Primary Purpose: The College of Arts and Science is the largest college of the University of Saskatchewan, a U15 University situated in Saskatoon, Canada. The Research Planning and Facilitation Officer is part of a team to support and enable the research of close to 300 faculty members across 21 diverse departments. This position is responsible for supporting faculty in the social sciences, humanities, and fine arts, with a primary focus on grant applications to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) tri-agency. Through specialized knowledge of the research community and the research funding enterprise, the Research Planning and Facilitation Officer will provide support to principal investigators in the College of Arts and Science by assisting with the development and writing of highly competitive research funding proposals, developing strategies to increase the success of securing funding, and managing the college’s participation in funding programs. The position’s primary responsibility is to support proposals for funding to SSHRC, but support for other funding programs relevant to the diverse array of disciplines in the college may be required as needed.

Nature of Work: Reporting to the Vice-Dean Research Scholarly, and Artistic Work (RSAW), this position will work primarily on supporting and reviewing grants submitted to one or more of the following agencies: NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR, CFI, SHRF, Canada Council for the Arts, and/or special or internal calls.  The position will likely be focused on one or two of these agencies / calls, working in synergy with other facilitators in the college who will cover the remaining grant types.  The work may include reviewing grants proposals for completeness, compliance, and potential success; helping the Vice-Dean RSAW to identify potential principal investigators and collaborations to lead funding applications; and working on strategic initiatives around research enhancement and supports for the benefit of faculty and other college RSAW stakeholders. These initiatives may include nominations of faculty or teams for internal or external research recognitions.

Accountabilities: Effectively develops and manages assigned projects related to advancing the strategic priorities of the College of Arts and Science to foster grant success, while establishing and maintaining the required collaborative relations in achieving the desired outcomes:

Champion and contribute to many aspects of the research grant application process, including advising on compliance; assisting with the preparation of budgets; advising on governance and ethics requirements; critically reviewing and suggesting edits to draft applications as needed; and facilitating internal processes and approvals Work closely with principal investigators on grant re-submissions, contextualizing and informing responses to external reviewers’ comments, and identifying additional supports or opportunities to ensure success Work closely with the Vice-Dean RSAW to identify leaders for strategic grant opportunities and collaborations for multidisciplinary research funding calls Serve as a connection to Research Acceleration and Strategic Initiatives (RASI) to ensure mutual understanding of opportunities and their processes, alignment of timelines, and cooperation on shared aims Liaise with the University International Office to facilitate participation in international collaborative RSAW opportunities, identify new initiatives, and support existing international collaborations in the pursuit of funding opportunities Assist in the nomination of individual faculty members for internal or external RSAW-related prizes and recognitions, as well as the administration and delivery of the college’s own RSAW award streams Work closely with the Vice-Dean RSAW to enhance and uplift, in general, the RSAW-related supports available to faculty and other RSAW stakeholders in the college.

Typical Duties or Accountabilities: noted above

Education: A Master’s degree in a related discipline.

Experience: A minimum of three years’ experience working in a research environment in a university setting; experience with proposal development; knowledge of granting agencies; and experience with project management, communications, and/or finance as well as a broad knowledge of academic structure and culture; knowledge of research policies and processes at the University of Saskatchewan.

Applicants who possess an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may also be considered.

Skills: Excellent and effective communication, both verbal and written; attention to detail; organizational, interpersonal, relationship and collaboration skills and abilities; demonstrated ability to effectively manage multiple projects with changing and sometimes conflicting priorities in order to meet deadlines; and high standards of professional integrity with the ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive matters diplomatically, are requirements for this position. Grant editing experience is required. The ability to develop and maintain effective professional working relationships with a wide variety of individuals including staff, faculty, senior administrators and external partners and the ability to work independently, collaboratively or as part of a group, is a necessary attribute for success. Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications is required. A broad understanding of the University of Saskatchewan’s strategic directions, and ideally those of the College of Arts and Sciences, is an asset.