Texas Tech University
Effort Coordinator Training
A.J Arteaga
Time and Effort Coordinator
Texas Tech University
Effort Reporting Basics
Effort Defined
• Effort is the portion of time spent on a given professional activity and
expressed as a percentage of the total professional activity for which an
individual is employed by TTU.
• Important points:
• The government recognizes that it is a “reasonable estimate”
• Must be performed with “suitable means of verification”
• Total effort must equal 100%
• Effort is not based on a standard (e.g., 40-hour) work week, instead it is based on
whatever time is worked
• “100% Effort” considers all professional activities related to the individual’s TTU
appointment (teaching, research, service)
• Effort does not include outside activities (e.g., external consulting)
Institutional Base Salary (IBS)
• Definition
• Institutional base salary (IBS) is the annual compensation paid by the University for all
professional responsibilities of the position, including research, instruction,
administration, service, or other institutional activities.
• IBS is the annual salary of the employee’s base appointment, plus any additional
supplements for recurring, long-term activities (e.g., department chair).
• IBS excludes fringe benefits, reimbursed expenses, and supplemental compensation for
additional work.
• IBS cannot be increased as a result of replacing institutional salary funds with sponsored
project funds.
•IBS and Effort
• IBS should be used when proposing, charging, and cost sharing salaries to sponsored
projects.
Earn Codes Included in IBS
ADG Assistance Dog Training Leave
ADM Administrative Duties
BMT Bone Marrow Transplant Leave
CAS Court Appointed Spcl Advocate
COL Cost of Living
DBD Blood Donor Leave
DBX Blood Donor Leave Exempt
DPA Deferred Pay Amount
ECH Endowed Chair
EMG Emergency Pay
EPR Endowed Professor
FFL Firefighter EMS Leave
FFX Firefighter EMS Leave Exempt
FNL Funeral
FNX Funeral Exempt
FPT Foster Parent
FPX Foster Parent Exempt
HCP HSC Holiday Comp
HOL Holiday
INT Interim Duties
JDX Jury Duty Exempt
JDY Jury Duty
LFP Leave With Full Pay & Benefits
LPP Leave w/Partial Pay & Full Benefits
MDP Military Differential Pay
MEL Military Emerg Leave
MEX Military Emergency Leave Exempt
MIL Military Leave
OMC Overtime Manual Calculation
ORL Organ Donor Leave
OTP Overtime Hourly
PTC Parent Teacher Conference
PTX Parent Teacher Conf Exempt
RDC Red Cross Leave
RGA Regular Pay Adjustment
RGH Hours Worked
RGS Regular Salaried
RSH Regular Summer School NonEx
RSS Regular Summer School
SCK Sick Leave
SLE Sick Leave Exception
SLP Sick Leave Pool
SSE Salary Supplement Executive
SSR Salary Supplement Regular
VAC Vacation Pay
VOT Voting
VOX Voting Exempt
***TSP Temporary Worker Sponsored Programs
Earn Codes Excluded from IBS
ADC Additional Compensation
ADJ Deduction Adjustment
AWD Award
BRD Board Member HLTH Benefits
CAR Car Allowance
CLO Clothing Allowance
CPA Cell Phone Allowance
CPE Cell Phone Equipment Allowance
CPN Cell Phone Allowance Non Cash
CYR Current Year Retro Pay
DBS Death Benefit Sick Pay
DOC Docked Pay
DPO Deferred Pay Out
DTB Death Benefit Vacation Pay
FOC Faculty On Call Pay (HSC Only)
FRL Frozen Longevity Retiree/Police
FTO Field Training
GFT Gift
HAZ Hazardous Duty
HLD Hazard or Longevity Eligible
HLN Hazard or Longevity Non‐Eligible
HOU Housing Allowance
IAD Insurance Adjustment
LNG Longevity
LOD Lodging
LSP Lump Sum Payment
LSV Lump Sum Vacation
LWB Leave Without Pay w/Benefits
LWP Leave Without Pay & Benefits
MIN MPIP Insurance
MLS Meals
MOV Moving Expense
MSC Misc Fringe Benefit
NFL NonPay Frozen Lng for OTP Calc
NLP Non Pay Longevity for OTP Calc
NMV Non Taxable Moving Expense
NPH Non Pay Hazardous for OTP Calc
NPL Non Paid Leave
NTM Non Taxable Moving
NTP Non Taxable Tuition Pay
OMP One Time Merit
OTB Other Taxable Benefit
PBA Payback Adjustment
PYR Prior Year Retro Pay
REF Refund
RET Retiree with Health Benefits
SDE Supp Dist Learn
SEL Service Excellence Leave Award
SHD Shift Differential
SHI Shift Incentive
SPA Special Augmentation
SRC Supplemental Ret Compensation
TIP Tip Wages Payment
TRV Taxable Travel
VEH Vehicle
Intra-University Consulting
•
Since intra-University consulting is assumed to be undertaken as a university obligation
requiring no compensation in addition to full time base salary, the principle also applies to
faculty members who function as consultants or otherwise contribute to a sponsored
agreement conducted by another faculty member of the same institution.
