Job Description and Selection Criteria

Job description and selection criteria

Job title / Finance Assistant
Division / Medical Sciences
Department / Oncology
Location / Old Road Campus Research Building, Oxford
Grade and salary / Grade 4: £20,781 to £24,057 p.a.
Hours / Full-time
Contract type / Fixed-term for two years in the first instance
Reporting to / Accounts Officer
Vacancy reference / 018

Introduction

The University

The University of Oxford is a complex and stimulating organisation, which enjoys an international reputation as a world-class centre of excellence in research and teaching. It employs over 10,000 staff and has a student population of over 22,000.

Most staff are directly appointed and managed by one of the University’s 130 departments or other units within a highly devolved operational structure - this includes over 6,500 ‘academic-related’ staff (postgraduate research, computing, senior library, and administrative staff) and over 2,700 ‘support’ staff (including clerical, library, technical, and manual staff). There are also over 1,600 academic staff (professors, readers, lecturers), whose appointments are in the main overseen by a combination of broader divisional and local faculty board/departmental structures. Academics are generally all also employed by one of the 38 constituent colleges of the University as well as by the central University itself.

Our annual income in 2012/13 was £1,086.9m. Oxford is one of Europe's most innovative and entrepreneurial universities: income from external research contracts exceeds £436.8m p.a., and more than 80 spin-off companies have been created.

For more information please visit www.ox.ac.uk/staff/about_the_university.html

The University of Oxford is a member of the Athena SWAN Charter and holds an institutional Bronze Athena SWAN award.

Medical Sciences Division

The Medical Sciences Division is an internationally recognised centre of excellence for biomedical and clinical research and teaching. We are the largest academic division in the University of Oxford.

World-leading programmes, housed in state-of-the-art facilities, cover the full range of scientific endeavour from the molecule to the population. With our NHS partners we also foster the highest possible standards in patient care.

For more information please visit: http://www.ox.ac.uk/divisions/medical_sciences.html

Oncology Department

The Department of Oncology within the Medical Sciences Division was created in October 2010, under the headship of Professor Gillies McKenna. The aims of the Department include the development of truly multidisciplinary and collaborative oncology research in Oxford. Working closely with colleagues in the new state-of-the-art NHS Oxford Cancer Centre, research can be rapidly and efficiently translated into cutting-edge clinical treatment for cancer patients.

The Department incorporates the Cancer Research UK and Medical Research Council Oxford Institute for Radiation Oncology, as well as a number of internationally recognised research groups working in oncology and related fields. Currently the Department has activities on four sites in Oxford these are the Old Road Campus Research Building, the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, the Radiobiology Research Institute, and in the Oxford Cancer Hospital.

The University of Oxford, Department of Oncology has over 400 staff and more than 120 graduate students, and is one of the largest departments in the Medical Sciences Division. The Department of Oncology also hosts the CRUK Cancer Research Centre and the EPSRC/CRUK-funded Oxford Cancer Imaging Centre.

The Department of Oncology has been awarded a departmental Athena SWAN Bronze award in recognition of its commitment to introduce organisational and cultural practices that promote gender equality, and of its efforts to improve the working environment for both men and women.

For further information please visit: http://www.oncology.ox.ac.uk

Job description

Overview of the role

The post holder will be a key member of the departmental finance team reporting to the Accounts Officer and part of a team of Finance Assistants within the department, who are an important link between the research scientists and many suppliers of consumables and equipment. They will need to prioritise and manage their workload effectively whilst working with minimal supervision. The post holder will be employed by The Gray Laboratory Cancer Research Trust, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The University of Oxford.

Responsibilities

Purchasing:

·  Processing of res for goods and services, including:

I.  Checking information on the e-mail request is correct

II.  Coding requisitions against appropriate research grants or departmental funds

III.  Authorising the requisition where the total value falls within the authority level of the Finance Assistant

IV.  Safeguarding against requisitions being processed twice

V.  Checking and sending the purchase order, with VAT exemption certificate if appropriate, to the supplier

VI.  Acceptance and receipting of goods on delivery.

·  Ordering of stationery or other ad hoc supplies as required by the finance office.

Accounts payable:

·  Processing of invoices for payment, including checking delivery notes, against research grants or departmental funds. Safeguarding against invoices being paid twice.

·  Reconciliation of foreign currency invoices.

·  Dealing with banking transactions such as petty cash and cheque donations.

Accounts receivable:

·  Production of invoices as requested, ensuring appropriate records are maintained.

·  Dealing with internal recharges, e.g. photocopying, telephones etc.

General activities:

·  Collation, filing and photocopying/scanning information as required.

·  Dealing with claims for reimbursement of allowable expenses.

·  Maintaining a travel log, including a record of all mileage claims, to ensure tax regulations are complied with.

·  Dealing with all internal and external queries by letter, phone, fax and email.

·  Carrying out regular checks in line with agreed procedures, including the preparation and review of reports from Oracle (e.g. open orders, invoices on hold) and subsequent follow-up actions.

·  Opening and sorting finance office mail and distributing accordingly.

·  Proactively suggest, develop and implement systems to increase efficiency within the finance office.

·  Ensuring that all of the above duties are carried out in line with University Regulations, and keeping informed of any changes made to them.

·  Review monthly VAT transactions and submit Intrastat returns.

·  Ensuring regular liaison with the Accounts Officer and other members of the Finance Team to ensure the efficient running of all Finance Office operations.

·  To participate and contribute directly to group discussions and meetings.

·  To attend departmental meetings as appropriate.

·  To inform the Accounts Officer and the other senior management team members about progress or difficulties in providing services to internal and external stakeholders.

·  To act at all times in the interests of the Department to ensure good management practice.

·  To be accountable for their own professional conduct within the Department.

·  To maintain confidentiality.

·  To undertake other duties as may be required from time to time that are commensurate with the grade and responsibilities of the post.

·  To conduct him or herself with due regard to the University Equal Opportunities and Data Protection policies.

Selection criteria

Essential

·  Computer literate and proficient with computer based accountancy systems.

·  Customer focused.

·  Effective team working skills.

·  Experience of working within a finance office environment.

·  Experience working in a busy office and at meeting operational deadlines.

·  Ability to manage a large workload whilst maintaining a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail.

·  Ability to work on routine matters with little supervision.

·  Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

Desirable

·  Relevant experience within a University environment.

·  Previous Oracle financials experience.

Working at the University of Oxford

For further information about working at Oxford, please see:

www.ox.ac.uk/about_the_university/jobs/supportandtechnical/

Additional information

The post holder will be employed by The Gray Laboratory Cancer Research Trust, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The University of Oxford.

How to apply

To apply for this role, please send an application form, CV and supporting statement to:

Please provide details of two referees and indicate whether we can contact them at this stage.

The supporting statement should describe what you have been doing over at least the last 10 years. This may have been employment, education, or you may have taken time away from these activities in order to raise a family, care for a dependant, or travel for example. Your application will be judged solely on the basis of how you demonstrate that that you meet the selection criteria outlined above and we are happy to consider evidence of transferable skills or experience which you may have gained outside the context of paid employment or education.

All applications must be received by midday on 31 July 2015.

Gray Laboratory Cancer Research Trust

A wholly-owned subsidiary of the University of Oxford since 30 June 2006

Registered in England. Registered Office: University Offices, Wellington Square, Oxford OX1 2JD

Company No. 3020745/Not for profit/Limited by guarantee