Mapping an Electronic Research Administration System

1. Mapping an Electronic Research Administration System Discussion and Review Points for UC Davis

2. Critical Considerations • 1) Policy and Procedures • 2) Staffing and Infrastructure • 3) Campus Culture and Structure • 4) Regulatory Environment • 5) Existing Technology

3. Process (Researcher) Idea Conception  Source of Funds  Sponsor  Collaborators (UC Davis / External)  Proposal Development  Budget Development  Forms Completion  Approval

4. Process (continued) Approval Submission  Award / Project Set-up  Project Implementation  Budget Oversight Project Renewal  CLOSE OUT

5. Research Administration Process Grants Information  Proposal Development Assistance  Proposal Review 1) Format / Forms 2) Sponsor Requirements 3) Budget 4) Compliance

6. Research Admin Process (cont.) Proposal Approval  Proposal Data Tracking  Proposal Submission  Award Acceptance / Negotiation (Tracking)  Award Set up  Project Monitoring  PROJECT CLOSE OUT

7. Units Involved • Departments/ Colleges/ ORU’s • Sponsored Projects • Technology Transfer • Grants/Contracts Accounting • Business Contracts • Compliance (OHRP, Animals, COI, EHS etc.)

8. Basic Requirements (all units) • Integrated Information Tracking • Data Synthesis • Report Generation • Education and Training

9. Considerations • Cost / funding available • Functionality & ease of use • Timeline – when can types of functionality be made available? • UC System requirements • Federal Sponsor requirements

10. Question • Build or Buy? • BUY: • People Soft – not a consideration • Banner – not a consideration • Orac10le – not a consideration • InfoEd • Coeus • GAMS • BUILD: • Expand DaFIS (In collaboration with Indiana University)

11. Survey of Other UC Campuses • What UC Campuses Are Doing: • Purchased ERA systems – 5 • UCB – Coeus, UCLA – Coeus, UCR – Coeus, UCSD – Coeus, UCSF – PeopleSoft • Recently built ERA systems (UCI, UCSC) – 2 • Reviewing possible ERA systems (UCD, UCSB) – 2

12. Discussion Points: High-level Criteria • Criteria for High-level Assessment include • Capacity to integrate with DaFIS • Capacity to integrate with MyUCDavis • Web-based architecture • Campus-level security – authentication, clear-text encryption, and authorization

13. Discussion Points:Top Functional Criteria • Mac and PC desktop compatibility • Sponsor guidelines compatibility • Federal • Non-profit • Corporate • 24x7 end-user access • Collaborative proposal development within the system • Integration with Compliance Boards, e.g. Human Subjects, Vertebrate Animals, Conflict of Interests, Environmental Health and Safety, etc.

14. Discussion Points:Top Functional Criteria, Con’t • Routing and approval workflow within the system • Electronic proposal submission according to sponsor guidelines • Award management, including electronic award acceptance, budget modifications, submission to Accounting • “Cradle to Grave” functionality, including proposal and budget preparation, routing, approval, award tracking, and the like • Report generation: financials, progress, intellectual property, equipment, and ad hoc statistical reports for campus management

15. The Benefits of Expanding DaFIS to Include C&G Functionality • A common database for populating or validating initial proposal information. • PI information (payroll title, employee ID, telephone, email, etc.). • Administration information (department/unit, dept. contact, telephone, etc.). • Sponsor information (ID, name, address, etc.). • Indirect cost rate information. • Budget object codes. • Existing proposal information for revision requests. • Existing award information for continuation requests. • Proposal tracking ID.

16. DaFIS Benefits (cont.) • Ease of transferring information into financial account structure when award is funded. • Award amounts & budget information. • Beginning & ending dates. • PI’s, Co-PI’s, Associates information. • Information about safety, vertebrate animal protocols, human subject protocols, equipment purchases, subcontracting, matching funds, etc. • Invoicing information. • Close-out requirements. • Electronic access to Proposal and Award documents.

17. DaFIS Benefits (cont.) • Consistent workflow throughout the lifecycle of the award. • One inbox. • One place to track status of proposal, award, funding, spending. • One process/workflow could extend across many administrative units. Including: • Multiple departments. • Protocol committees. • OVCR. • Extramural Accounting. • Business Contracts. • Purchasing. • Equipment management.

18. DaFIS Benefits (cont.) • Functionality consistent with other administrative (financial, business contracts, etc.) responsibilities. • Most departmental C&G (and Business Contracts) administrators also have DaFIS responsibilities. • Predictable usability and on-line help minimizes the system learning curve. • Built-in tier-1 system support structure. • Dedicated database & systems administration. • Physical and database security. • Regular hardware replacement. • Client Services support (Help Desk, classroom training, web-based learning resources). • Reduced cost with economies of scale.

19. DaFIS Benefits (cont.) • Design control for UCD-specific functionality. • Unique relationships between Proposal, Award, OP Fund, and DaFIS Account. • Custom workflow needs. • Data access/security. • Design control for implementation options. • Quick hits can be designed for early release. • Proposal data sheet (possibly based on IU ERA). • Simple routing/notification. • More functionality can be phased in as developed. • Complex routing rules. • Electronic proposal budget development (i.e. IU ERA). • Electronic document management. • Electronic proposal submission.