Contracts Associate

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The Public Health Institute (PHI) is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting health, well-being, and quality of life for people throughout California, across the nation and around the world. As one of the largest and most comprehensive public health organizations in the nation, we are at the forefront of research and innovations to improve the efficacy of public health statewide, nationally, and internationally.

Position Summary

The Contracts Associate provides support for procurement, alliance with prime award terms and conditions, contract development, subaward administration and compliance, program requests for information, and third-party goods and services.  In support of the drafters in the Office of Research Administration and Agreements (ORAA) Department, the Contracts Associate position has responsibility for managing the pre-drafting stages of the ORAA requests process in order to support the drafting and negotiation process of ORAA Contracts Analyst, Contract Administrators, and Senior Contract Administrators. The Contracts Associate independently manages business processes through administrative and financial systems, including PeopleSoft and Salesforce.

This is a remote position.

Full pay range for this position: $26.88 to $38.31 per hour. The typical hiring range for this position is from $26.88 (minimum) to $32.59 (midpoint) per hour. The starting wage is determined based on the candidate’s knowledge, skills, experience, as well as budget availability.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Works under the general direction of Directors on the ORAA team to support a mixed portfolio of agreements flowing down from a wide range of funding sources, including federal, state, and local government agencies, foundations, and industry sponsors.
• Reviews agreement request packages and related back-up documentation; interfaces with programs to ensure clarity and completeness of all required documents.
• Reviews ORAA inquiries and ensures timeline escalation of high priority issues, while also resolving inquiries not requiring escalation.
• Reviews agreement budgets to ensure within related prime award funding amount; interfaces with programs and G&C Specialists to raise questions so necessary adjustments can be made.
• Makes initial determinations of agreement instruments and transaction types on the basis of transaction taxonomy and, if requested, provides feedback to programs on the determination.
• Tracks the status of agreement packages from request through issuance in coordination with the Contract Analysts, Contract Administrators, Senior Contract Administrators and assigned G&C administrative team member.
• Sets-up purchase orders in financial system of record and ensures PO numbers are inserted in appropriate location in all agreement records.
• Supports the ORAA team in identifying routine changes being requested by programs and opportunities for process / system enhancements.
• Maintains the process flow of agreements and documents including documentation of drafts in ORAA files. Proposes process improvements and system enhancements to support workflow.
• Understands PHI’s Purchasing and Procurement Procedures; reviews all procurement documentation for completeness and provides feedback and/or guidance to programs on procurement related matters.
• Serves as a resource to programs and G&C on contracting policies and procedures, agreement package processing, procurement policies and procedures, and related functions.
• Reviews subrecipient administration and monitoring documents to ensure compliance with requirements and escalating where needed.
• Assists Senior Contract Administrators and Directors with roll-out of subrecipient monitoring activities.
• Contributes to annual subrecipient monitoring procedures by securing documentation (including updated audit reports) and preparing for / participating in internal review in compliance with PHI policy and federal regulations. Assists with distributing letters to outside parties, tracking responses in our database, and conducting follow-up as needed.
• Provides input into ORAA trainings for Central departments and Programs, FAQs, and continuous improvement process.
• Updates and maintains ORAA system with real-time data about outside party agreements to support program needs, including satisfaction of informational requests for managerial and operational functions.
• Is cross trained on the usage of the ORAA system by both divisions of ORAA in order to provide surge and cross support as needed.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Minimum five (5) years of related experience, including familiarity with routine business contracts, subcontracts, subawards, and/or awards.
• Associates degree required, or substitute with two additional years of related experience.

Other Qualifications

• Experience in implementing procurement policies and procedures.
• Knowledge of federal rules, regulations and other compliance requirements.
• Ability to analyze and review complex terms, processes, and documents.
• Experience ensuring compliance with organizational policies, governmental regulations, and funder requirements.
• Strong written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills. Ability to manage relationships with broad and diverse constituencies.
• Excellent customer support orientation.
• Ability to use independent judgment and strategic thinking skills in solving problems.
• Experience with budget review, and related analytical skills.
• Demonstrated administrative abilities including strong attention to detail and organization.
• Experience contributing to and/or revising business policies and procedures in response to changes in workflow and/or regulatory environments.
• Experience working cross-functionally and developing strong working relationships across teams; demonstrated ability to collaborate in a team environment and work independently.
• Ability to work in an organization with an entrepreneurial culture that operates in a highly regulated environment.
• Experience working in contract and/or financial management systems (Salesforce and PeopleSoft experience preferred) and comprehensive knowledge of Microsoft office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook).
• Bachelor’s degree in a business oriented field preferred.

PHI WORKFORCE MANDATORY COVID-19 VACCINATION POLICY

Per the PHI Workforce Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Policy, it is a condition of employment for all domestic based employees to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, unless they are granted a reasonable accommodation under applicable law.

New hires need to provide proof of full vaccination prior to their start date or apply for an exemption/accommodation within three business days after their start date. Depending on the circumstances, new hires who do not comply with this Policy, or who cannot be reasonably accommodated, will either have their employment suspended or terminated. Candidates who are non-compliant will have their offers rescinded.

EEO Statement

The Public Health Institute is committed to a policy that provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, pregnancy, medical condition including genetic characteristics, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identification and expression, sexual orientation, and to make all employment decisions so as to further this principle of equal employment opportunity. To this end, the PHI will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, pregnancy, medical condition including genetic characteristics, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identification and expression, sexual orientation, and will take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are offered employment and employees are treated during employment without regard to these characteristics.

For further information regarding Equal Employment Opportunity, copy and paste the following URL into your web browser: http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf

ADA Statement:

The Public Health Institute is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, activities and employment for individuals with disabilities. To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Recruitment Team at least 48 hours in advance at Recruitment@phi.org.

#LI-REMOTE

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We’re so pleased the Public Health Institute is an organization you would like to work with. Do you have questions about this opportunity? If so, email our recruitment team at Recruitment@phi.org.

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