Archive for the ‘Management’ Category

Introduction to Management Series

Jun 4th, 09 / 0 Comments

Stephen Covey identifies eight traits found in effective leaders in his book Principle-Centered Leadership. Covey declares that the number one characteristic of a great leader is that they are continually learning. In this day and age, it can be a challenge to align ourselves with the right teachers who can provide us with the instruction and resources needed to maturate our leadership abilities.

Our hope is to foster your growth as an administrator and provide you with management tools from Asa Beavers, Solutions Provider and Coach. Asa has written our next series of blogs in which he offers teaching regarding successful leadership, management, and team building. The next series of articles includes:

1. A Formula for Success
2. Aligning Your Team with Vision
3. Best Leaders as Followers
4. Working like a Team

Many times as grant, research, or college administrators, we are placed in positions that require education not learned in our college textbooks. We at IT Works wish to inspire you and cultivate your abilities. Perhaps we can offer insight to an area in which you need to grow.

Posted by Jim Wrenn, June 4, 2009, blogger@itworks-inc.com

Management

A Formula for Success

Jun 11th, 09 / 1 Comment

Why does success appear to come so easy to some people and is so elusive for others? I believe that we all inherently strive to be successful in some area of our lives whether it is in our work, our relationships, our financials, our sports, our hobbies, or whatever. Yet for some it comes so naturally while others struggle their entire life seeking success. Is it the college or university we attend? Is it who you know? Is it that successful people are just luckier? Or is there a formula that anyone can follow that will lead to more success?

As grant management administrators, we will be challenged to lead within our organizations. Achieving success requires taking a look at what other successful people do.

People who strive for success, but have difficulty finding it are often focused on what they have or don’t have. They are in a hurry to get the fruits of their labor and if it doesn’t come quick enough they become frustrated and sometimes give up.

In our Formula for Success HAVE is about RESULTS. Results are earned only after doing something, and doing it right, sometimes over and over, until the desired result is achieved. So in order to have what we desire we have to do something in order to earn it.

In our Formula for Success DO is about ACTION. Not just any actions, but doing the right things right. Sometimes it takes a while to learn what the right things are, so we need to adjust our actions in order to achieve our desired results. But doing nothing, or being unwilling to change the things we are doing, will certainly limit our ability to find success. The most important thing that differentiates a successful person from one still seeking success is what lies between their ears. That’s right, it’s how they think.

In our Formula for Success BE is about THOUGHTS. In order to be a person of success you must learn to think like a person of success. You must develop the identity, beliefs and values of a successful person. We’ve all heard of the lottery winner who, within three years, lost the several million he won. He didn’t become the “millionaire.”

In order to have a strong organization, you must learn to think like great administrators think, do the things that great administrators do, and develop your identity, beliefs and values to mirror those of other great leaders. Then you will BE a great administrator yourself, DO the right things right, and HAVE the rewards that are due you. And by the way, the Formula for Success is a multiplication problem which means if BE or DO equals ZERO, then HAVE will equal zero as well. Being without doing, or doing without being will limit your ability to find success.
Posted by Asa Beavers, June 11, 2009, blogger@itworks-inc.com

Management

Aligning Your Team With Vision

Jun 18th, 09 / 0 Comments

When I work with administrators, I often hear that the main challenge stifling their organization is finding the right people and then managing them successfully. Consider this there are three C’s on the road to success: Clarity, Congruency, and Consistency. Now apply these to the vision and mission of your organization.

What is the vision of your college, university, or research institute? Is this vision clear, is it large enough, is it enrolling? Is the vision congruent with who you are and with your personal life vision? Finally, are your actions consistently moving you and your organization toward the fulfillment of that vision?

The first step in creating a team that is aligned with your organization’’s objectives is to make sure that you are clear as to what those are and you are powerfully communicating them to your team. We all want an organization that is moving forward in a leveraged way to achieve its goals and vision, and it is absolutely vital to have a team on board that shares in those objectives.

Do you know the goals of your individual team members? Having alignment between the goals of the individual team members and the organization will create synergistic results. You will be tapping into the full human potential of each member of your organization. You will spend less time fighting individuals to get them to deliver or perform, and have fewer internal employee conflicts. Results will flow with harmony and ease as the organization’s success furthers each individual’s success.

By investing time in the coaching and management of your team to gain clarity, congruency, and consistency around the vision and objectives for your organization, and aligning them with individual’s personal goals and visions, you can create a loyal team – committed to the mission of the organization.

