Principal Administrative Officer

The Office of Research and Partnerships invites applicants to apply to join our team as a Principal Administrative Officer. The Principal Administrative Officer provides the administrative and business leadership that allows the Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing to operate as a single enterprise across its research portfolio, international partnerships, workforce programs, and fabrication and training facilities. Reporting to Centers & Institutes leadership within the Office of Research & Partnerships (ORP) and taking day-to-day direction from the CSM Director, the incumbent owns the center's overall administration and working with the relevant team members in ORP around proposal development, budget, communications, industry partnership, facility business operations, and institutional reporting. The role is deliberately administrative rather than scientific: it creates the operating discipline that lets faculty leadership concentrate on research strategy and external engagement. Work is performed without appreciable direction, with considerable latitude in determining objectives and approaches.

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Outstanding U of A benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance plans; life insurance and disability programs; paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays; U of A/ASU/NAU tuition reduction for the employee and qualified family members; retirement plans; access to U of A recreation and cultural activities; and more!

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Research Program Administration and Partnerships:

• Coordinates development of center-scale and multi-investigator proposals: timelines, budget preparation, institutional commitments, letters of support, and compliance attachments, in partnership with Sponsored Projects, college research offices, and Research Development Services.
• Administers active awards and consortium memberships, including reporting calendars, milestone tracking, deliverable submission, and close-out.
• Develops and maintains project plans covering timelines, resource requirements, and budgets for center initiatives and their associated programs.
• Tracks and coordinates execution of memoranda of understanding, master research agreements, membership agreements, and international partnership documents, working with Research Partnerships, Research Contracts, Research Security, Export Control, and the Office of General Counsel.
• Serves as the operational point of contact for partner institutions, industry members, and government partners; prepares briefing materials and coordinates delegations, site visits, and signing events.

Financial and Budget Administration:

• Administers the center's consolidated operating budget across state, industry, federal, philanthropic, and partner funding sources; monitors commitments, cost share, carry-forward, and recharge activity with the ORP Finance team.
• Prepares monthly and quarterly financial reporting for the CSM Director and Centers & Institutes leadership, with variance explanation and reforecasting.
• Administers subawards, purchase requisitions, service agreements, and participant support in accordance with university and sponsor requirements.

Facility and Program Business Operations:

• Supports business planning for the center's fabrication and training facilities, including equipment acquisition packages, installation schedules, recharge rate development, and user access and billing processes alongside the facilities managers and ORP Core Facilities Team.
• Coordinates space, safety, environmental health, and compliance requirements with facility leadership and technical staff.

Reporting, Analysis, and Communications:

• Compiles and analyzes program administration data; drafts sponsor, technical, and institutional reports and the center's metrics package.
• Coordinates communications, website content, events, and annual reporting with the appropriate university units.

Supervision and Other Duties:

• Supervises or provides day-to-day guidance to program or administrative support staff; represents the center on university committees; other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Thorough knowledge of university research administration: sponsored project lifecycle, uniform guidance and sponsor terms, cost principles, cost share, effort, subawards, and recharge center practice.
• Demonstrated ability to build and manage complex teams and to present administrative activities clearly to faculty and administrative leadership.
• Working knowledge of research security, export control, conflict of interest, and international engagement requirements as they apply to foreign partnerships and controlled research environments.
• Ability to influence across colleges, divisions, and departments and to communicate effectively with management, leadership, faculty, industry members, and external stakeholders.
• Strong project management discipline, advanced proficiency with university financial and research administration systems, and the analytical skill to turn program data into decision-ready reporting.

This job posting reflects the general nature and level of work expected of the selected candidate(s). It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties and responsibilities. The institution reserves the right to amend or update this description as organizational priorities and institutional needs evolve.

• A master's degree in a relevant discipline is required for this position. Applicants must possess the degree at the time of appointment.
• Minimum of eight years of relevant work experience, or an equivalent combination of education and work experience.

• A Ph.D. in a relevant discipline is preferred.
• Research administration experience in a center, institute, or large multi-investigator program environment.
• Experience administering industry consortium or membership-funded programs, and experience with federal center-scale proposals.
• Experience supporting core facility or recharge center operations, including equipment acquisition and user billing.
• Experience with international partnership administration, including agreement execution and delegation coordination.
• Familiarity with the semiconductor, photonics, or advanced manufacturing sector.