Job Information
University of Massachusetts Amherst Clerk IV (Office Manager) in Amherst, Massachusetts
Clerk IV (Office Manager)
Apply now (https://secure.dc4.pageuppeople.com/apply/822/gateway/default.aspx?c=apply&lJobID=523286&lJobSourceTypeID=801&sLanguage=en-us) Job no: 523286
Work type: Staff Full Time
Location: UMass Amherst
Department:CESL
Union:USA/MTA
Categories: Administrative & Office Support, USA/MTA
About UMass Amherst
UMass Amherst, the Commonwealth's flagship campus, is a nationally ranked public research university offering a full range of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts and offers a rich cultural environment in a bucolic setting close to major urban centers. In addition, the University is part of the Five Colleges (including Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College), which adds to the intellectual energy of the region.
Job Summary
The Civic Engagement and Service-Learning (CESL) Office Manager will support the office in its mission to promote learning for life-long, engaged citizenship, partnering with communities on and off campus to work collectively for a more just society. The Office Manager provides executive level administrative assistance to the Director by assisting in a wide range of complex and confidential matters, including overseeing the director’s schedule and arranging appointments with administrators, faculty, and staff; preparing correspondence; coordinating staff meetings; and maintaining paper and electronic administrative files. Exercising a high degree of independent judgment in the performance of daily responsibilities. The CESL office manager will be responsible for overall office management including purchasing, fiscal management, accounting, workflow processes, administrative record keeping, database and equipment management, physical space management, making travel arrangements, personnel and payroll management, as well as coordination of faculty/staff hiring and supervision of student staff.
Essential Functions
Executive Support
Represent the CESL Director in an appropriate manner exercising a high level of discretion and professionalism, tact, confidentiality, and sound judgment at all times. Provide general assistance to prospective and current faculty including officials and visitors to campus.
Provide confidential executive level support to the CESL Director including calendar management, travel arrangements and reimbursements, and complex meeting coordination. Assist the CESL Director in all responsibilities and assignments including all routine clerical support (i.e. preparing correspondence, scheduling meetings. making appointments, answering and making phone calls, providing routine information).
Act as direct liaison for CESL Director to administrators, department heads, and faculty and staff from other departments within the University. Respond to inquiries regarding all CESL courses and programs.
Organize and monitor the CESL Director’s daily schedules and long-term calendars as needed, including communicating with the CESL Director about all meetings and providing background information about appointments. Consult with the CESL Director in advance of scheduling non-routine meetings.
Coordinate CESL staff meetings, consult on agenda creation, and keep minutes of meetings. Assist in the creation of action steps to be taken by CESL Director as a result of staff meetings.
Organize and coordinate CESL Faculty Fellows program, including developing and administering the call for applications, promotional information sessions. Organize monthly fellows meetings and process stipend to Faculty departmental fiscal managers.
Financial Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the director of Civic Engagement and Service-Learning (CESL), performs all relevant financial functions for all accounts associated with CESL including budget projections: calculating expenses for personnel, administrative operations, equipment and maintenance expenses, consultants and operational services; balances and reconciles with the university’s monthly financial reports using the PeopleSoft Financial and Summit system; maintains computerized ledgers on Excel spreadsheets of accounts receivable and payable expenses for review by director of the unit.
Remain current with financial best practices, evolving management systems and assure compliance with campus fiscal policies and guidelines.
Collects, analyzes and prepares financial data to facilitate Director’s oversight of the organizational budget.
Grant budget management understands budgetary requirements of each grant, tracks expenditures, and assists with reporting requirements to support the Director in forecasting and planning expenditures throughout the life of the grant.
Serves as purchasing agent, using discretion in purchasing departmental office supplies, including office equipment, computers, furniture, and promotional materials. Inventory as needed, fulfill requests, and order office supplies as needed. Use the university’s ProCard credit card and BuyWays purchasing system and maintains accurate records for self and the director’s account by reconciling monthly expenditures according to university policy and procedures in preparation for random audits. Prepares purchase orders; enters and approves university’s online purchase orders; forwards relevant documentation to Provost’s office for appropriate disbursements and recharges according to university policies and procedures.
Interact and negotiate extensively as business liaison with campus departments and off campus vendors to acquire needed goods and services. Represent CESL to external constituencies and help build effective relationships.
Coordinates all travel arrangements and reservations for CESL Director, CESL faculty, CESL staff for participation at conferences etc; compiles information for staff travel authorizations; collects travel receipts, prepares expense vouchers and submits forms for reimbursement or payment to the traveler.
Coordinates travel and on-campus lodging arrangements for CESL guest speakers and presenters. Ensure successful and positive experience for visitors to campus. Process honorariums and procure necessary information from guest speakers and presenters.
Oversees transportation program for service-learning courses and disbursement of transportation funds to program applicants.
Personnel Duties and Responsibilities
Compiles information, and forwards to the Provost’s Office for processing personnel actions for professional, clerical, and undergraduate staff and assistantships for graduate students. Maintains accurate personnel files.
