Operational Excellence Research Work Group

1. Operational ExcellenceResearch Work Group Presentation to Academic Senate Committee on Research September 13, 2010

2. Work Group Charge • Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of pre award research administration

3. OE Redesign Approach • Develop principles for redesign • Design ideal process flow for federal proposals taking into account role of PI, Cluster RSA, OSR and Department • Design ideal process flow for complex proposals • Identify policies that impede the process and make recommendations for changes • Drill down in specific areas • Award set up, Identify Funding Opportunities, Approvals • Design organization structure • Determine positions, job families, training, certification levels, and tools

4. Principles for Redesign • Single point of contact for PI who will be: • Proactive, Creative, Solution-oriented, and Customer-centric • Knowledgeable, Professional, Accountable, and Diligent • Efficient and Timely • Streamlined and Standardized Process with a foundation based on reasonable, rational and balanced approaches to research administration • Eliminate Duplication of Effort and Non Value Added work • Harmonize Process, Policy and Technology • Align Accountability with Responsibility, and be transparent • Utilize Process Automation and Workflow tools to accelerate operations and empower administrators

5. Work Group Recommendations To Date • Train cluster staff on using COS and have them play an active role in helping PI identify new funding opportunities • Delegate institutional signature authority for federal grant and fellowship proposals to the cluster staff • Streamline process and reduce number of approvals by delegating Dean’s approval to Department Chair for: • Proposals • PI Status Waivers • Relinquish/Transfer Awards • Fund Advance Request • Proposed approvals required in Schools/Departments to be reduced to a two level approval when only one department involved: either the Chair and PI or the Chair’s delegate and the PI, for those large departments with divisions.

6. Work Group Recommendations, cont’d • Redesign the award set up process to reduce redundancies and improve timeliness; consolidate activities in one unit. • Align job families/classification with required training and certification levels • Developing a basic set of training requirements for all research administrators

7. Post Award Progress • The OE Finance work group is looking at PI Portfolio Management and Reporting • Funds included are Sponsored Funds, Clinical Trials, PI “owned” gifts and endowments and PI “owned” discretionary funds, but not including any funds owned by the Department • Potential processes for a cluster include: • PI Portfolio Reports • Acct. Reconciliation • Prepare cost transfers, PETs and other Journals • Initiate Carry-forward request • Procurement approval • Initiate & adjust payroll • Billing/AR for clinical trials • Access Administrator • Close out process • Financial reporting including FSR’s • Billing & collection

8. Faculty Involvement • Presentations: • Research Administration Board • Academic Senate Committee on Research • School of Nursing Dean’s Council • Met with two liaisons from Dean’s Faculty Advisory Committee and will continue to meet with them monthly • Meeting with Dept Chairs/MSOs of high volume research depts • Biochemistry, OB/Gyn, Radiology,Neurology • Managers on OE Work Group are presenting at their department faculty meetings • Scheduling meetings with faculty in Schools of Pharmacy and Dentistry

9. Next Steps • Develop the organizational structure for the cluster • Determine how to pilot cluster • Identify options for how to charge for pre award services

10. OE Research Work Group