Posted by Asa Beavers, June 18, 2009, blogger@itworksinc.com

Management

Grant Management Accountability & Planning

May 26th, 10 / 0 Comments

Last week, we looked at some of the initial steps involved in managing a grant from the planning process. This week, we continue with a closer look at the planning process as well as what is involved in designing a grant scheme for accountability purposes. The following is a list comprised of 15 questions to consider when planning a grant. [adopted from the Best Practice Guide for the Administration of Grants]

Grant Management Accountability & Planning Checklist [source]

  • Are the aims and objectives of the grant properly articulated?
  • Are the eligibility criteria clearly and easily understood?
  • Have appropriate input/output/impact performance measures been established?
  • Are the performance measures generally accepted, comparable and sufficient for users needs?
  • Are the performance measures quick and economic to produce?
  • Have the total costs been estimated?
  • Have administrative and other costs (as well as possible consequential changes) been taken into account?
  • Has sufficient time been allowed to set up the grant scheme?
  • Are there any special local circumstances or constraints?
  • Are there other grant schemes with are likely to conflict?
  • What consultation is necessary and what can be learned from other grant schemes?
  • Do the basic rules avoid waste and fraud?
  • Does the grant scheme comply with Government and agency policies?
  • Who is accountable for what, how and to whom?
  • Is there adequate access being provided to all interested groups?

Next week, we’ll take a look at how to better manage grant monies. If you have a topic you’d like to hear us discuss in depth or to voice your thoughts on grant management, leave a comment below. For more information about software for grant management, visit our website.

Management, Managing a Grant Pipeline

Managing Money: 10 Ways IT Works is Helping College Administrators

Jun 2nd, 10 / 1 Comment

As you can tell by looking at the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) latest information on the federal funding of the research and development and R&D plant components of the US federal agency programs, you will find that managing money is a precise and sometimes complex job.  And especially where college administrators are involved, the scrupulous use and allocation of grant funds is often the backbone of successful research and development projects that are ongoing at colleges, universities and research hospitals around the United States.

Today, colleges and universities around the United States (as well as the world) are extremely dependent upon their college administrators to help keep the day-to-day campus functions running smoothly. College administrators have many responsibilities and often oversee budgeting issues that range from financial aid matters to employee compensation. With that said, IT Works offers university and college administrators the following highlights from their College Administrator’s Accounting Module:

10 Ways IT Works is Helping College Administrators

  1. Provide easy to interpret reports to faculty and senior administrators
  2. Obtain better control of account and project expenditures
  3. Increase office efficiency
  4. Set quality control standards
  5. Project and encumber personnel costs from multiple funding sources
  6. Manage special commitments & information unique to your department, with user-defined coding systems
  7. Electronically interface to your college or university financial system
  8. Allow simultaneous data access to multiple users
  9. Comprehensive, multi-level security system
  10. Obtain training, continuous user support, and software modifications to meet unique departmental needs

For more information about accounting and financial management, visit our website.

Management

Managing Re-Charge Centers and Research Service Facilities: An Introduction

Jun 9th, 10 / 0 Comments

Recently, Jim Wrenn, President and CEO of IT Works and Rebecca Vandall, Director of New Program Development and Strategic Partnerships at SRA International, held a seminar entitled Managing Re-charge Centers and Research Service Facilities. The next several blog posts will cover material which was outlined during the seminar.

Purpose of Seminar:

  1. To identify and monitor facility costs
  2. To identify problems that undermine standard business practices (such as inconsistent billing practices, delinquent payments, and inaccurate financial reports) and explain how to handle them.
  3. To develop and implement scheduling, billing, and collection systems for the facility.
  4. To design consolidated profit/loss and other financial statements to aid in the management of the facility.

Who is This Seminar For?

  • All levels of research administration professionals in research intensive institutions
  • Administrators in basic science departments
  • Specialized research labs and centers (i.e. cancer centers, marine biology labs & genome science institutes)

Re-Charge Centers Defined:

Also known as “Charge Back Centers; Cost Centers; Service Centers; and Research Service Facilities, Recharge Centers are defined as organizational units that provide goods and services to investigators and other users within the research community. Users are primarily other university operational units and secondarily external users. Services are often highly specialized and involve the use of capital equipment specifically designed for a particular research purpose. Some examples of Re-Charge Centers include the following:

  • NMR Scanners
  • Immunohisochemistry
  • Transgenic Mice
  • Confocal Microscope
  • And others

Uses for Re-Charge Centers

In addition to providing goods and services to investigators, a recharge center charges users for its goods and services and is frequently housed within a university department. Because recharge centers are usually funded by a combination of funds stemming from such places as infrastructure grants, and revenue collected from the services provided, the management of these facilities requires administrators to implement business practices that cover the following in order to ensure the successful operation of the facility:

  • Complex personnel
  • Quality assurance
  • Billing
  • Collection
  • Accounting Issues

For more information about questions regarding this seminar, contact Rebecca at rvandall@srainternational.org or Jim Wrenn at wrennj@itworks-inc.com.

Management

Managing Re-Charge Centers and Research Service Facilities: Justification and Requirements

Jun 16th, 10 / 0 Comments

Recently, Jim Wrenn, President and CEO of IT Works and Rebecca Vandall, Director of New Program Development and Strategic Partnerships at SRA International, held a seminar entitled Managing Re-charge Centers and Research Service Facilities. The next several blog posts will provide an outline of material that was covered during the seminar.

Justifying a Re-Charge Center

In order to justify whether or not a recharge center needs to exist, the following questions must be addressed:

  • Does the service fit the mission of your organization?
  • Are there other units providing the same or similar services?
  • How long will the products/services be in demand?
  • What is the expected level of activity, and when will it be reached?
  • What is the financial plan for the center?
  • Can your organization survive without it?

