Director of Grants & Business Operations - PART TIME

Reports to: Executive Leadership

This position is PART TIME starting at 20 hours per week, though additional time may be needed for training. Depending on the funding climate and the skills of the individual, there may be opportunities to increase hours. Our organization is fully remote and operates on Eastern time. Though the position is remote, we will prioritize someone in the New England region to support occasional in-person meetings and training. Availability during regular business hours is required.

About the company: SageFox is a small education research and evaluation firm currently with 5 employees, but have been around 12-14 prior to recent federal cuts. We support education initiatives (policy and practice) from K-12 through graduate education and workforce training. The company prioritizes working towards and supporting equity in educational systems. We value meaningful collaboration within our organization and with all project partners.

About the role: We are looking for a long-term, collaborative, strategic leader to join our management team. This role is the operational backbone of our organization, providing strategic oversight for our portfolio of federal, state, and private awards while ensuring the health of our financial, HR, and operational systems.

If you are energized by creating order, optimizing processes, fostering a culture of compliance and growth, and you are comfortable exploring solutions to new challenges, this is a role where you will drive significant impact.

Areas of responsibility: These areas of responsibility are flexible and can be catered to individual skill sets. Training may also be available for the right candidate.

Business Operations & Team Leadership [The ideal candidate will have extensive experience with these tasks]

• Financial Partnership: Partner with executive leadership to manage the $1M+ annual operating budget, providing transparent monthly updates on financial sustainability.
• Core Finance & HR: Oversee the operation of QuickBooks Online (AP/AR), banking relationships, payroll, and benefits administration.

Strategic Grants & Contract Leadership [The candidate can be developed on the job, but need to have comfort with understanding basic business processes and functions, reading compliance guidance and documenting adherence to these documents or formatting other documents as required by funding partner]

• Proposal Strategy: Lead the development and submission of 25–30+ competitive proposals annually. Proposals are typically submitted to federal agencies (e.g., NSF, NIH, NASA) and sometimes to state agencies and/or foundations. You will serve as the final reviewer and Authorized Submitter for all applications.
• Compliance & Systems: Oversee the integrity of our institutional registrations (SAM.gov, Research.gov). Guide the process for our NICRA (overhead recovery) and ensure all grant activities are fully compliant with Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200). If you haven’t done this before, you need to have the ability to read guidance and compliance documents to assess requirements.
• Collaboration: Partner with employees to manage pre-award documents like Biosketches/Resumes, COA, Synergistic Activities and Current/Pending Support.
• Partnership Management: Manage the contractual side of partnerships as prime, subawardee, or contractor including developing budgets, preparing or reviewing contracts and managing reporting.

Post-Award & Financial Stewardship [this work is required and strong systems are in place. Training can happen on our specific systems but the ideal candidate will have a strong sense of what these tasks entail prior to employment]

• Financial Flow: Manage year-over-year carry-forward funds, budget reallocations, and out-year obligations to ensure responsible fund utilization.
• Fund Access & Reporting: Utilize specific systems (like ACM$) for fund drawdowns. Prepare specialized compliance reports, including NSF Program Income Reports and Participant Support reconciliations.
• Operational Excellence: Develop robust, audit-ready tracking systems for time and effort, and create the file structures and project codes necessary to launch new projects smoothly for the team.
• Audit Readiness: Drive a culture of preparedness, ensuring a "clean" status for federal audits.

Qualifications & Experience

We recognize that no candidate is perfect, and we encourage you to apply if you have a solid core of relevant experience and a genuine willingness to learn and explore the unique challenges of our organization.

Experience & Foundational Knowledge:

• 5+ years of professional experience in research administration, grant management, or a highly regulated financial/operational role.
• A foundation in federal grant regulations, particularly Uniform Guidance, and a working familiarity with agencies such as NSF, NIH, and USDA.
• Proven ability to manage complex financial processes, including experience with cost-reimbursable and fixed-cost awards, and calculating indirect costs.
• Experience with QuickBooks bookkeeping software.

Traits for Success:

• Curiosity & Problem-Solving: A demonstrated desire to learn new policies, troubleshoot complex issues, and actively seek solutions to new or unexpected tasks.
• Communication: Exceptional ability to communicate complex financial and compliance information clearly to both executive leadership, program staff and external partners.
• Collaboration: A history of successfully working with multiple stakeholders, partners, and internal teams to meet tight deadlines.
• Independent learning: You may be asked “hey, can you figure out XYZ” and will be happy to go do so.

Location: This position is fully remote. Other staff work on the East Coast. Availability during regular business hours (Eastern) is mandatory. Though the position is remote, we will prioritize someone in the New England region to support occasional in-person meetings and training.

All candidates must be authorized to work in the U.S. and be U.S. based. We are unable to provide visa sponsorship for this position at this time.

Compensation:

• This position will start as a contract position at $65 dollars an hour. As a contractor, this position does not include benefits.

How to apply

• Please send a cover letter and resume to jobs@sagefoxgroup.com.
• References will be required if the application moves forward.