•
Regulations & Institutional Policy
•
•
Circular A-21, Section J.10.d, sets forth limited circumstances in which extra compensation above the base salary are
allowable
–
Work must be across departmental lines or pertain to a separate or remote operation
–
Work must be in addition to regular departmental load
–
Arrangement must be approved in writing by the sponsor
Texas Tech University Operating Policy 70.16, Compensation in Excess of Base Salary, extends Federal requirements
to State and private sponsored projects. Additionally, institutional policy limits the amount of additional pay to an
amount that is commensurate with the employee’s IBS.
•Intra-University Consulting and Effort
•
Additional compensation paid in accordance with Circular A-21, Section J.10.d is excluded from IBS and effort
certification requirements.
Role of the Principal Investigator (PI)
• The Principal Investigator is the steward of the sponsored project and
accompanying funds.
• The University is legally responsible to the sponsor, but the PI is held
accountable for the proper fiscal management and conduct of the project.
PI responsibilities include:
• Scientific performance of the work related to the project.
• Management of the project within funding limitations and in compliance with
Federal regulations, sponsor requirements, and institutional policy. This includes
effort certification for all personnel on the project.
• Sponsor notification when significant conditions related to the project change.
• Responsibility for the day-to-day management of project finances may be
delegated to administrative or other staff. However, accountability for
compliance with Federal regulations, sponsor requirements, and
institutional policy, ultimately rests with the PI.
Effort Certification
•
Effort Certification is a Federal requirement.
• OMB Circular A-21, Cost Principles for Educational Institutions, Section J-10, Compensation
for Personal Services, requires after-the-fact confirmation that personnel expenses represent
actual effort.
• Personnel is typically the most significant direct cost component of sponsored project costs and
as such, is a focus of Federal auditors.
•
Effort certification is an Institutional requirement.
• University OP 65.02: Effort Commitment and Certification, requires all employees who
receive salary support from sponsored projects (federal, state, or private), or who expend
committed effort on a sponsored project without receiving salary support from the sponsor,
must certify effort.
•
Effort certification documents that salary charged to a project is consistent with the level
of effort provided during a specific time period.
•
Effort certification is the primary means of verifying that:
• Effort supported and charged to the project has been performed as committed, and
• Effort expended in support of a project but not paid by the project (cost sharing)
has been performed as committed.
Effort Certification
• Effort reports may pre-populate total percentages of payroll distributions to
be used as a starting point, since it is often assumed that payroll distribution
is monitored and revised based on effort expended.
• However, these percentages may need to be revised during certification
based on actual expended effort.
• This after-the-fact confirmation is necessary for compliant effort reporting
Reasonable Estimate
• Sponsors recognize that the activities that constitute effort are often
difficult to separate. Effort certification must often rely on a
reasonable estimate of effort, and when estimating, a degree of
tolerance is appropriate.
• Examples:
• It would be reasonable for a faculty member who was awarded and expended 40% effort on a
grant to sign an effort report stating 39% payroll support for that grant.
• It would not be reasonable for a faculty member who teaches two classes to certify that she
worked 95% on sponsored projects.
Suitable Means of Verification
• Federal regulations require certification to be made by someone with
“suitable means of verification.”
• Who is a suitable means of verification?
•
The employee, PI, or other responsible official
•
Certification should NOT be performed by the departmental effort coordinator,
business manager, or other administrative support personnel.