University Requirements

  • Complex and specific services not otherwise readily available
  • Minimum annual billing requirements and charges to grants

Government Requirements

  • Billing rates should recover direct and indirect costs of providing products or services
  • Billing rates cannot discriminate between federal and non federal sponsors. Outside customers may be billed more.
  • Operate on fiscal year basis
  • Calculation and review of billing rates
  • Establishment of operating accounts

Operating the Center

  • Department administrator responsibilities (typically responsible for coordinating with Principal Investigators, the Department Head/Chair and other administrative personnel in order to provide financial and administrative advice on various projects.)
  • Preparing and administering budgets
  • Developing and supporting billing rate schedules
  • Record keeping
  • Determining allowable costs
  • Invoicing requirements
  • Support audit requests
  • Allowable working capital
  • Separation of multiple services (i.e. You cannot take the profits from one recharge center and use it to supplement losses from another one. You cannot merge one with the other.)

For more information about Facility/Re-Charge Center Management or for questions regarding this seminar, contact Rebecca at rvandall@srainternational.org or Jim Wrenn at wrennj@itworks-inc.com.

Management, Research Scientists

Managing Re-Charge Centers and Research Service Facilities: Billing Rates

Jun 23rd, 10 / 0 Comments

Recently, Jim Wrenn, President and CEO of IT Works and Rebecca Vandall, Director of New Program Development and Strategic Partnerships at SRA International, held a seminar entitled Managing Re-charge Centers and Research Service Facilities. The next several blog posts will provide an outline of material that was covered during the seminar.

Establishing and Revising Billing Rates

  • Defining cost recovery: “The recoupment of the purchase price of a capital or qualified asset through depreciation over a prescribed period” [source]
  • How long would it take the work to reach its maximum level?
  • How much work will be performed by that facility? (This will depend on the type of research being done at the facility.
  • Look at what your budget expenses are (prior year under/over recoveries) divided by expected volume of work performed.
  • Billing units may be expressed in units of output, labor hours, machine time or other measurement.
  • Rates for external users may include costs associated with facilities and administrative (indirect costs).
  • Track internal versus external charges separately in order to avoid the perception of overcharging.
  • Use a separate Direct Charge account for subsidized users.

Standard Billing & Collection Procedures

  • Complete invoice only after work is completed.
  • Work is charged according to predefined billing rates: University Rates; Outside University Rates; Track Rates Historically.
  • A detailed invoice should be generated, including the following: Itemized list of charges and rates; Track who received the work; How to pay for it: info@b5media.com
  • A monthly billing cycle should also be generated.

Example of How to Track Billing Rates:

Item/Service | Rate Group | Rate | Start Date | End Date

Invoices Should Include the Following:

  • Billing address for facility
  • Date invoiced
  • List of items or services that were performed
  • Instructions on how to pay for invoice (which will vary from university to university, regarding how the accountant will pay for work that is charged)
  • Identifying direct account prior to purchase
  • Past due invoice collection: [Frequency; Who collects (better to have administrator collect because he has better access to the university accounting system, and  it also has to do with a quality assurance issue); Discontinuation of services

Dates to Monitor

  • Work scheduled, started, and completion dates (month that invoice is completed is what is going to drive the invoice)
  • Invoice date
  • Payment date
  • Past due date (Unpaid invoices are an audit problem!)

Managing money is a critical factor in any Re-Charge Center structure, and one which should not be overlooked. Establishing billing rates will assist recharge centers in retaining accurate documentation as well as assist them in processing any billings in a timely manner. Setting up a system that supports any charges that are made, including documentation of various expenses and uses should be retained by the recharge center in the even of an audit.

For more information about Facility/Re-Charge Center Management or for questions regarding this seminar, contact Rebecca at rvandall@srainternational.org or Jim Wrenn at wrennj@itworks-inc.com.

Management, Research Scientists

Managing Re-Charge Centers and Research Service Facilities: Center Rules

Jun 30th, 10 / 0 Comments

Recently, Jim Wrenn, President and CEO of IT Works and Rebecca Vandall, Director of New Program Development and Strategic Partnerships at SRA International, held a seminar entitled Managing Re-charge Centers and Research Service Facilities. The next several blog posts will provide an outline of material that was covered during the seminar.

Understanding the Center

When discussing the recharge center and its overall role, it is important to remember that the recharge center is a business. According to recent statistics, businesses with fewer than twenty employees only have a 37% chance of surviving more than four years. Additionally, only four percent of businesses in the United States will gross above $1 million in revenue each year. That said, what is the main item separating the successful businesses from those that are unsuccessful?

Successful businesses have financial plans.

Other questions to keep in mind when thinking about recharge centers include:

  • What goods and services are being provided?
  • Who provides the service? (There are some self operating centers where people operate machines, but these people need to be trained, etc.)

