The team began by identifying and mapping the processes in the six major areas of administrative support: pre-proposal, proposal, pre-contract, project/contract, final report, and closeout. The team also surveyed staff and clients. Feedback indicated a need for an organizational reference to clarify who provided what services, and how they were provided. To make the reference manual more accessible and maintainable, the team decided to make it an on-line document.

The manual includes sections on contractual issues, general services, information technology services, library services, personnel issues, publishing services, purchasing, and travel policies, as well as including several chat areas to enable discussion and collaboration among faculty considering future research projects, and for users of the reference to provide feedback or ask questions.

For more information about this team, contact Robin Tallon at tallon@psu.edu.