Program/Project Manager, NSF Carolinas Grid Engine
UNC Charlotte
Full-Time
Closes on Tuesday, January 12, 2027
Job Description
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Project Management & Operations
- Develop, maintain, and monitor project plans, schedules, milestones, deliverables, key activities, and responsibilities across Engine workstreams, including research and translation, workforce development, ecosystem development, and cross-sector partnerships.
- Manage Airtable as the Engine's central project-management and performance-tracking platform, maintaining accurate and timely information on projects, milestones, dependencies, risks, action items, and responsible parties.
- Track progress against annual and multi-year strategic plans and Engine KPIs; identify schedule risks, dependencies, bottlenecks, and performance gaps, and escalate issues to the Chief Operating Officer with recommended solutions.
- Maintain the Engine's risk register, action-item logs, decision records, dashboards, and reporting views; drive follow-through on commitments made across leadership and partner meetings.
- Coordinate with program leads and partners to collect, validate, and maintain KPI and performance data, ensuring information is complete, consistent, traceable, and aligned with established targets.
- Support preparation of NSF quarterly and annual reports by coordinating reporting calendars, data submissions, milestone updates, KPI results, accomplishments, and other required performance information.
- Establish and maintain project-management standards, templates, workflows, and documentation practices for use across the Engine and its partner organizations.
- Support the implementation and ongoing use of operational systems, including Airtable, pipeline-management tools, CRM platforms, and shared collaboration environments, with an emphasis on reducing duplicate data entry and improving reporting efficiency.
- Coordinate cross-partner implementation activities, ensuring alignment across universities, technical colleges, economic development organizations, utilities, and industry partners.
NSF Reporting & Compliance Support
- Manage the preparation, coordination, and on-time submission of quarterly and annual reports to the National Science Foundation, including collecting inputs from Engine leadership, pillar teams, and partner organizations.
- Maintain reporting calendars and deadline tracking for all NSF and federal reporting obligations; provide advance notice and reminders to contributors and hold contributors accountable to deadlines.
- Collect, organize, and verify performance data, metrics, and supporting documentation required for reporting, evaluation, and impact measurement.
- Coordinate with the Engine's external measurement and evaluation partner on data collection schedules, reporting inputs, and deliverable timelines.
- Support audit readiness by maintaining organized, accessible, and complete project documentation and records retention consistent with NSF and university requirements.
Budget & Financial Support
- Support the Chief Operating Officer in monitoring the Engine budget, including tracking expenditures, commitments, and burn rate against approved budget categories.
- Prepare budget summaries, variance reports, and financial status updates for leadership review and for inclusion in NSF reporting.
- Assist in the preparation of annual budget development materials and resource allocation planning across Engine workstreams and subawards.
- Monitor subaward and partner spending activity in coordination with the Chief Operating Officer and university financial staff, flagging concerns in a timely manner.
Grants & Contracts Administration Support
- Serve as an operational point of coordination with the university's Office of Research Administration, grants and contracts staff, and sponsored programs personnel.
- Support the preparation, routing, and tracking of subawards, contracts, memoranda of understanding, and partner agreements through university processes.
- Maintain organized records of executed agreements, scopes of work, deliverable schedules, and partner compliance obligations.
- Assist in gathering documentation and responses needed for sponsor inquiries, prior approval requests, and award modifications.
Meetings, Convenings & Events
- Work with the Marketing and Communications Manager to plan, coordinate, and execute Engine meetings, working groups, partner convenings, site visits, workshops, and public events.
- Manage event logistics including scheduling, venue and vendor coordination, registration, materials preparation, and day-of execution support.
- Coordinate leadership team, governing board, and advisory committee meetings, including scheduling, agenda preparation, materials distribution, minutes, and action item follow-up.
- Support preparation for NSF site visits, sponsor engagements, and external stakeholder visits, including briefing materials and logistics.
General Engine Support
- Support the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Executive Officer with operational analysis, briefing materials, presentations, and special projects as assigned.
- Serve as a responsive point of contact for Engine partners on operational and administrative questions, routing inquiries appropriately.
- Contribute to onboarding of new staff and partner organizations into Engine processes, systems, and expectations.
- Perform other duties as assigned in support of the Engine's mission and operations.
UNC Charlotte