Capital Equipment Needed

When discussing the type and quantity of equipment needed, the following items need to be taken into consideration:

  • Risks to the research project (to people..safety issues, HIPAA, etc.)
  • Seasonal (i.e. environmental labs, marine biology groups, etc.)
  • Identifying Costs (in order to set billing rates)
  • Production Costs (can be divided into time and materials)
  • Time (i.e. equipment operation, identifying the steps, accurate time estimates, preparation, training, scheduling issues, etc.)
  • Materials (i.e. supplies, losses, expiration, theft, non-billable work, etc.)

For more information about Facility/Re-Charge Center Management or for questions regarding this seminar, contact Rebecca at rvandall@srainternational.org or Jim Wrenn at wrennj@itworks-inc.com.

Management, Research Scientists

Managing Re-Charge Centers and Research Service Facilities: Financial Reporting

Jul 7th, 10 / 0 Comments

Recently, Jim Wrenn, President and CEO of IT Works and Rebecca Vandall, Director of New Program Development and Strategic Partnerships at SRA International, held a seminar entitled Managing Re-charge Centers and Research Service Facilities. The next several blog posts will provide an outline of material that was covered during the seminar.

Accounting and financial management play an integral role in the overall management of a recharge center. Colleges, universities, research centers as well as other healthcare administrators operate in a complex and often demanding financial environment, which is why it is important that there be a solid accounting solutions program in place. Often, financial management reporting can be broken down by the following items.

Standard budget reports
  • Will have on the report: code, description, budget, encumbrances, expenses and balances
  • Once you’re beyond the purchase of the equipment, personnel costs are among the largest costs and are more difficult to manage especially when you get into centers where the salaries are split. Project the salary (in encumbrances) ahead of time.
P& L statements
  • Income based on different services that are provided (I.e. labor, etc.)
  • Expenses- (i.e. salaries & benefits, travel, etc.)
  • Current period versus prior period
All funds reports
  • This is a combination of the first two reports and combines the concept of a budget report with a P&L statement → allows you to merge different funding sources into one report
  • Three different types of funds can be used: Center, Dept. Funds, Core Grant
  • Department funds may be a shared source (may be used for something not related to the facility) → accounting system needs to have coding that will separate the funds
Projections of personnel costs
  • Changing rates of pay into amounts of money
Center utilization reports (by service provided and by principal investigators)
  • Broken down by: description | unit | quantity | amount
  • This allows you to see which service is generating the most amount of money
  • You’re looking at the analysis by service
  • Looking at the principal investigator: (investigator | amount ) → gives you an idea of who you are doing the most work for.  It is in your best interest that those people stay funded
Pending and Active Grants by principal investigator
  • This is broken down as follows: Investigator | Title | Sponsor | Start Date | Direct Req.

For more information about Facility/Re-Charge Center Management or for questions regarding this seminar, contact Rebecca at rvandall@srainternational.org or Jim Wrenn at wrennj@itworks-inc.com.

Management, Research Scientists

Managing Re-Charge Centers and Research Service Facilities: Quality Control

Jul 21st, 10 / 0 Comments

Recently, Jim Wrenn, President and CEO of IT Works and Rebecca Vandall, Director of New Program Development and Strategic Partnerships at SRA International, held a seminar entitled Managing Re-charge Centers and Research Service Facilities. This post will provide an outline of some of the final pieces of material that was covered during the seminar.

Quality Control

  • Understand the business of the center (What is the work that is being provided?)
  • Quality control impacts center costs
  • Records and stats
  • Returned work
  • Malfunctioning equipment (returned work/ canceled work)
  • Employee time
  • Cause and effect diagrams that influence a given situation

Invoice Generation and Collection

Computer Assisted Paper Invoice Generation

  • Collect PI Billing information when work is completed
  • Manually enter or electronically feed unbilled work into center invoicing system
  • Monthly invoice generation process → assigns billing rates for each service
  • Deliver invoice by mail or emailed PDF
  • Rely on other department administrators to initiate payment
  • Manually enter payments from GL reports into center invoicing system
  • Generate aging reports to identify past due invoices
  • Generate 2nd invoices and reminder letters to collect past due invoices
  • Payments typically received within 60 days
Electronic Billing
  • Collect PI Billing when work is completed
  • Deliver invoice via web site or emailed statement
  • Allow center clients to review and correct invoices
  • Upload center invoice file to GL to generate account adjustments
  • Correct invoices using invalid accounts
  • Download transaction file from GL and update center invoicing system with payments
  • Payments received in less than 30 days

Red Flags

More than 2 months total invoices outstanding

  • Increase collection efforts
  • Prepare to cut off services

Unexpected supply purchases

  • Theft
  • Quality control issues

Credits to other investigators

  • Invoices don’t match supply usage
  • Center director grants lack center charges

Excessive losses or profits

  • 60 day working reserve balance
  • Inaccurate financial reporting

Unexpected drops in pending grant pipelines

  • Invoices

For more information about Facility/Re-Charge Center Management or for questions regarding this seminar, contact Rebecca at rvandall@srainternational.org or Jim Wrenn at wrennj@itworks-inc.com.

Management, Research Scientists

False ‘Obama Mom’ Grants Lure Students

Aug 4th, 10 / 0 Comments

According to the Carrer College Association, Mothers are an important market for the profitability of many educational insitutions as women account for approximately 65 percent of college students with more than half having dependent children.

