Department/Center Administrator - School of Public Health

We are hiring a Department/Center Adminsistrator (Full-time) to join UTHealth Houston School of Public Health in Houston, TX. In this role, you will make complex business process decisions that require comprehensive knowledge, discretion, and independent judgment across a wide range of regulations, policies, procedures, and business practices. You will be responsible for the daily business operations, financial management, human resources administration, and research administration or academic programming of a department or large center. Ideal candidate should have a Bachelor’s degree and 5 years of experience in finance, accounting, business administration or business management.

What we do here changes the world. UTHealth Houston is Texas’ resource for healthcare education, innovation, scientific discovery, and excellence in patient care. That’s where you come in.

Once you join us you won't want to leave. It’s because we reward our team for the excellent service they provide. Our total rewards package includes the benefits you’d expect from a top healthcare organization (benefits, insurance, etc.), plus:

100% paid medical premiums for our full-time employees

Generous time off (holidays, preventative leave day, both vacation and sick time – all of which equates to around 37-38 days per year)

The longer you stay, the more vacation you’ll accrue!

Longevity Pay (Monthly payments after two years of service)

Build your future with our awesome retirement/pension plan!

We take care of our employees! As a world-renowned institution, our employees’ wellbeing is important to us. We offer work/life services such as...

Free financial and legal counseling

Free mental health counseling services

Gym membership discounts and access to wellness programs

Other employee discounts including entertainment, car rentals, cell phones, etc.

Resources for child and elder care

Plus many more!

Position Summary

The Department/Center Administrator is responsible for the daily business operations, financial management, human resources administration, and research administration or academic programming of a department or large center. This role ensures compliance with the fiscal, budgetary, personnel, and operational systems established by university, departmental, program, and grant guidelines. The Department/Center Administrator makes complex business process decisions that require comprehensive knowledge, discretion, and independent judgment across a wide range of regulations, policies, procedures, and business practices.

Position Key Accountabilities

Manages the day-to-day business, financial, human resources, and research processes or academic programming, trends past performance and forecasts future financials. Manages and coordinates the daily activities of the unit through administrative staff.

Makes complex business, financial, human resources, and research decisions and judgement calls. Assists with preparing and implementing strategic plans for unit operations and development. Reviews current processes to determine effectiveness and efficiencies. Implements changes when necessary.

May assist with reviewing, preparing and submitting monthly contract invoices ensuring adherence to organizational policies, procedures, rules and regulations, and maintaining fiscal integrity. May assist with managing contracts for professional services, processing contractual agreements, invoicing and collection activities to ensure a positive margin.

Manages the agenda and budget for the research or academic programming within the unit.

Manages faculty and staff recruitment processes.

Handles confidential information and sensitive issues.

Manages faculty and staff files, as well as timekeeping activities.

Oversees personnel transaction activity for unit and ensures actions are processed accurately and in a timely manner in the human resources and financial management systems. Grants approvals for all personnel action forms regarding appointments, promotions, separations, salary actions, fund source changes, and other types of personnel actions.

Manages unit's budget responsibilities including but not limited to preparing, evaluating and implementing annual budgets to include all funding sources, preparing cost studies and management reports reflecting historical financial data, monitoring open encumbrances and expenditures against the budget, providing approval of purchase requisitions based on signature authority guidelines and maintaining and reconciling financial records/reports with detailed analysis. Monitors fund sources to verify accuracy to budgetary restrictions. Takes necessary steps to comply with restrictions.

Monitors travel, purchasing, payroll, timekeeping, contracts and grants.

Manages for acquisition of documents needed to monitor adherence to grant or program requirements.

Maintains equipment and space inventories in coordination with the Dean's Office.

May manage communications staff and/or efforts for the unit, which may include printed materials, web site content and/or department newsletters.

Serves as a high-level administrative liaison with others within and outside assigned areas regarding business, financial, human resources, and research issues on purchasing, personnel, facilities and operations and to ensure a smooth, efficient, and appropriate flow of information. Responds to questions on school, university, or system policies and procedures. Ensures knowledge is disseminated to those affected within the unit. Advises on financial, business, human resources, and research processes, policies and procedures. Drafts business policy and processes as assigned by supervisor.

Manages Human Resources activities of department in regards to: recruiting and selection, hiring and termination, training, professional development, mentoring, counseling, performance evaluations, and salary planning.

Performs other duties as assigned.

Certification/Skills

None

Minimum Education

Bachelor's Degree required Master's Degree in Science, Business, Public Health Care Administration or a related field preferred May substitute required education with equivalent years of experience beyond the minimum experience requirement.

Minimum Experience

5 years of related work experience required Prior experience in finance, accounting, business administration or business management required

Physical Requirements

Exerts up to 20 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds frequently and/or a negligible amount constantly to move objects.

Security Sensitive

This position is a security-sensitive position pursuant to Texas Education Code §51.215 and Texas Government Code §411.094. To the extent that a position requires the holder to research, work on, or have access to critical infrastructure as defined in Texas Business and Commerce Code §117.001(2), the ability to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure is a minimum qualification to be hired for and to continue to be employed in that position.

Personnel in such positions, and similarly situated state contractors, will be routinely reviewed to determine whether things such as criminal history or continuous connections to the government or political apparatus of a foreign adversary might prevent the applicant, employee, or contractor from being able to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure. A foreign adversary is a nation listed in 15 C.F.R. §791.4.

Residency Requirement

Employees must permanently reside and work in the State of Texas.