Funding Operations Officer

Overview

We are looking for a Funding Operations Officer to join our Finance and Operations team. The Finance and Operations team is a vital part of the Charity’s ability to make an impact and improve health in Lambeth and Southwark, and uses cutting edge software, including Salesforce and Tableau, for its operational systems and business intelligence. This role is responsible for administering the Charity’s grants and special funds on a day-to-day basis and for responding to incoming enquiries and other communications from grant applicants and fundholders. The role also supports the Finance and Operations team in ensuring accurate reporting and compliance with our procedures, and informs the wider organisation with high quality reporting on grants and special funds.

This is an excellent opportunity to join an experienced and growing team at an exciting time as we implement increasingly sophisticated systems for grants management and reporting, and continually develop innovative ways of working to support colleagues both internally and externally. We are looking for an approachable and ambitious individual who works well in a team, with a keen interest in developing their skills and experience, particularly around great customer service and grant administration.

The role will support the Charity’s work through both our Funding and Trust Engagement teams, who work on our exciting Programmes and with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust to improve the health of people living in Lambeth and Southwark. The role also manages claims to our special funds, which are the restricted donations for use at Guys and St Thomas’ hospitals, of which we currently have over 150.

Reporting to: Funding Operations Manager

Job description

The Funding Operations Officer is a key role in the Finance and Operations team, that provides operational and financial support across the organisation. The role is responsible for:

- Processing grants applications, contracts and special fund expenditure accurately and efficiently

- Maintaining the grants management system and other records as necessary, ensuring systems are kept up to date to provide an accurate and true record of activity

- Responding to a wide range of enquiries from members of the public including hospital staff, grant holders and colleagues in a professional, helpful and timely manner

- Assuming joint responsibility with the rest of the Finance and Operations team for: maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the grants management system; preventing fraud; providing cover for absent colleagues when required; and performing any other tasks as may reasonably be required to support the effective operation of the team.

Responsibilities

Grants administration (Programmatic, Trust Engagement and Special Funds):

- Process grants applications from submission of ideas through to decision, following agreed processes and workflows

- Assist with the management of post-decision workflows, including finalising letters of offer, setting up and monitoring payment and reporting schedules, requesting reports and invoices and actioning grant closures, extensions and write back of funds

- Respond to enquiries from grant applicants and escalate more complex enquiries to the appropriate person

- Process grants-related invoices for payment, including the logging, scanning and monitoring of approval of invoices

- Maintain and appropriately file grants-related correspondence and documentation

- Generate reports and provide information and support as required relating to applications and grants for the Funding and Trust Engagement teams

- Carry out basic due diligence checks on grant applicants

- Support colleagues to draft and execute contracts with service suppliers and maintain reports around these

- Support the production of meeting papers and reports

Special Fund administration:

- Process Special fund expense claims and invoices, ensuring all payments are made in a timely fashion and flag issues regarding invoices with key partners and work together to ensure accurate invoicing

- Build relationships with fund holders and support them as required in the management of their fund

- Support the Trust Engagement team to obtain spending plans and other reports from fund holders

- Produce monthly fund statements and distribute to fund holders

- Maintain up-to-date and accurate records of fund holders and other information relating to the funds

- Manage communications with fund holders including creating content for newsletters, drafting key messages, and sending out welcome packs for new fund holders

- Respond to enquiries from fund holders and escalate more complex enquiries to the appropriate person

- Maintain and appropriately file special fund related correspondence and documentation

- Generate reports and provide information as required relating to fund balances, income and spending, fund holders, activity and actions, both internally and externally

General:

- Generate mailing lists based on specific criteria and undertake mailings (e.g. fund holder newsletters)

- Assist with the development of Salesforce, new or improved processes, and new ways of working through user testing and development of guidance

- Provide absence cover for other Finance and Operations team members as agreed from time-to-time.

- The job holder will be working in a developing environment and will therefore be expected to undertake other appropriate duties as required for the effective operation of the Charity.

Qualifications and knowledge

- Able to communicate effectively with others, both verbally and in writing, especially when explaining process (essential)

- Computer literacy (essential)

- Some familiarity with health/social care/voluntary sector technical language and organisations (desirable)

- Some familiarity with basic financial and grants related terms and concepts (desirable)

Experience

- General office administrative experience with exposure to a variety of processes and activities (essential)

- Experience using the Microsoft Office suite (essential)

- Customer facing or enquiries related experience (essential)

- Regular use of database/CRM systems, finance system or grants management system (desirable)

- Experience in drafting and reviewing supplier contracts (desirable)

Skills and attributes

- Self-starter who is adaptable, works with integrity, and exhibits the Charity’s enterprising, collaborative and delivery-minded cultural and behavioural values

- Willing to learn and develop new skills, and help to develop the knowledge and skills of peers

- Committed to the principle of continuous improvement, with careful attention to detail and due process

- Committed to delivering consistent and high-quality customer service to both internal and external stakeholders

- Good interpersonal skills and able to effectively liaise with both internal and external communities

- Confident in communicating well, both in writing and verbally, and exhibits listening and influencing skills

- Problem solving skills, able to use initiative and actively seeks pragmatic solutions

- Good planning and organisational skills, able to work to multiple prioritised tasks, targets and deadlines, with careful attention to detail

- Team player, with an ability to support effective working relationships

- A self-sufficient individual, who enjoys the challenge of working with multiple stakeholders and complex systems

We are one of the UK’s largest charitable foundations. For over 500 years we’ve been based in and focused on improving people’s health in Lambeth and Southwark, two vibrant inner-city areas with urban health challenges.

We work with a range of partners – both within and outside of Lambeth and Southwark – to identify, test and scale new approaches to health and healthcare. We take a programmatic approach, identifying the biggest health issues for people in our communities, understanding what’s underneath these issues, and working with others to address them. We collaborate with anyone who has the very best approaches and shares our drive to make them happen. Whenever possible, we fund jointly with others.

Through a combination of fundraising and our own philanthropic support, we also help Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust provide exceptional care and a world-class environment for patients and staff at Guy’s, St Thomas’ and Evelina Children’s Hospital, as well as in community health services across the boroughs.