• What are suitable means of verification?
• The individual should have some documentation of how the time was spent that is certified.
• Documentation could be in the form of an email, calendar, project reports, etc.
The Context of Effort Reporting
Effort Reporting encompasses more than just certifying effort
Appointing
Faculty &
Staff
• Employment
terms are
established.
Preparing
the Proposal
Budget
• Effort is
proposed; a
commitment is
made to the
sponsor.
Charging
Salary
• Salary is charged (or
cost shared),
consistent with
activity.
Adjustments may be
made, timely afterthe-fact.
Certifying
Effort
• Effort is attested
to, after activity
has occurred
(adjustments to
salary distribution
may be made if
effort < salary%).
Key Effort Reporting Concepts
Important concepts to consider with respect to effort reporting include:
• Who must complete an effort report?
• Who should sign effort reports?
• Cost sharing
• Summer salaries
• Committed Effort
• Labor Redistributions
Who is Required to Certify?
• All individuals paid from or with effort committed to a sponsored
project are required to complete an effort report, per federal regulations
• Effort reports should be certified by:
 An employee, principal investigator or other responsible official with first-
hand knowledge of all of an employee’s effort, or
 An individual who used suitable means of verifying that the work was
performed.
• TTU effort reports will be certified as follows:
 All PI’s and faculty will self-certify.
 PI’s will certify for all non-faculty paid from their projects.
Cost Share and Salary Caps
•
Cost Sharing Definition: A commitment of TTU resources or funding that
supports externally sponsored projects.
•
Voluntary Uncommitted cost sharing occurs when effort exceeds the payroll
charged to a particular project. This type of cost share is neither pledged in the
proposal nor stated in the award documents.

Example - A PI is paid 50% from the sponsored project, 50% from University funds and certifies to
80% effort on the project and 20% effort on the non-sponsored funds.
•
These costs are not reimbursed by the sponsor (will not be charged to the
sponsored project) and therefore must be supported by TTU funds.
•
Cost shared effort should be included in the effort report
•
Mandatory cost sharing

•
Required by sponsor, quantified in proposal
Voluntary cost sharing

Not formally required by sponsor, but becomes mandatory when included in the proposal and the
proposal is accepted
Summer Salary
• A faculty member’s summer salary rate cannot exceed the base salary divided by the
period to which the base salary relates (e.g., monthly rate for summer salary = no more
than 1/9 of academic year salary)
• Charges for summer sponsored research activities must be consistent with the level of
effort provided during that time period.
• It is not compliant with federal regulations or institutional policy for an individual who is
absent from research for a substantial period of the summer session to charge three full
months of summer salary to sponsored research and report 100% research activity on effort
reports.
• It is not compliant with federal regulations or institutional policy for an individual to
do any other work besides that on the sponsored award, if the full (three summer
months’) salary is being charged to the sponsored award for that period of time
• Individuals should not be preparing teaching materials, writing proposals, working on other
research projects, or performing any administrative tasks over this time period.
Committed Effort
•
Committed effort is the amount of effort promised by the institution in the proposal or the
amended effort included in the award documentation.
•
The total distribution of effort dedicated to all institutional activities for an individual must not be
greater than 100%, including cost sharing commitments.
•
100%, or nearly 100% research effort, is not realistically possible for individuals with significant
non-research obligations to the institution (e.g., teaching and service).
•
If key personnel intend to reduce their effort on sponsored programs by more than 25%, the
institution is required to notify the sponsor and receive approval.
•
If the receipt of an award increases an investigator’s committed effort to greater than 100%, the
investigator must revise the level of effort requested by communication with the sponsor, reduce
effort on other activities, or refuse the award.
Labor Redistributions
• The differences between certified effort % and % of salary charged may require a resulting labor
redistribution.
• It is important that the salary charged to a sponsored project not exceed the effort spent on the
project. If the salary charged is greater than the effort expended, a labor redistribution should be
done to remove salary charged to the sponsored project.
• Once effort has been certified, subsequent labor redistributions to move salary charges on or off of
sponsored project funds will be closely scrutinized and must be accompanied by a Recertification
Request Form.
• Labor Redistributions which will require the Recertification Request Form must be submitted by the Effort
Coordinator and will require PI approval.
