Project Manager

Department
 

Crown Research Ming-Te Wang

About the Department
 

As one of the first schools of social work in the United States, the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice has shaped the field for more than 100 years. As part of the University of Chicago, the Crown Family School shares the University's core values and distinctive intellectual culture. Crown Family School faculty, staff and students focus on identifying solutions to complex problems affecting society’s most marginalized individuals and communities through the integration of research, training, and direct community engagement. Guided by an interdisciplinary tradition, Crown Family School scholars conduct innovative research to address interconnected social challenges such as educational inequality, health disparities, crime and violence, poverty, and child and family welfare—working at multiple scales, from individual to policy-level interventions. The Crown Family School is the home of several academic centers. These include the Susan and Richard Kiphart Center for Global Health and Social Development, the Urban Education Institute (UEI), the Chicago Center for Youth Violence Prevention, the Center for Health Administration Studies, the Smart Decarceration Project, the Employment Instability, Family Well-being, and Social Policy Network (EINet), and the Network for College Success.

Today, our work has never been more important. More than 8,000 Crown Family School graduates in the US and globally hold leadership positions in academia, at nonprofits, and at governmental agencies – committed to create a more just and more humane society through principles of inclusion, equity, and diversity.

Job Summary
 

We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced Project Manager for research projects within the Development-in-Sociocultural-Context (DISC) Research Lab. As the Project Manager, you will perform a variety of project management support and data collection duties for multiple federally funded research projects. This position will be responsible for maintaining project databases and coordinating local, state, and nationwide research efforts. Specifically, the Project Manager will:
• keep accurate records and detailed reports of financial resources and expenditures related to the project;
• maintain communication lines between research partners and the Principal Investigator;
• process subject reimbursements;
• prepare reports for stakeholders, including participant newsletters and formal progress reports to funders; and
• work with investigators to create and ensure timely submission of applications, reports, and presentations, including correspondence with funding agencies and the IRB.

The applicant must have outstanding organizational and communication skills, project management abilities, and academic writing skills. Mistakes in interpersonal communications could have dire results for this project. To produce products, we will need to rely on the cooperation and good will of many people. The person filling this position will need to communicate the importance of their voluntary participation, willingness of the project to accommodate their schedules and gratitude for their involvement. Mistakes along these lines could be irreparable. The ideal candidate should possess a strong work ethic and be able to work collaboratively as well as independently. This position requires knowledge of MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SPSS, and Qualtrics.

Responsibilities

• Plans, manages and reports on research projects and assignments in collaboration with members of the research team and UChicago facilities and resources.

• Develop timelines, delegate responsibilities, and monitor progress toward short- and long-term goals based on the leadership team’s agenda.

• Create and maintain comprehensive project documentation, including detailed work plans, schedules, project estimates, resource plans, and status reports.

• Oversee data collection to ensure the consistency of procedures across projects, including the development and administration of surveys and interview protocols, data monitoring and cleaning, qualitative data coding, response rate and participant demographic tracking, and participant reimbursement.

• Maintain and organize office resources, including project calendars, supply orders, electronic file management, meeting spaces, etc.

• Review documents for spelling, grammar, and adherence to APA style guidelines.

Stakeholder Management:

• Coordinate with Principal Investigators and project leadership to develop, implement, and monitor IRB applications and ensure procedures are conducted with fidelity.

• Recruit and obtain required permission from participants through established consent/assent pr