We just finished up a bout ....errr..... round of effort reporting, so it's on my mind. Inevitably, the post-award Gracts and Contracts Officer reported some, shall we say, slippage in the certification of effort. There were a few faculty who just didn't get this done. At one point, there were 5 grants uncertified, and 4 of those are held by my boss. THAT was easy to fix ;) I sat next to him while he took care of it.
100% return rate is the goal, for sure. But it's probably not always the reality. What is a realistic return rate? How low is too low and it's time to crack the whip? We got this round down to zero lagging, but that last grant certification was challenging for all concerned. Is there an industry standard?
Thanks,
Andrea
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Andrea Buford
Director, Office of Sponsored Programs
Oakland University
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