Senior Manager, Financial Analysis & Reporting
University of Chicago
Summary
The University recently implemented a new Enterprise Resource Planning system which requires a near-term focus of stabilization in creating processes, standards, and reports. The Senior Manager will position the BSD for long-term resilience by continually assessing needs and developing tools, training, and processes to minimize financial and reputational risk, driving efficiency, and safeguard assets. The Senior Manager is responsible for financial modeling, forecasting and variance analysis of UCM/BSD funds flow items.
Job description
Job Summary
The University recently implemented a new Enterprise Resource Planning system which requires a near-term focus of stabilization in creating processes, standards, and reports. The Senior Manager will position the BSD for long-term resilience by continually assessing needs and developing tools, training, and processes to minimize financial and reputational risk, driving efficiency, and safeguard assets. The Senior Manager is responsible for financial modeling, forecasting and variance analysis of UCM/BSD funds flow items.
Responsibilities
- Partner with BSD leadership, UCM Finance, department and unit administrators, and other key stakeholders to identify analytic needs including the design or improvement of existing reporting and data collection mechanisms.
- Ensure data integrity across several FP&A databases and shared UCM/BSD databases.
- Deliver recurring and ad-hoc reporting across several FP&A functions and across multiple systems to support and enable strategic decision-making.
- Troubleshoot and improve routine and complex analytic processes.
- Engage with and leverage AI tools to streamline, automate, and scale outputs.
- Identify and replace manual data collection/reporting processes with automated/systemic solutions.
- Champion new analytic ideas and lead continuous improvement initiatives to enhance data accuracy, accessibility, workflows, and business impact.
- Build and develop training materials, process maps and SOPs, and other related documentation.
- Propose and execute solutions to address lack of timely financial data.
- Serve as a change agent, promoting and socializing enhanced functions delivered by the new system.
- Engages with finance team and builds relationships across functional areas to optimize financial workflows, analysis, and decision making.
- Provides financial input based on the development of data collection, metrics, reports and other analytical applications.
- Analyze, organize and communicate business information to ensure deliverables are meeting or exceeding expectations.
- Performs other related work as needed.
Minimum Qualifications
- Education: Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.
- Work Experience: Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 7+ years of work experience in a related job discipline.
Preferred Qualifications
- Education: Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance. MBA or advanced degree in finance, public policy, not-for-profit administration, healthcare administration, or a related field strongly preferred.
- Experience: A minimum of five years of general finance and accounting experience. CPA or other audit-related certificate holder strongly preferred. Experience in Healthcare, University or a not-for-profit organization strongly preferred. Financial analysis and modeling experience strongly preferred.
- Technical Skills or Knowledge: Familiarity with Project Management methodologies, e.g. Smartsheet. Advanced skills in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and Adobe Acrobat.
Preferred Competencies
- Excellent skills in organizing information, written communication, and training.
- Demonstrated ability to interact proactively with counterparts in other units.
- Demonstrated ability to manage own time to deliver high-integrity products within established deadlines.
- Knowledge of various financial principles, practices, and applications.
- Intellectual versatility and creativity.
- Strong analytical and organizational skills.
- Strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills.
- Strong attention to detail.
- Ability to understand a workflow and visualize it for other users.
- Ability to work closely with senior Division Management.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
- Ability to establish and maintain relationships at all organizational levels.
- Ability to work non-traditional hours when necessary.
Requirements
- College or university degree in related field
- 7+ years of work experience in a related job discipline
- Bachelor’s degree in accounting or finance
- MBA or advanced degree in finance, public policy, not-for-profit administration, healthcare administration, or related field
- Minimum of five years of general finance and accounting experience
- CPA or other audit-related certificate
- Experience in Healthcare, University or not-for-profit organization
- Financial analysis and modeling experience
- Familiarity with Project Management methodologies, e.g. Smartsheet
- Advanced skills in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and Adobe Acrobat
- Excellent skills in organizing information, written communication, and training
- Demonstrated ability to interact proactively with counterparts in other units
- Demonstrated ability to manage own time to deliver high-integrity products within established deadlines
- Knowledge of various financial principles, practices, and applications
- Intellectual versatility and creativity
- Strong analytical and organizational skills
- Strong interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
- Strong attention to detail
- Ability to understand a workflow and visualize it for other users
- Ability to work closely with senior Division Management
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
- Ability to establish and maintain relationships at all organizational levels
- Ability to work non-traditional hours when necessary
Benefits
- Health insurance
- Retirement plan
- Paid time off
Company overview
The University of Chicago is a world-renowned private research university founded in 1890 and located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. As a premier academic institution, it operates one of the most comprehensive biomedical research enterprises in the United States through its Biological Sciences Division, which includes over 1,100 faculty members across 10 basic science and 14 clinical departments. The university manages extensive research infrastructure including the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center, multiple specialized research institutes, and maintains affiliations with Argonne National Laboratory and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. With research funding exceeding $450 million annually and more than 3,300 patents filed since 1987, the institution is a global leader in scientific discovery and innovation. The Biological Sciences Division alone supports over 500 research-active faculty who secure an average of $588,000 in NIH funding per principal investigator, focusing on areas including cancer biology, immunology, microbiology, molecular metabolism, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology. The university's commitment to interdisciplinary research and its unique position as manager of national laboratories creates unparalleled opportunities for translational research and scientific advancement.