Research support systems
New IT systems for research support will be purchased this year, including new software to help staff manage grants. The tender for suppliers is underway.
Briefing Note - April 2009
Overview
Following extensive consultations with staff, the University has approved recommendations for substantial changes to research and enterprise & knowledge transfer support systems and processes. The main areas of investment are:
- A new system to support costing, pricing and ethical review which will replace COSTA and provide significant additional functionality;
- The development of new user reports and improvement to existing reports facilitated by upgrading the University's research management information (MIS);
- Simplified user interaction with SAP at post award, including moving from SAP Grants Management to SAP Projects.
Thank you to all who have contributed to the work done so far. The Project Team will continue to work closely with users, and will keep you informed of key developments. The investment being made in research and EKT support will help the University to achieve its world-class aspirations.
Benefits to Research
The key reasons driving the investment in this project are to:
- Support the University's ambitious plans for growth in research income by providing a high quality and efficient system
- Accommodate EU and 'research-like' enterprise & knowledge transfer grants
- Develop one system underpinned by one process to support collaborative working, removing the need for locally maintained systems
- Improve costing practices, leading to greater transparency in costs and increased recoveries from sponsors
- Develop flexibility to support longer, larger and collaborative grants, with financial transparency for all schools/faculties involved
- Improve efficiency of research support processes
- Improve speed of costing and pricing process
- Improve speed of grant set-up
- Embed risk management into processes
- Improve data quality to support reporting/grant management
- Improve research reporting and provide user friendly grant reports clearly detailing the financial status of grants including staff commitments
Milestone Dates
Easter 2009 - Tender for costing, pricing and ethics system issued to suppliers
Summer 2009 - Appoint supplier for costing, pricing, and ethics system
Mid 2010 - Systems go live
If you would like any more information about the Research Support Process programme of work, please feel free to contact myself, Julie Leopold or Gill Harrison from the Project Team:
m.r.ferraby@adm.leeds.ac.uk - ext 38880
j.k.leopold@adm.leeds.ac.uk - ext 38881
g.e.harrison@leeds.ac.uk - ext 36051