However, recently, this same group of people have been targeted, “victimized” and insulted upon receiving notification of special college grants and scholarships that President Obama had created specifically for single mothers.  As it turns out, women were receiving ads via email where they would see a picture of the President as well as a link which, when clicked on, took them into a new window where they were then asked to enter their age as well as other specific information related to the kind of college degree they sought. This same website then produced a list of schools that matched up with the email recipients choices.

Within a short period of time, recruiters from popular universities such as Kaplan University and the University of Phoenix would send out emails and phone calls. In one case, a woman by the name of Nicole Massey, started asking these colleges about the Obama loans as well as money for single moms, in which recruiters responded that they would contact her with more information regarding her question. The only problem was that they failed to contact her.

When ProPublica attempted to follow up on this apparent scam by following several lead generators linked to the Obama mom ads, all either declined to comment or did not return calls/e-mails. That’s when they took matters into their own hands. Using volunteers from the ProPublica Reporting Network to click on the links and fill out the online forms, ProPublica hoped to determine which schools were buying leads. Just as Massey had it happen to her, all of the volunteers received dozens of emails and phone calls within no time from the following schools:

  • Walden University
  • Golden Gate University
  • Kaplan University
  • Ashford University
  • American InterContinental University
  • Capella University
  • Colorado Technical University
  • University of Phoenix
  • University of Southern California Rossier School of Education

Of the aforementioned colleges, only one was a non-profit university. When volunteers asked lead generators and college recruiters about the Obama grans or scholarships for moms, none of the recruiters claimed that these grants actually existed however, none disputed that they existed either.

(Via: ProPublica)

Management, News

5 Stress-Free ways to submit a proposal

Nov 17th, 10 / 0 Comments

Working in grant management or as a research administrator, sending and receiving a proposal can sometimes seem a little stressful. The following are five ways to help make the process a little smoother.

5 stress-free ways to submit a proposal

  1. Take pride in your contribution. No matter what role you play in the research administration process, it is important to take pride in what you do. Even something as small as finding a slight oversight by a PI can make a huge difference.
  2. Know your counterparts. It is extremely important that you check in every now and again with other research administrators on your team in order to make sure that you are staying ahead schedule. Doing so will almost always put you in a better position as many proposals are often submitted at the last minute and/or almost always have last-minute changes.
  3. Understand your time frame. Never assume that you have more time than you think. As research administrators, it is important to discuss time constraints as well as proposal prep with your PIs. PIs need to understand how long the process will realistically take as well as the fact that even the smallest hiccups in details can cause delays. Give your PIs a timeline and status checks to help them be more accountable for completing various tasks that they have been assigned.
  4. Invest extra time up front. It is important to know what the goals of your research team are. What are they trying to do? Understanding the overall theme of the proposal is crucial as it can have a dramatic effect on the kind of documentation you may need to obtain, how the budget should be prepared, as well as any additional people you may need to involve.
  5. Gather documents ahead of time. It’s never too early to start early. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that you will be able to acquire a simple document without problems.  Items such as Facilities & Equipment forms may typically be gathered early on in your proposal preparations. However, even after numerous requests and reminders, there will always be some individuals who do not submit their work until the last minute; therefore, gathering documents before researchers start getting stressed will definitely make things easier!

[source: NCURA Magazine, Volume XLII, No.5, pp.24-25]

Management

Research Management Software Solutions for Higher Education

Feb 2nd, 11 / 1 Comment

At IT Works, we are always striving to provide our clients with the very best software solutions, tailored to their particular department and/or research institution. For this reason, we offer research management software that is designed with the intent to assist research administrators in operating in today’s complex and often challenging fiscal environment.

For real-life examples illustrating how research management software is implemented in today’s research institutions, colleges and universities, we cite the following examples of issues that are often faced by grant and research administrators:

  • Research budget periods that fail to align with the fiscal year
  • Regulatory compliance that is closely inspected by outside auditors
  • Increasing competition for research funding

Research Management Software Solutions That Work With You

At IT Works, we have dedicated ourselves to providing software solutions for our clients; and part of this apothegm means designing software that seamlessly integrates with previously existing general ledger accounting systems that are aimed at research administrators, financial managers, grant accountants and principal investigators.

Besides this, IT Works also provides the following:

  • Pre-award research management software solutions for macro-level management of pending grants and research projects
  • Post-award research management software solutions for grant tracking and day to day project management
  • Post-award research management software solutions for managing personnel and research teams
  • A comprehensive research management software solution
  • Research management software solutions for NCI Cancer Centers

Take a look at the following video for more information; and when you’re ready, visit our main website in order to request your FREE Research Management Software Demo.

Management, Research Scientists

Grant Management for Your Personnel Team

Mar 30th, 11 / 0 Comments

As any organization is aware, the most important component or asset, if you will, is the personnel. However, managing personnel is not always the easy task many mistake it to be. In fact, more often than not, the management of a personnel or human resources (HR) team is often complex and demanding and can eat through anywhere from seventy to eighty percent of your funds.

