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Financial Officer

Date: July 1, 2015
Reports to (Job Title): Associate Director, Finance
Jobs Reporting (Job Titles): None
Department: Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC)

Location:

Main Campus; QNC

Grade:

USG 9
35 hr/wk


Primary Purpose

The Financial Officer (FO) provides financial information to senior management at IQC and the Office of Research to support effective management and strategic planning of IQC. S/he is also responsible for the integrity of financial processes and practices within IQC to ensure conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and University of Waterloo policies and guidelines.

 

IQC is a world leading research institute established in 2002 with over 225 members including 65 faculty and staff, and 140 Post Doctoral Fellows and Graduate Students, an annual operating budget of approximately $31m, managing 225 accounts, with a cumulative investment of nearly $400m (March 2015). 

 

This position is accountable to the Associate Director, Finance, IQC.

Key Accountabilities:

1.

Financial Management & Reporting

  • Working with the Institute’s senior management, the FO assists in the development of the Institute’s annual operating budget and long range financial plan
  • Develops and reviews financial reports on all Institute controlled funds, including trust, endowment and special purpose government funding grants
  • Gather, analyze and report on IQC enterprise spending using custom developed financial tool
  • Reviews same accounts on a monthly basis and identifies potential issues and initiates corrective action where required
  • Analyzes faculty held accounts on an ad hoc basis and recommends corrective actions where warranted, interprets faculty statements for users, and educates same on how to conduct their own review
  • Develops, improves and implements strong internal financial controls; ensures that the Institute adheres to the University’s financial policies, procedures, and guidelines
  • Examines IQC Executive Director’s research accounts, summarizes current state, and brings forward recommendations to allow for most effective use of remaining funds given granting agency restrictions
  • Executes the compliance function on all IQC ORG accounts, communicates eligibility and compliance issues to Institute staff and researchers, and provides alternatives for non-conforming items
  • Collaborates with Associate Director, Finance on additional finance projects as required
  • Compiles revenue and expenditure summaries for IQC Annual Report, Industry Canada Annual Report, and Province of Ontario Request for Payments
  • Provides financial reporting of QNC building construction spending to senior management
  • Executes signing authority on Institutional controlled accounts containing several million dollars

 

 

2. 

Quantum NanoFab Facility

  • Oversee all capital equipment purchases for the Quantum NanoFab Facility, funded via CFI ($50M).
  • Report on the annual spending for the operation of the NanoFab Facility for planning, budgeting and external reporting
  • Prepare support for external audit of grant
  • Prepares and distributes all invoices, tracks the accounts receivable and prepares internal budget transfers for end user charges in facility

 

 

3. 

Accounts Receivable

  • Using uWaterloo Accounts Receivable system, the FO generates external invoicing to other universities for shared salary and related expenses for postdoctoral fellows and researchers
  • The FO generates invoices for external institutes or corporations for sponsorship of IQC events and conferences and monitor collection of same

 

 

4. 

Budget Transfers and Chargeouts

  • Prepares chargeouts, which include shared expenses with other departments and technician fees for QNC Seminar Room used by other departments on campus, and forwards same to Finance (Client Services) information for processing
  • Reviews and monitors accounts to ensure requests are posted on a timely and accurate basis

 

 

Position Requirements

Education:

Experience:

Technical:

MS Word Excel PowerPoint Other
Basic Advanced Basic MS Office; Experience with Oracle Financials (or equivalent)

Nature and Scope

Interpersonal Skills:

The Financial Officer communicates with all IQC members, including senior management, faculty, staff and graduate students the University’s financial policies, procedures and guidelines.  Beyond IQC members, this position will have significant contact within the University campus including the Office of Research, the Faculties of Science (Chemistry, Physics), Math (Pure, Applied, C&O, CS), and Engineering (ECE), including Accounts Payable, Human Resources, and Procurement and Contract Services. There will be some external contacts.  Communication contacts will include both financial and non-financial, and therefore communication must be adopted accordingly

Level of Responsibility:

This is a mid-senior staff position responsible for the financial control and reporting of IQC’s funding.

 

The Financial Officer is responsible for ensuring that expenditures charged to research accounts are eligible, properly authorized and documented.  Shortcomings in this area could result in unfavorable media attention, damaged reputation, and/or impairment in the Institute’s ability to attract funding.

 

This role has specialized work elements with minimal supervision and provides guidance and leadership to others about their area of expertise.

Decision-Making Authority:

The role has as signing authority on all IQC operating, trust, endowment, and special purpose funding funds.  The role is responsible for final approval of expenditure eligibility within the Office of Research Compliance Framework.

.

Physical and Sensory Demands:

Minimal physical demands typical of a staff position operating within an office environment.  There will be a need to focused attention to ensure accuracy.

 

Working Environment:

There is minimal exposure to disagreeable conditions, typical of a staff position working within an office environment.  Certain elements of the role are deadline or time-sensitive oriented, and therefore stress and pressure associated with the role’s responsibilities should be expected.