Transfer of Administrative Tasks from RDS to Faculty F&R Teams

Uncategorized

Over the past three years, the Transformation Team (OVC) and RDS have worked collaboratively to improve BU’s post-award service. This has included extensive staff engagement on how service can be improved.   

This has provided insight that our academic and research staff community wish to reduce bureaucracy in the administration of their externally funded RKE projects.  In particular, for many administrative tasks, it is evidently confusing to follow separate processes depending on whether a project is internally or externally funded.

Furthermore, exploration of good practice across the sector, demonstrates that BU is an outlier in the sector as in almost every other institution nationally, external RKE project funding is administered locally (i.e. within a Faculty/department) and not centrally.  

Therefore, administrative tasks associated with RKE projects will move to Faculties as of 4th September, removing the additional need for approval by RDS. Decentralising the administrative support will bring the benefit of reducing research bureaucracy and adds clarity as to roles and responsibilities for RKE delivery at BU.  

To increase the F&R team’s capacity to undertake externally funded RKE administration, resources will be transferred to the Faculties from RDS. From the 4th September, the following administrative tasks will be transferred from RDS to the Faculty F&R teams:

  • Expense Claim & Cash Advances 
  • Travel Request 
  • Conference Request 
  • Recruitment requests (PTHP, Tier 4 and overtime timesheet submission) 
  • Purchase Order or Credit Card payment request 
  • Payment of Invoice (Against Existing Purchase Order) 
  • Vehicle Hire Request 
  • Other Payment Requests (incl. participant Voucher, Catering) 
  • Support for all non-accredited short course activity

This means that the RDS admin tool will be decommissioned at 5pm on the 1st September. From Monday 4th September, PIs will need to contact their Faculty F&R teams, who for internally funded activities (such as departmental funds) are already completing these types of processes.

The Post-Award Programme Manager Alex Morrison will be available to answer any specific questions as part of his weekly drop-in sessions for PIs every Thursday.

You can contact your Faculty F&R team via email:

BUBS: BUBSResources@bournemouth.ac.uk

HSS: HSSRKEadministrator@bournemouth.ac.uk

FMC: FMCTravel@bournemouth.ac.uk for travel and FMCFOps@bournemouth.ac.uk for all other enquiries

FST: FSTFandR@bournemouth.ac.uk

This flowchart provides an overview of the change in process.

Related Posts