Under the direction of the director, coordinates schedules for search committees; serves on search committees for classified positions. Acts as liaison and coordinates with HR specialist for staff searches, coordinate staff and student hires and coordinate access to university software & systems needed for individuals to perform discrete job duties. Request information for professional and classified staff regarding staff searches through the PageUp system, payroll, and timekeeping policies as needed.
Schedules orientation and training for new employees; constructs plan and compiles resources for orientation.
Course Management
Provides course management for courses offered through CESL, serving as Scheduling Representative with the Registrar’s office, using the University’s CAPS course maintenance system; manages course support and evaluation procedures, according to the University’s SRTI evaluation system and additional CESL course evaluation procedures; works with Director and Associate Director to coordinate Civic Engagement and Service-Learning course designation process for courses from across the campus and communicates designation decisions to the Registrar, the relevant faculty, and their department heads.
Office Management and Support
Manages the daily operations of the office by monitoring assigned unit activities to ensure effective operations in compliance with the unit’s established rules and regulations and the university policies and procedures. Serve as a resource to CESL faculty and staff around university policies and procedures and contribute to the development, revision, and implementation of office workflow processes, and policies in ways that fulfill CESL’s mission.
Maintain an organized electronic and physical administrative and programming filing system for CESL.
Office Communications: Maintain the CESL public email. Appropriately answer and/or redirect all incoming emails. Ensure email lists are accurate.
Coordinate physical space assignments, office setup, office access, and IT needs for staff in CESL. Serves as Telecommunications and IT representative and troubleshoot desktop software issues, determining the necessity of IT/EDS support.
Prepares and maintains contracts and service agreements for equipment such as copy machines according to university policies and procedures; anticipates filling supply requirements, inventory control, renews subscriptions and trouble shoots periodic office maintenance issues.
Functions as the primary reception point person for all faculty, campus agencies, vendors, area colleges, and off campus organizations and community partners to provide information and coordinate efforts pertaining to the unit’s programs and activities; provides triage and routes inquiries and follow-up to the appropriate staff member(s).
Provides administrative support for full and part time professional staff members and graduate students; provides reports and correspondence by utilizing various software programs, including word processing, spreadsheets, databases and software for email group communications.
In consultation with other staff, oversees events management, including producing publicity, scheduling locations, arranging catering and purchasing food, coordinating and tracking invitations, and coordinating support staff and other logistics. Arranges and coordinates sites for regular staff meetings.
In consultation with other staff, provides support for outreach and communications activities and website content maintenance. If the person hired for this position has graphic design skills, s/he will use those skills in designing publicity for CESL courses, programs, and events.
Establishes policies for faculty borrowing from the CESL resource library and oversees their implementation.
Responsible for procuring keys for new employees and ensuring proper opening and closing procedures are followed.
Other Functions
Performs other duties as assigned.
Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)
High school diploma and at least three (3) years experience or equivalent part-time experience with office management.
Experience with purchasing equipment and supplies.
Experience with personnel management.
Experience with budget principles and basic accounting.
Excellent interpersonal skills and oral and written communication skills.
Excellent clerical skills, including memos, correspondence, filing, data management, record keeping, telephone skills.
Ability to effectively prioritize and execute tasks in a multiple priority environment and meet critical deadlines.
Experience with maintaining numerous and various work processes with multiple parts; i.e., database management, ordering supplies, producing documents and reports, filing and retrieving information, etc.
Ability to use sound judgment in overall office management.
Ability to work with independence and initiative, seeking guidance as needed.
Ability and desire to work as part of and support a team that promotes educational practices designed to change the lives of students and benefit the communities around UMass.
Experience with hiring, training and supervising staff.
Ability to learn numerous and various University policies and procedures and apply them to work processes.
Working knowledge of PC computers as well as word processing, database management, spreadsheet programs, internet, and other information technologies, i.e. email.
Physical Demands/Working Conditions
Typical office environment.
Work Schedule
Monday – Friday: 8:30 – 5:00.
37.5 hours per week.
Salary Information
USA/MTA Non-Exempt Grade 13.
Special Instructions to Applicants
Along with the application, please submit a resume. References will be checked at the finalist stage. Please be prepared to provide contact information for three (3) professional references.
UMass Amherst is committed to a policy of equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, caste, creed, sex, age, marital status, national origin, disability, political belief or affiliation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related condition(s), veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic information, natural and protective hairstyle and any other class of individuals protected from discrimination in employment, admission to and participation in academic programs, activities, and services, and the selection of vendors who provide services or products to the University. To fulfill that policy, UMass Amherst is further committed to a program of affirmative action to eliminate or mitigate artificial barriers and to increase opportunities for the recruitment and advancement of qualified minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and covered veterans. It is the policy of UMass Amherst to comply with the applicable federal and state statutes, rules, and regulations concerning equal opportunity and affirmative action.
Advertised: May 31 2024 Eastern Daylight Time
Applications close: Sep 1 2024 Eastern Daylight Time