At IT Works, we have studied the various needs and issues faced by human resource managers, which is why we have come up with an affordable, easy-to-use personnel management software program as well as human resource management solutions, designed with colleges, universities, research institutions and healthcare administrators in mind.

Information Managed by IT Works’ Personnel/HR Management Software

  • Personnel costs
  • Home and office addresses
  • Appointment terms
  • Tenure status
  • Leave
  • Work performance review
  • Certification
  • Education
  • And more!

Customized Grant Management Products for Personnel Management

  • Department Accountant [smaller organizations] – Focuses on financial information required to aid in department level accounting.
  • Department Manager [mid-size organizations] – Offers a comprehensive personnel management software systems that manage all of the information listed above and more.
  • College Administrator [enterprise] – **same as Department Manager**

If you work within an HR department as a manager, pay close attention to the kinds of issues that you face on a daily basis. Perhaps it is something having to do with the payroll or a leave of absence. Whatever the case may be, know that there is a simple solution for it; that’s what IT Works is here for. Give us a call today at 919.232.5332.

Grant Management, Management

Department Manager Personnel Module for Better Human Resources Management

Apr 6th, 11 / 0 Comments

At IT Works, the Department Manager module plays an important role in assisting with the management of a complex human resources department. This particular module provides financial information pertaining to various faculty members, staff employees, students, residents, volunteers and others who may play a part in the day-to-day operation of a departmental business office at a college, university or other research-based institution.

Under the umbrella of the Department Manager, our Personnel/HR Module serves as a viable tool for department administrators as well as school administrators. Included within this module is some of the following information:

  • Salary and salary distributions
  • Fringe benefit packages
  • Home and office addresses for mailing labels
  • Rank, title and tenure information for faculty with joint appointments
  • Committees and who serves on them

Using a standard Windows interface, the Personnel/HR Module allows for numerous reporting options and features employee data entry screens capable of managing up to 17 different types of information (eg: office addresses to total salary information). Users have the choice of entering data either electronically or they may import data externally from other systems within their particular research, academic or medical institution.

As a means of facilitating the management of all areas of human resources, IT Works’ Department Manager’s Personnel Module Reports are hard-coded and provide a wide array of standard report formats. To see an example of a mailing labels sample report, click here.

Other fringe benefits of the Department Manager’s Personnel/HR Module include:

Custom Report/Data Export System- contains over 60 fields for tracking static demographic and address information for each employee. The Department Manager also provides historical reports on employee rank and title information.

Faculty Evaluation- Assists in evaluating faculty by quantifying relevant information and drawing comparisons between faculty within a school, department, division or other user-defined group.

Reminder/Tickler File System- Within the Department Manager Personnel/HR Module is a system designed to notify users in advance of date-related actions that need to take place. All of this is done in an effort to assist with the administration process.

Tenure Tracking System- The tenure tracking system allows users to keep track of tenured and non-tenured employees, tracking their initial appointment to a department and university as well as their current rank and title- all the way to their termination date.

Multiple Corporate Entities- Within the Department Manager’s Personnel Module is the ability to combine financial information from multiple corporate entities. From total salary by corporation to consolidated salaries, users are able to simultaneously manage financial information more effectively.

And More!

To find out more about the Department Manager Personnel/HR Module, contact IT Works today at (919) 232.5332.

Management, department manager

Equipment and Asset Management with Space Planning Software

Apr 13th, 11 / 3 Comments

Whether you work within a department at a university, college or research hospital, there are numerous benefits to being able to effectively implement asset and equipment management software solutions. Some of the types of things that are often created with space planning software include (but are not limited to):

  • Office floor plans
  • Shared versus borrowed space
  • Space and equipment ownership by corporation, department, division and faculty
  • The ability to quickly identify missing equipment
  • And much more!

This type of high-tech equipment/asset management is successfully implemented by using our state-of-the art database management software in conjunction with barcode scanner technology.

At IT Works, we are proud to be able to offer such high quality equipment management software solutions to have available right at your fingertips when you need it the most. More importantly, our space planning software allows us to track specific information about each piece of capital equipment, including 45 variables, some of which are listed below:

  • Equipment description
  • Origin of purchase
  • Cost
  • Location
  • Ownership (department, division, faculty member/investigator, etc.)

IT Works uses two different types of software products, designed specifically for equipment management: Department Manager and College Administrator. For more information about these two types of  space planning software products, give us a call today at (919) 232.5332.

Grant Management, Management

Grant Management Systems and It They Can Help You

Sep 28th, 11 / 0 Comments

If you are a person who is in need of a revamping of your grant process due to organizational problems or just out of a sheer need for project streamlining, a more effective grant management software may be the best solution for you. Many people  who constantly are making bids on grants by sending out proposals have to spend a great deal of time prospecting for the right grantor and even more time writing grant proposals for submission. With these responsibilities already mounting at a rate that can be overwhelming at times, the last thing you want is to worry about organizational details of the management of your grant awards after you have been awarded them.

