About ISAB
The Institute for the Science of the Aging Brain, ISAB, is a newly established research institute in St. Gallen dedicated to advancing biomedical research and teaching in the field of brain aging and neurodegenerative disease. ISAB's mission is to support high-quality basic, translational and clinical research into the causes, progression, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and other disorders of the nervous system.
To support the growth of the institute and the successful management of its research portfolio, we are looking for a highly organised, proactive and service-oriented Grant Manager.
The role
As Grant Manager, you will play a central role in supporting ISAB's researchers, leadership and administrative partners across the full grant lifecycle. You will help identify and coordinate funding opportunities, support the preparation and submission of proposals, monitor budgets, ensure timely reporting to funders, and contribute to the development of efficient administrative and financial processes for a growing research institute.
This position is ideal for someone who enjoys working at the interface of research, finance, administration and institutional development, and who is comfortable taking ownership in a dynamic academic environment.
Areas of responsibility
Grant and research-project management
You will coordinate and support the preparation and submission of grant applications to public, university-based and private funding bodies. This includes administrative coordination of submissions through platforms such as mySNF, ProposalCentral and other funder portals; collecting required documents; monitoring deadlines; supporting proposal budgets; and ensuring that applications are complete and compliant with funder requirements.
You will manage the administrative side of awarded grants, including grant agreements, reporting obligations, financial reports, timelines for scientific project reports, and communication with researchers and funders. You will maintain an overview of active and upcoming funding deadlines and help establish reliable systems for grant tracking, compliance and renewal planning.
Financial administration and budgeting
You will support budget monitoring and financial control across ISAB's research portfolio, including personnel budgets, project budgets and longer-term budget planning. You will coordinate invoice workflows, review supplier invoices formally and materially, and work closely with researchers, technical staff, fiduciary partners and funders to ensure smooth financial and organisational processes.
You will also contribute to annual closing processes, financial reporting to funding bodies, and the preparation of budget overviews for institute leadership.
Building ISAB's administrative structures
As ISAB is in a phase of establishment and growth, you will help develop and implement administrative and financial processes, templates, workflows and internal structures. You will support the onboarding of the new institute with existing funders and funding institutions and contribute to a professional, scalable research-administration environment.
General institute administration and reporting
You will coordinate institutional reporting, including the annual report and reporting to the Foundation Board. You will administer ISAB's publication list, help maintain databases related to funder acknowledgements in scientific publications, and support updates to the ISAB website. You may also act as deputy for selected HR-related administrative tasks and support general institute administration where needed.
Your profile
You have experience in grant management, research administration, scientific coordination, project administration, finance, or a comparable role in an academic, biomedical, non-profit, foundation or university environment. You understand the importance of deadlines, compliance, careful documentation and constructive collaboration with scientists.
You are highly organised, precise and reliable, with the ability to manage several parallel processes and deadlines. You communicate clearly with researchers, administrative partners, funders and external service providers, and you are comfortable working independently in a mostly remote setup.
Experience with research funding bodies, especially the Swiss National Science Foundation, university funders, private foundations or international biomedical funders, would be a strong asset. Familiarity with grant portals such as mySNF or ProposalCentral is also desirable.
You should bring strong budget and Excel skills, good judgement in financial and administrative matters, and the ability to translate complex requirements into clear processes. Excellent English is required; German is highly desirable, particularly for communication with Swiss partners, funders and service providers.
What we offer
We offer a varied and meaningful position at a growing biomedical research institute with an ambitious scientific mission. You will work closely with leading researchers and institutional leadership and will have the opportunity to shape administrative and grant-management processes from an early stage.
The position is designed to be mostly remote, with approximately one day per week on site in St. Gallen considered sufficient for coordination, meetings and relationship-building. We offer a flexible working environment, a high level of autonomy, and the opportunity to contribute directly to the development of ISAB as a new research institution.