Erica Stewart
Atlanta,GA
Summary
Motivated, results driven, and personable business professional with a record of leading successful projects incorporating a wide range of technologies. Driven to clearly understand the needs and challenges faced by state, tribal, local, and territorial, health departments and community-based organizations to develop successful solutions that enhance their business while achieving their budgeting and operational requirements. Accustomed to handling sensitive, confidential records. A solutions provider and natural team leader who consistently earns the confidence of peers/customers through delivery of superior support during and after every engagement. Exceptional work ethic and commitment to organizational objectives ensure that I continually exceed expectations and maintain the highest levels of customer satisfaction.
Overview
31
31
years of professional experience
6
6
years of post-secondary education
Work History
Supervisory Grants Management Specialist
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
08.2021 - Current
- Serve as a Team Lead and Grants Management Officer (GMO) in the Office of Grants Services (OGS). Oversight and coordination of over 500 complex grants and cooperative agreements. Serve as a technical authority and resource in communicating with award recipients and federal staff on all matters concerning financial mechanisms.
- Supervise grants management team, offering technical and administrative oversight and support. Coaching and professional development.
- Received awards for leadership and collaboration in the administration of funding, totaling more than $6.5 billion to more than 140 unique recipients.
- Subject Matter Expert (SME) in interpreting, developing, and applying appropriate regulations, policies and procedures relating to financial assistance mechanisms. Provide guidance to CDC project officers, public health program and grant officials. Assess compliance, allowability, reasonableness, allocability, necessity on activities including procurement, make recommendations and approvals on all financial assistance mechanisms.
- Coordinate and prepare presentations and memos for supervisor and officials. Participate in the development and review of policy and procedural issuances.
- Using Power BI, monitor, create ad hoc reports, export data and report on the status work to ensure that the supervisor’s instructions on work priorities, methods, deadlines, and quality have been met.
- Serve on interview panels, review CVs, train and develop staff. Maintain records of work accomplishments and administrative information as required.
- Balance workload and tasks among employees in accordance with established workflow, skill level and/or occupational specialization to ensure timely accomplishment of assigned organizational tasks; and ensured that each employee had an integral role in developing the final team product.
- Guide administrative aspects of partnership agreements.
- Monitor and analyze changing laws, regulations and policies pertaining to grants.
Grants Management Specialist
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
11.2012 - 07.2021
- Promoted in 2018 to Grants Management Officer with delegated financial assistance authority (FAA).
- Managed complex, multi-year non-research domestic and international awards from concept to closeout for state, tribal, local governments, U.S. territories & community-based organizations in accordance with the Code of Federal Regulations, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Grants Policy Administration Manual, and Audit Requirements for HHS Awards and the terms of CDC grants/cooperative agreements.
- Earned Quality Step Increases, Monetary & Time-Off Awards, Kudos from peers and CDC Program Offices due to of my contributions to CDC’s mission.
- Compiled data necessary for performing complex financial analysis of grant awards, formulation of budget estimates and participated with program staff in the planning, development, and review of grant funding requirements.
- Reviewed and coordinated the business management activities related to the audit finding resolution with accepted government accounting standards.
- Facilitated and presented at meetings and conferences to provide expert knowledge of required agency policies, federal laws, and regulations.
- Monitor recipients’ financial activities to ensure compliance with Federal laws and Agency requirements. Review and approve Federal Financial Reports for completeness and accuracy. Post award monitoring of awardees including site visits to ensure adherence to all Federal and Agency requirements.
- Performed pre-award and post award site visits to determine applicants’ capabilities to manage Federal funds and progress during performance period.
- Mentored junior Grants Management Specialists (GMS) providing guidance and workflow oversight. Reviewed and signed awards and post award actions for junior GMS.
- Served as Chair for GMO Forum to review, evaluate and improve existing processes within OGS.
- Served as Champion on GrantSolutions Grants Management Module (GMM) Recipient Insight Training Program Workgroup
Grants Closeout Specialist
Jamison Professional Services
10.2008 - 09.2012
- Supported the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Procurement and Grant Office (PGO) with public health post award activities for grants and Cooperative Agreements (CoAgs) including Research, Non-Research, Earmark, Block, and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
- Served as liaison between the Government and recipient organization. Subject Matter Expert (SME) of closeout activities.
- Assisted PGO Grants Management Specialists with post award activities to complete the grant life cycle: forecasting, carryovers, no-cost extensions, and technical review approvals for awards using eRA Commons.
- Retrieved, interpreted, and uploaded documents such as budget plans, performance reports, Federal Financial Status Reports (FFR425), requisitions, and amendments from award recipients, Project Officers, Principal Investigators, Business Officials, Program, and Accounting offices to STAR database.
- Prepared closeout account reconciliation requests for submission to FMO for processing de-obligation of remaining award funds to be returned to the US Department of Treasury or begin collection activities.