• Labor redistributions represent cost transfers to, from, and/or among grants. As such, the
timeliness of the transfers must comply with TTU OP 65.04, Cost Transfers. Any transfers of labor
costs TO sponsored projects after 90 days will be closely scrutinized and will require justification.
Penalties for False Certification
• False Claims Act
• Those who knowingly submit, or cause another person or entity to submit, false claims
for payment of government funds are liable for three times the government’s damages
plus civil penalties of $5,500 to $11,000 per false claim.
Certification Timeline
 Effort must be certified on a quarterly basis within 45 days of when the
statement becomes available.
• Example of certification windows:
Period of Performance
Certification Window
January 1 – June 30
July 16 – August 29
July 1 – December 31
January 16 – March 1
• If effort is not certified within 60 days of when the statement becomes
available, the Vice President for Research and the Provost will be
notified and further action may be taken (examples of disciplinary
action continued on next page).
Consequences for Non-Compliance
• To protect the interests of the University and ensure compliance with Federal
regulations, the following escalation procedures will be followed:
• 30 after the statement becomes available, the Department Chair will be notified
• 45 days after the statement becomes available, the College Dean will be notified
• 60 days after the statement becomes available, the Vice President for Research and the
Provost will be notified
• Possible consequences of non-compliance after the 60 day period include:
• ORS will not submit proposals or execute award agreement on behalf of the faculty
member
• SPAR will deactivate current sponsored project funds
• Further disciplinary actions in accordance with University policy
Role of the Effort Coordinator
•
Communicate with PIs on a regular basis to ensure appointments to grants are
accurate
•
Monitor payroll charges within ECRT on a regular basis to minimize labor
redistributions
•
Assist PIs with completing labor redistributions, including sufficient justification
for the transfer
•
Ensure necessary labor redistributions are completed before the beginning of the
certification period
•
Complete effort training
•
Ensure effort statements are certified according to established timeline
•
Assist PIs with submission of recertification requests, as needed
•
Serve as the point of contact for PIs and certifiers
Points of Contact
• All questions related to appointments, accounts, percentages, amounts and/or
the ecrt system should be directed to your departmental Effort Coordinator.
• A list of effort coordinators by department can be found on the SPAR website at
www.depts.ttu.edu/spar.
• For additional assistance, you may contact the Office of Sponsored Programs
Accounting and Reporting (SPAR).
•
A.J Arteaga, Time and Effort Coordinator, (806) 834-4337 or aj.arteaga@ttu.edu.
ecrt Basics
PI/Certifier
Effort
Coordinator
TTU Process Timeline
Quarterly Period
of Performance
(January-March
2011)
11
Days
3 Week
Pre-Review
Period
Collect
Payroll &
Adjustments
Period
Close
Pre Review
Period
Activity
45 Day
Certification
Period
Prepare & Agree
Certify
Personal
Effort
Post
Certification
Period
Process
PI’s Certify
Effort of
Researchers
Post
Certification
Activity
TTU Process Timeline Cont..
Date
Action
January 1 – June 30
Effort Statement building in eCRT.
July 1-July 10
No Action. Waiting on payroll to roll on 10th day after period end.
July 11-July 15
Report open for Effort Coordinator review.
July 16 (Day One)
PI’s and Certifiers are notified that they have effort reports to certify.
July 30 (Day Fifteen)
PI’s and Certifiers (uncertified) receive reminder to certify.
August 14 (Day Thirty)
PI’s and Certifiers (uncertified) receive FINAL reminder to certify. Chairs Notified.
August 29 (Day FortyFive)
PI’s and Certifiers receive notice that the matter will be escalated to the Deans Office.
Deans Receive list of uncertified individuals.
Sept 13 (Day Sixty)
VPR and Provost Notified. Possible consequences - Sponsored FOP is closed until all effort reports are
received. ORS will not submit proposals or execute award agreement on behalf of the faculty member.
Certifier/PI - Automatic Email Notifications
•
•
•
•
eCRT will automatically send email notifications to individuals who have
certification responsibilities.
Contains list of statements the individual is responsible for.
Links to take them directly to the system.
Only sent to individuals who have outstanding statements to certify in the system.
