Researcher's Dashboard streamlines grants administration

Wayne State University researchers and departmental administrators will soon have a seamless one-point access to "live" grant information from multiple sources – the Banner Administrative System and the Coeus Grants Management application.

“We are thrilled to celebrate the launch of the Researcher's Dashboard, an innovative tool resulting from the partnership between the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) and Computing & Information Technology (C&IT),” said Hilary Ratner, Vice President for Research.

The new Researcher's Dashboard is an easy-to-use and intuitive tool that will streamline and enhance the pre-award and post-award grant processes for both researchers and administrators. Available through the University's secure online portal, WSU Pipeline, the Dashboard provides a common front end, a “one stop shop” to access grants administration data, so they can focus on their functional needs.

The Researcher's Dashboard uses today's technology to provide a secure, easily accessible gateway to researchers' proposal and grant information and addresses an identified university-wide research need.  James D. Barbret, Associate VP for Sponsored Programs Administration and Assistant VP for Finance and Administration, stated that surveys indicated WSU researchers needed access to an integrated system from which they could easily and quickly determine the current status of their awards and budgets.

“When the world’s smartest people say they need a better grants administration tool, you have to listen,” said Joseph Sawasky, WSU Chief Information Officer and Associate Vice President for C&IT.

Development efforts:
In summer 2008, the Proposals and Grants Enhancements Project (PGEP) was launched to get three initiatives underway:

•    development of a Researcher's Dashboard: Post-award data from Banner,
•    implementation and integration of the Coeus Proposal Development System: Pre-award proposal information,
•    expanded use of Document Imaging through Banner

To identify research needs and problematic areas, the OVPR formed committees and obtained feedback from the university's Efficiency and Processing Improvement Committee (EPIC) and the Computing and Research Work Group (CRWG). By also researching other universities and their research support tools, they were able to determine viable technical solutions and wholeheartedly recommend the Researcher's Dashboard.

According to Barbret, the new Researcher's Dashboard — created by a C&IT software engineer and developed with both OVPR and C&IT resources — is an online aid for researchers, as it merges information contained in different administrative systems at WSU. "This tool provides an up-to-the-minute accounting summary researchers have never had access to before and aids in ongoing grant management activities, such as monitoring finances, accessing information, and creating reports."

Phased Rollout:
The Researcher's Dashboard is being released across campus in a phased roll out. At present, the post-award portion is functioning for researchers and administrators in four departments in the School of Medicine, the College of Nursing, and the Institute of Gerontology.  Four additional units will "go live" by the end of April. By fall 2009, all WSU researchers and departmental administrators will have access to both pre-award and post-award data.

“Our researchers love the Researcher's Dashboard. It’s easy to use and available anywhere they have an Internet connection,” said Kimberly Rize, Director of Business Affairs in WSU's College of Nursing.

Barbret added that this intuitive interface requires minimal formal training, as “a 15-minute demo is all that’s needed to learn how to navigate the Researcher's Dashboard.”


For more information:
James D. Barbret
Associate Vice President for Sponsored Program Administration
james.d.barbret@wayne.edu