Contracts Manager
International Business Machines (IBM)
04.2000 - 10.2009
- Served as the primary point of contact for managing daily account activities for State and Local Government accounts, providing comprehensive account management. Provided technical and administrative support in data warehousing and inventory management, focusing on project and contract management for IBM hardware maintenance and software licensing.
- Responsibilities included managing fixed-price, cost-plus fixed fee, and hybrid IT contracts for various agencies, acted as a liaison between clients and cross-functional teams for contract billing inquiries and disputes. Contract implementation, pre- and post-award functions, reviewed task orders and purchase orders, and processed change requests through relevant databases.
- Financial contract analysis, reviewed competitive losses, recommended corrective actions, and conducted meetings with contractors on sensitive issues. Developed queries using Hyperion and SQL/QMF for financial and inventory analysis, generated monthly reports on key metrics for sales executives.
- Provided analysis and support for account reconciliation, forecasting, and variance reporting, and conducted training on contract management tools to staff and clients. As an interim team leader, managed team workload, led meetings, and coordinated with clients on contract registration and invoicing.
- Data management analyst, utilizing various technologies to analyze data quality and effectiveness across departments. Collaborated with cross-functional teams on system redesign and quality management, developed reports to aid management decision-making and led projects to streamline processes and reduce duplicate efforts
- Tracked contracts for management and issued regular tracking reports covering current status and upcoming milestones.
- Monitored contracts' performance to detect non-compliance with terms and deficient returns and organize proactive resolutions.
- Compiled required documentation to keep contracts compliant with [Type] requirements.
- Interpreted contact terms and coordinated solutions to resolve disputes between clients and service providers.
Help Desk Analyst
IBM
01.1997 - 01.2000
- Remote technical support for enterprise services, point of sale, consumer desktops, and field engineers.
- End user support for software implementation and maintenance of network and system services; remote monitoring of network and system performance; and troubleshoot problems as they arise.
- Conducted integrated analysis of multiple audit logs (e.g. firewall, Web server) to identify conflicts and errors.
- Maintained database operations, assist in Emergency Preparedness and restore network to normal operations.
Field Service Engineer
IBM
01.1995 - 01.1997
- Onsite installation, software implementation, problem determination and resolution for Point of Sale services and equipment. Installed, tested, and configured networks.
- Tested and debugged programs to insure system compatibility.
- Advised and assisted clients with computer software and hardware upgrades and specifications.
Education
MBA -
University of Phoenix
Atlanta, GA 08.2013 - 12.2015
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration
University of Phoenix
Atlanta, GA 08.2013 - 05.2017
Skills
- Project Management
- Account Management
- Contract Management
- Grants Management
- Business Process Analysis
- Inventory Reconciliation
- Dispute Management
- Research & Analysis
- Financial Account Reconciliation
Accomplishments
Exemplifies professionalism and consistently provides innovative solutions to challenges, demonstrating extensive knowledge and attention to detail. Identifies strategies that enhance budgeting and financial allocation efficiencies, fostering a culture of adaptability and teamwork. Leadership has facilitated immediate financial support and reinforced resilience during urgent situations. Proactively engages the team in suggesting process improvements and sharing vital information, earning the trust of clients and partners during annual meetings while addressing significant knowledge gaps among staff. Effectively implements plans to prioritize requests and avoid disruptions in program execution.
Strong research and communication skills have helped prevent issues while expediting actions. Consistently exceeded expectations in assignments, notably resolving a complex $1.6 million discrepancy for a grant program by gathering relevant documentation and facilitating informed decisions.
During a 3-day comprehensive training session for award recipients, answered questions and enhanced their understanding of roles and responsibilities, receiving positive feedback from both CDC staff and participants. Close collaboration with various teams ensured accurate fund allocation, and has provided one-on-one technical assistance to nearly 50 grant recipients, clarifying award terms and conducting training on cost principles.
Plays a crucial role in enabling recipients to implement programs that strengthen public health infrastructure. Collaborated with colleagues to address recipients' concerns, allowing them to continue their programs and utilize funds effectively.
Through meticulous planning and coordination, led her team to significantly reduce post-award delays, enabling timely fund allocation to local health departments. Leadership and planning skills helped mitigate the risk of layoffs at state and local levels, ensuring preparedness for public health and emergency response activities.
Timeline
Supervisory Grants Management Specialist
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
08.2021 - Current
MBA -
University of Phoenix
08.2013 - 12.2015
Bachelor of Science - Business Administration
University of Phoenix
08.2013 - 05.2017
Grants Management Specialist
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
11.2012 - 07.2021
Grants Closeout Specialist
Jamison Professional Services
10.2008 - 09.2012
Contracts Manager
International Business Machines (IBM)
04.2000 - 10.2009
Help Desk Analyst
IBM
01.1997 - 01.2000
Field Service Engineer
IBM
01.1995 - 01.1997