Effort Coordinator – Automatic Email Notifications
Primary Effort Coordinator (PEC) Emails
A single email sent at the start of the pre-review period to remind them to go in and
review statements and process labor redistributions before the certification period
opens.
Every time a certification period start email is sent to the Certifiers, PEC receives
single email listing who in department was sent reminder emails.
PECs will receive email when a Labor Redistribution is loaded that effects statement in
their department that was in Certified, Processed status.
ecrt Basic Information
ecrt Basic Information
System Navigation
To access ecrt you will use the provided links, will which take you to the eRaider authentication page.
ecrt Basic Information
Home Page
Effort Lifecycle
ecrt Basic Information
Effort Lifecycle Links
Section
Link
Description
Manage Users
Displays demographic data the user who is entered. Also displays
their home department, email address, FOPs that they are associated
to, and shows the role that the user has been set up with.
Certify / View My Effort
Displays the most recent effort statement of the individual logged into
the system that has NOT been certified.
Effort Recertification
Used to access historical effort statements of individuals. An Effort
Coordinator is able to re-open effort statements using this
functionality if the statement is within the current certification period.
View the Researchers of a PI
Displays a list of all of the researchers who are associated to the PI
that is entered in the search box. The PI is able to certify for each of
the individuals listed through the Certify My Researchers Group View.
Manage Effort Tasks
Displays a list of all outstanding Tasks for the effort coordinator.
These include effort processing tasks, payroll reconciliation tasks,
sponsor notices, and cost transfer notices.
Department Dashboard
Displays the active department and all the associated individuals and
grants. This is the main entry point for effort coordinators to monitor
their departments.
View Reports
Displays a drop down list of all available reports for the user.
IQ Tool
Displays a list of canned queries that can assist the Effort Coordinator
during the certification/review process. Central Administrators can
create additional queries in this functionality that might be useful for
Effort Coordinators.
Effort statements on Hold
Allows user to place multiple effort statements On Hold at once.
Displays all effort statements that are currently On Hold - related to
that Effort Coordinator.
Administration
Certification
Administration
Data & Workflow
ecrt Basic Information
Online Help
ecrt Basic Information
Search Boxes
Throughout application, a data entry box is presented.
System will search on the character string
Users will only be able to search for Departments, Individuals, Grants, and FOPs that are
associated to them and their departments (ORG Level 6).
The user types in a minimum of three characters (letters or numbers) from the intended result
ecrt Basic Information
Search Boxes
ecrt Basic Information
Left Navigation Bar
Manage Users
Manage Users
Manage Users
Demographic Data
Manage Users
Department Relationships & Roles
Department Dashboard
Department Dashboard
Department Dashboard
Home Page
Notes
• If you are PEC for one department, you will only see Department Dashboard page for that dept.
• A drop down list will be presented for those associated with multiple departments.
Department Dashboard
Department Dashboard
Status Icon Descriptions
Department Dashboard
Status Icon Descriptions
Department Dashboard
Managing Effort Coordinators
Department Dashboard
Managing Department Certifiers
Department Dashboard
Department Account List
Department Dashboard
Grant Summary Page
Effort Certification
Certifier’s Perspective
Effort Certification
Home Page
Certify/View My Effort
Effort Certification
Certify My Effort
Effort Certification
Certify My Effort
Effort Certification
Effort Statement Columns
Grant/FOP Info – Grant Name and Number followed by any FOPs that are associated to the Grant. Displayed as “clickable” links
Commitments – Total commitment recorded for the individual for grant for that period of performance.
Payroll - amount of effort calculated based on the payroll data on the FOP for the period.
Cost Share – total cost share recorded for the individual for that FOP for that period of performance.
Computed Effort – sum of Payroll and Cost Share columns. Total effort for the period of performance.
Certified Effort – Amount that the individual actually has to certify. This percentage will auto populate based on the Computed
Effort column. If a change is needed, the certifier will edit this box.
Certify Checkbox– check box must be checked in order to certify that line of the effort statement.
Effort Certification
Commitment Data
Effort Certification
Commitment Data
Notes
If a commitment is loaded and the individual was paid from a FOP associated to the grant, only that
FOP will display on the individual’s effort statement.
Commitment data will be loaded to the system periodically and only new commitments will be part
of the data loads. If there are changes to commitments (or deletions) then the Central Administrators
should be notified in order to make the adjustment.
