UNC's Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (OVCR) supports a research enterprise approximately $1.6 billion in total research activity. The Assistant Vice Chancellor, Research Business Operations (AVC-RBO) provides senior leadership for the financial and operational infrastructure that supports this enterprise, including Research Finance and Business Operations, Research Human Resources, the Office of Research Information Systems, and Research Space Planning. The position reports to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Research Operations, Protections, and Security, with dotted line to the Vice Chancellor for Research, and works closely with OVCR senior leaders, and University partners to align business operations with institutional research priorities.
The AVC-RBO develops and maintains the multi-year financial forecast for the research enterprise, including projected sponsored funding growth, indirect cost recovery, workforce and space needs, and capital investment requirements. The role provides leadership for F&A strategy, rate development and negotiation, resource-allocation modeling, data analytics, and business intelligence, and builds the financial and resource cases supporting major research investments. The position also partners with OVCR's revenue-generating units and affiliated centers and institutes to provide financial modeling and sustainability analysis supporting research growth.
The AVC-RBO has line authority over Research Finance and Business Operations, Research Human Resources, the Office of Research Information Systems, and Research Space Planning, including supervision and development of the leaders responsible for those functions. Day-to-day transactional and operational responsibilities remain with the respective functional leaders; the AVC-RBO establishes strategic direction, priorities, performance expectations, and the financial and operational framework within which those functions operate.