Keeping painstakingly detailed of the applications for grants and the distribution thereafter is definitely necessary, but when attempting to accomplish these tasks without the proper tools, one can find himself absolutely inundated with tasks and responsibilities that can not be addressed in the most effective and efficient manner possible. This lack of organization and efficacy can be a detriment to future grant applications processes and can endanger the continuation of funding from current grantors.

The best thing to do to avoid finding yourself is to periodically reevaluate your methods and means you use to take care of grant management tasks on a daily basis and consider whether or not an upgrade to a full service piece of grant management software is the best solution for you and your university or charitable organization department.

The truth is, having a highly integrated and functional software or cloud computing solution be a breath of fresh air in the long run that can free up more time for you to take care of other pressing matters necessary to advance the cause of your organization. So, take the time to research the best way increase your department productivity while keeping accurate and up-to-date records of all grant related data in relation to your department. For more information about grant management software solutions, contact IT Works today at (919)232.5332.

Grant Management, Management, grant tracking software

The Challenges of Being a College Administrator

Oct 19th, 11 / 0 Comments

There are many important decisions and responsibilities that are required when one takes on an administrative position at a college. No matter how big or small an institution or higher learning may be, there are many factors that can make a job as a college administrator a daunting task. Depending on the department an administrator oversees, he or she may be responsible for various tasks such as admissions, development, public relations or student life.

These being only a few jobs drawn from a vast array of possibilities, one can look at them and say that one unifying factor that helps those involved in the aforementioned departments is how much their practitioners must depend on technology that their predecessors from many years back never had the luxury of using. Some would see this phenomenon as a blessing since technology is viewed as means of doing work in the most effective and efficient manner possible, but, in some cases,  the help of technology can be viewed as an impediment to doing ones job well. For example, in the development or fund raising departments in colleges and universities, the main aim is to get donations from past alumni and raise money through grants and other charitable means.

Technology can definitely help in the sorting of prospective donors, contacting them in order to ask them for donations. A computer program such as a database or a cloud computing platform could help with that, but there can be drawbacks to the automation of a process that should be personalized, such as charitable giving. In order to make the most of situations such as these and maximize the return on time invested with each prospective donor is to go back to the basics, get in meetings face to face with the donors. If you do so, you can rest assured that you will get much better results.

Administrators, Management, college administrator, department manager

3 Grant Management Systems That Every Institution Needs

Oct 26th, 11 / 0 Comments

There are numerous grant management systems that are available to college administrators. With the vast amount of systems available, choosing the right one’s to employ within your institution can be complex. The systems that you choose to use have to have the ability to track your expenses, manage various departments within your facility, and give you up to date information on the way that your money is being spent.

College administrators have a tough time budgeting funds for various sectors of their institution. This software will not give you any money to help with your finances, but it will show you how to track your finances in an efficient manner. There are three types of systems that all colleges should employ in order to keep their institution running smoothly. These three systems are the Department Accountant system, Department manager system, and the College administrator system.

3 Grant Management Systems Every Institution Needs

  1. The Department Accountant System is a special management system that is designed specifically for small research labs and small departments to use. This software focuses on managing individual research projects based on the demand within the research labs. The system will show what objects are leaving the lab faster, showing what funds are needed to replenished the lost items.
  2. The Department Manager System is a system that can be used by large and mid-sized centers to manage their funds in an efficient manner. This system acts as a monetary up to date management program. It keeps real time reports of daily expenses and receivables coming into the organization.
  3. The College Administrator system is designed for use in larger colleges or mid-sized universities. This type of program helps streamline the grant process for students and administrators alike. One of the positive aspects of this program is it allows students to track the status of their grant monies in the same manner that the institution would be tracking the transaction.
Grant Management, Management, college administrator, department manager

The Challenges of Being a Department Manager

Nov 2nd, 11 / 0 Comments

When trying to run a department, whether its at a university or a charitable organization, there are many tasks that one must take on that  require a great deal of organization and planning. If the proper steps aren’t taken to ensure that all department processes are kept in order, chaos can ensue and that can set you back a good amount when trying to take care of business. This is why it’s best to use the power of technology to get better organization within your department by digitizing everything you do and by finding the right software to help you do your job correctly. The right grant management software can vary depending on what it is you are trying to accomplish. If you are involved in fund raising, you may want to use a cloud computing solution that helps you keep track of all prospective donors.

If you are a department manager in charge of human resources, it’s most likely a program that keeps track of employee hours worked and time it takes to complete outsourced tasks. If you are in charge of applying for grants for your institution or  charitable organization, it would definitely be most beneficial to you to have access to a computer program that will help you to keep track of application dates, funds awarded and how the money is being spent.

No matter what department you are in charge of, you have to make sure that you fully utilize the tools at your disposal to be as organized and effective as possible. So the next time you have qualms about whether or not you are completing a task that you have to perform repeatedly in the  most efficient manner possible, check to see if there is a computer program that can aid you. The  difference in your work flow efficiency will surprise you.

Management, department manager

Ways That Research Administrators Can Benefit From Grant Management Systems

Nov 23rd, 11 / 0 Comments

Research administrators, are normally seen as being the men in the middle. They are normally caught between the frequently conflicting goals of being a research scientist trying to teach their skill to others, and the organization that they are employed by. In order to keep their job progressing as planned, there are a lot of research administrators that will apply for outside grants from various institutions.