Effort Certification
Effort Statement Summary
Note that the Certified Effort column is shown in whole numbers, any changes that
are made must be in whole numbers.
Effort Certification
Show Dollar Value
•It is important to note that an effort statement CANNOT be certified in
Dollar mode.
•Clicking the yellow $ icon will run the Certification Payroll report
specifically for that line of the effort statement.
Effort Certification
Effort Calculator
•Tool that assists the certifier in calculating the percent of their time that they
spent working on different FOPs throughout the Period of Performance.
Effort Certification
Effort Calculator
1.
First, enter the average number
of hours worked per week
during the period.
2.
Next, decide whether to
convert hours worked to
percentages, or percentages to
hours worked.
3.
Plug in the average hours they
work per week and the
calculator will give them the
percentage of their time that
they spend on each FOP.
Note: this tool does not save
the percentages back on the
effort statement.
Effort Certification
Additional Information on the Statement
•
•
•
Useful Information
When user “hovers” over the Account links with the mouse, a popup window appears
which displays the PI name, phone number, and email address.
The Related Reports Link
The Need Assistance Button
Effort Certification
Effort Statement Notes
Effort Certification
Transaction History
Effort Transaction History - provides details of each of the payroll transactions that were loaded to
the effort statement.
Effort Certification
Certifying Effort
•
Payroll and cost share data as the basis of the effort statement.
•
If actual effort differs from how individual was paid, certify how actual time was spent
Effort Certification
Certifying Effort
• When individual has reviewed all lines of the statement, click the Certify button.
• Error message will appear if total certified effort in the % of Effort column is < 99% or >100%.
Effort Certification
Certifying Effort
• The certifier is then presented with an attestation statement – legally binding text
• The certifier will click the “I Agree” button under the message to complete the certification.
• A confirmation message will appear and the user is directed back to the Home Page.
• Effort statement is sent on to the Primary EC for processing.
Effort Certification
View Historical Effort
To review a certification statement from a prior period, select the View My Historical Effort link
from the ecrt home page. This will take you to a page that will display any effort statements that you have
previously certified in eCRT.
Activity
• Department Dashboard Overview
• Certify as a Certifier (Scenarios 1-2)
Certify My Researchers – Group View
Certify My Researchers Group View
Allows a PI to certify the effort of his/her researchers all at the same time.
Certify My Researchers Group View
•
The Certify My Researchers Group
View Page displays the effort
statements that a PI is responsible
for certifying.
•
PI should review each of the lines
that they are certifying to ensure the
percentage effort is correct.
•
The PI is only able to certify the
FOPs that he/she is a PI on – as well
as any Non-Sponsored FOPs.
View the Researchers of a PI
Notes:
•Similar to certifying their own statement, PI must check the checkbox on each line that they wish to certify. When all
lines are checked, select the Certify All button at the top or bottom of the page.
•To leave note, PI can click the View Effort Card button and leave a note in the individual’s statement.
Certify My Researchers Group View
•When PI certifies multiple statements, page will refresh and remove those statements from view.
•Remaining statements will need certification.
•When all certifications are complete, this message will be presented.
View the Researchers of a PI
•List of individuals PI is able to
certify for in the Certify My
Researchers Group View
functionality.
•Helpful tool for PECs to
determine who is responsible
for certifying the statements in
their department.
Activity
• Certify as a PI
Manual Certification
Manual Certification
•
•
•
There may be instances where an individual is not able to sign into ecrt to certify their statement.
On an exception basis only, Effort Coordinators can print out the .PDF version effort statement to have it
manually signed.
To start this process, click the Effort Statement PDF link at the top of the statement.
Manual Certification
•
•
After you have received a signed copy of the .PDF version of the effort statement, scan it into your PC.
Navigate back to the individual’s effort statement and select the Manual Certification button from the
bottom of the statement.
Manual Certification
•
•
•
A pop-up window will appear that asks you to attach the .PDF version of the
statement and to leave a note explaining why the manual certification is
needed.
After you attach the file and enter a note – select the Submit button.
Complete button to finish the Manual Certification.
Manual Certification
•
•
•
The statement’s status will update to Manually Certified, Not Processed.
