editorial recommendations to improve the readability and clarity of the document. Mastery of English grammar and punctuation is essential. Strong ability to develop and/or maintain programs and services, including SPARC internal peer review. This will involve engaging and communicating with faculty members from all UBC Faculties and Departments. Ability to take the lead on new projects which may involve identifying, obtaining and effectively managing organizational resources (e.g., materials, assets). This may involve identifying interdisciplinary synergies in order to assist with developing teams. Ability to develop and maintain cooperative and productive working relationships with groups and individuals, such as senior-level academics, researchers, government agencies, non-governmental organizations and UBC administrators, is essential. Proven ability to effectively develop and implement work plans to manage multiple processes, applications, competitions and priorities with varying deadlines is essential. Ability to organize work and track progress. Ability to prioritize and work effectively under pressure to meet deadlines. Ability to exercise sound judgment. Ability to work effectively independently and in a team environment. Ability to analyze problems, identify key information and issues, and effectively resolve. Ability to follow and record committee discussions that may involve health as well as natural science, engineering and social science and humanities terminology. Ability to use tact and discretion and maintain confidentiality. |
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