Research administrators can benefit immensely from employing some type of grant management system to help them with the application process and disbursement of the funds that they receive. In fact, most of the systems that are developed to help with the grant process are designed with research administrators in mind.

A lot of the grant management systems that are available for this adept group of individuals to use are made to be user friendly, and extremely affordable. The systems are set up in a way that research administrators can track their grant proposals and their budgeting parameters at the same time.

Since, most research administrators spend a lot of time searching for grants and applying for them, these software programs can save researchers the hassle of having to keep with mounds of financial paperwork. Anything that has the ability to be tracked through these systems will be tracked. This includes any proposals that were submitted, the award type, the agency that is offering the funding and their agency number.

Aside from managing the monetary aspects of their projects, research administrators also spend a lot of time managing their research teams that they have employed underneath them. A lot of the grant management systems can help research administrators manage the human resources information of their projects also.

There are a lot of benefits that accompany having a management system in play. Research administrators cannot only manage the funds that they are using and applying for to help with their research, but they can also manage administrative duties at the same time-with the same software.

Grant Management, Management, Research Scientists, research management

Duties of a Grant Department Manager

Dec 14th, 11 / 0 Comments

Most organizations that provide grants have board members and staff members who work as a group to decide which institutions and foundations will receive grant funding. These organizations also each have at least one grant administrator who is responsible for managing the grants process.

What Does a Grant Administrator Do?

A grant administrator, or department manager, has many duties for the funding organization. He is in charge of working with current grantees and reviewing grant proposals from potential grantees in order to make recommendations to that funding board.

Administrators must be good communicators in order to be able to work well with those who apply for grants and the other members of the grant organization.

Administrators also need to track grants to make sure that they comply with funding regulations. They must also work on grant budgeting; it is their responsibility to keep the funding organization to its strict budget.

How Do Grant Administrators Manage the Grants Process?

Most grant department managers use grant management software to assist them in handling incoming requests for funding, processing new grants, and tracking existing grants.

Grant management software helps to save time. Administrators use this software for a wide variety of tasks, including the following:

  • View grant funding data as a whole or track grant expenditures
  • Analyze grant budgeting
  • Run reports on grant projects
  • Document information regarding a specific grant

Choosing Grant Management Software with Browser Access

Grant department managers are often able to help select grant software for use in their organization. If this is possible, grant administrators should try to select software that is able to run online in a browser. If an organization already has grant software, it may be possible to obtain an update in order to have browser access.

Browser access is ideal for grant management software because it enables staff to use the software anywhere there is an Internet connection. In addition, grant applicants can complete grant proposals online. Because the Internet has become increasingly important over the years, it is a good idea for grant organizations to pursue this avenue of grant management software.

Grant Management, Management, department manager

Increasing Effectiveness of Grant Administration Systems

Jan 31st, 12 / 0 Comments

No matter what type of institution has applied for and procured grant funding, managing the funding effectively is the cornerstone of

IT Works Grant Management Software

IT Works for Efficient Grant Management

succeeding with the project for which those funds were awarded. A grant manager is tasked with putting together a plan to balance the different tasks required of this position. According to a report by Henry Flood of The Grantsmanship Center, this planning and structure is essential to effective grants management.

This plan for effective grant management and organization can include anything from figuring out how to meet the funding source’s requirements and meeting similar obligations with documentation. It can also include things such as documenting everything according to federal regulations including filing and certifying effort reports, financial reporting period reports, and much more.

Efficient Planning

For this reason, having a plan of action that is not only a reliable one, but one that will be the most efficient possible is something that staff connected with procuring and reporting on the grants always have in place. The plans typically include various online and offline strategies, and sometimes both.

For instance, having a great organizational structure is not strictly an online effort, although it does help if it is. In fact, many administrators find it easier to file some reports, write documents; keep track of time and effort reporting and financial reporting offline, while later transferring that offline work into an online application for official reporting.

Some of the organizational structures EAs tend to use include

  • Creating project files specific to each grant that has been awarded
  • Complete project and task management plans
  • Compliance, financial and purchase tracking and reporting plans
  • Security policies and procedures related to projects and organization
  • Business practice and records auditing process including resolution steps
  • Overall quality control

While faculty may be used to organizing things offline, or used to using a hybrid system, having not yet upgraded to a complete online system, the issue with this is that no matter how efficient the organizational plan is, it will take more time to complete offline. Administrators are doing their jobs twice.

Online = Efficient and Cost Effective

This is why EAs began moving to online systems some time ago, and these days, those systems are more popular than ever. They typically integrate complete organizational control through a web application, thus saving time. A complete grants management system includes everything that an effort administrator or grant manager needs to organize, document and file reports.

This is the type of complete integration and organizational control that the IT Works software systems offer, right out of the box. From complete control over the College administration process for funding to allowing efficient research into even the most organizational intensive grants tracking, the full IT Works has a program that is can help without spending half the grant on implementing it.

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Administrators, Grant Management, Management, college administrator, research management