Automatically routed to the Central Administrators for review.
Central Administrators will review all manually certified statements to ensure there is appropriate
justification and the correct documents are attached.
Manage Effort Tasks
Manage Effort Tasks
Home Page
Effort Coordinator Tasks
Reviewing/processing certifications, processing labor redistributions, reviewing labor redistributions when they are
loaded to ecrt from Banner, and notifying sponsors if an individual is not going to meet their commitment to a grant.
Manage Effort Tasks
Manage Tasks Page
Manage Effort Tasks
Processing Certifications
Manage Effort Tasks
Processing Certifications
•
If certified within the thresholds.
Select Process button to finalize
the statement and move it into
Certified, Processed status.
•
If certified outside labor
redistribution thresholds the
Process and Cost Transfer
Needed button will display.
•
The EC will make a decision to
move the statement into
Certified, Processed, Labor
Redistribution Required status by
clicking the Cost Transfer
Needed button, or the Process
button if the variance is due to
Voluntary Cost Share – this will
move the statement into
Certified, Processed status.
Manage Effort Tasks
Processing Certifications
IMPORTANT
If you make the decision to Process a statement that has variances due to Voluntary Cost Share,
you MUST leave a note in the effort statement. Leave a note that details the voluntary cost share
and click “Save Effort Note”
Manage Effort Tasks
Labor Redistribution Notice
•Labor Redistribution Notice is created back in the main page of Manage Effort Tasks.
•Serves as a reminder to process a labor redistribution in Banner
•This is simply a list of tasks can be manually deleted (using the Red X) at any time.
Manage Effort Tasks
Payroll Adjustment Task
•
•
•
Once the Labor Redistribution is processed in Banner, it will be picked up by ecrt the next
day.
If it brings computed and certified effort within our 2% threshold – it will automatically
update the statement status to Certified, Processed.
If LR does not bring the computed and certified effort within 2%, a Payroll Reconciliation
task will be created.
Manage Effort Tasks
Payroll Adjustment Task
Manage Effort Tasks
Payroll Adjustment Task
•The only option to post the
adjustment and re-open the effort
statement (because computed and
certified effort are not appropriately
aligned).
•If the Effort Coordinator does not
want to re-open the effort statement,
simply click out of this task.
•Another Labor Redistribution will be
required (that aligns computed and
certified effort) in order to remove
this task from the list without making
the individual re-certify.
Manage Effort Tasks
Sponsor Notice
•This list is populated when an individual certifies at 25% less than their commitment for that period.
•Simply a helpful reminder and these can be deleted at any time.
•Note: Just because an individual does not meet their commitment for a certification period, it does not mean they
will not meet their commitment over the life of the grant.
Activity
• Log in as Effort Coordinator
On Hold Functionality
On Hold
Placing a Single statement On Hold
Central Admin and Effort Coordinators will have the ability to
place a certifier’s effort statement On Hold.
On Hold
Placing Multiple statements On Hold
To place multiple
statements On Hold, the
Effort Coordinator can
go to the Effort
Statements On Hold link
on the ecrt home page.
On Hold
Placing Multiple statements On Hold
In order to take an effort statement off, the effort coordinators will have to
go to the individual’s effort statement and uncheck the “On Hold” checkbox.
On Hold
Monitoring Effort statements on Hold
Certification Summary on the Department Dashboard Page
On Hold
Monitoring Effort statements on Hold
•On the Department Dashboard page, an effort statement that has been
placed on hold is highlighted in RED as a visual indicator to the Effort
Coordinator.
Effort Recertification
Effort Recertification
Effort Recertification
To review an individual’s historical effort statements, enter the
name of the researcher you wish to view.
Effort Recertification
• confirm they are looking at the statement for the correct period
• click the button at the bottom right to “Open for Recertification”.
• Email will be sent to the researcher to recertify his/her time for that period
• After certification period is closed, only Central Administrators can re-open statement.
Activity
• Open Statement for Recertification
ecrt Reports
Certification Payroll Report
Account View
•The Certification Payroll Report shows payroll transaction entries for a specific individual or a
department and date range. It summarizes these entries in two formats -- by account or by pay
period.
•The report will show the payroll detail for each FOP for each pay period within the period of
performance, a total line that summarizes the payroll on each FOP, the earnings code for the
transaction (Pay Type) and the percent of total pay during the period for each FOP.
Certification Payroll Report
Pay Period View
Certification Status Report
The Certification Status Report allows a user to enter criteria to return all individuals who have effort statements in
a certain status. This is a helpful report that can be used for monitoring your department’s progress during a
certification period.
Certifier Payroll Summary Report
The Certifier Payroll Summary Report displays the salary information for an individual for a 12-month period.
•
The effort coordinator selects the Certifier and then a Month and Year to return payroll
information, by month from the time selected for the subsequent 12 months.
Certifier Salary Activity Report
The Certifier Salary Activity Report displays the salary information for all supporting individuals charging the
selected PI’s awards.
•
The effort coordinator selects the PI and then a Month and Year to return payroll information,
by month from the time selected for the subsequent 12 months.
Certifiers over Commitment Settings Report
The Certifiers over Commitment Settings Report allows a user to search for individuals who have exceeded the
institutions defined commitment thresholds. Individuals who are 85%-100% committed will be in the Potential
Concerns category while those greater than 100% committed are in the Review Needed category. The report
displays the total monthly commitment for the individual over a 12-month period.
Commitment Listing Report
The commitment listing report allows a user to enter in an individual or department and return all of the
commitment details for a specified period of time.
Cost Share Report
The Cost Share Report allows a user to enter in an individual or department and return all of the
cost share details for a specified period of time.
•
The magnifying glass icon in the Actions column can be used to navigate directly to the
individual’s effort statement.
Labor Redistribution Report
The Labor Redistribution Report allows an Effort Coordinator to review the total amounts that need to be
redistributed to FOPs based on individuals certifying at different percentages than they were paid.
•
The amounts that are displayed in this report are not removed after the Labor Redistribution is loaded to ecrt.
Using the date range search criteria will help narrow the results to only display applicable labor
redistributions.
Department Grant Report
The Department Grant Report displays each of the Grants associated to a selected department along
with the PI and the Grant and the Sponsor Name.
•
You can click on the link in the Department Name to see additional information on the Grant.
Department Grant Report Continued
The Grant Summary page opens when the Department Name is clicked from the Department Grant
Report.
External Audit Report
•
The External Audit Report allows a user to search by individual, grant, or department and return a list of all of
the certification statements based on the selected criteria. There are multiple criteria for narrowing or
expanding searches. The report is most useful when converted to PDF as it provides a physical effort
statement for each of the individuals.
Monthly Commitment Summary Report
•
The Monthly Commitment Summary Report allows the user to enter in an individual and a starting month –
and then returns all of the Commitments the individual has over the next 12 months. This report can be used
as a helpful planning tool to ensure an individual is not over committed.
Payroll Adjustment Reconciliation Report
•
The Payroll Adjustment Reconciliation Report allows a user to enter a department to display a list of all effort
statements in that department that have been reopened because of a Labor Redistribution or currently have a
Labor Redistribution Pending that needs to be reviewed.
IQ Tool
IQ Tool
The IQ Tool is a query tool
that can be used to display
some helpful information
from the system. The get
to the IQ Tool select the
link from the Home Page.
IQ Tool
The IQ Tool page opens and you can see a number of queries that have been assigned
to your role. These queries should only return data for your assigned departments.
IQ Tool
To run a query, simply click the link – which pulls up a quick summary window that tells
you what the query results will be. Select the Run Report button to execute the query.
IQ Tool
The query results will be
displayed. These can be
exported to excel or PDF for
further analysis. If you have an
idea for a query that would assist
you in the certification/ review/
monitoring process, let the
Central Administration team
know and they may be able to
develop it for you.
SPAR Website and Contact Info
•
All questions related to appointments, accounts, percentages, amounts and/or the
ecrt system should be directed to your departmental Effort Coordinator.
•
A list of effort coordinators by department can be found on the SPAR website at
www.depts.ttu.edu/spar.
• For additional assistance, you may contact the Office of Sponsored Programs
Accounting and Reporting (SPAR).
•
• A.J Arteaga, Time and Effort Coordinator, (806) 834-4337 or
aj.arteaga@ttu.edu.
Home Page of ECRT will contain links to find any information you may need.