Department Administrator
Session #16
March 11, 2015
Agenda
• New Delegation of Authority Form
• Institutional Approvers
• Activities in Research Financial Services
– Delay in Response Time during March and April
• Case studies
• Next Session
New Delegation of Authority Form
• UofG will adopting a form similar to the one
used by Usask.
• Delegates must be knowledgeable about the
research (can not be a Dept. Administrator)
• Remember these boxes for next few slides
Financial Services Division
GRANT HOLDER DECLARATION AND
DELEGATION OF SIGNING AUTHORITY
Research Funds
For Tri-Agency awards, one delegation of signing authority form must be completed for each fund.
Section 1. Research Fund Information
Name of Grant Holder (please print)
NSID
College/School
Department/Division/Centre
UniFi Fund Number:
Project Sponsor
Section 2. Declaration of the Grant Holder
As the named grant holder on the above identified research fund, I acknowledge that I am
accountable for all expenditures charged to this fund and that this accountability cannot be
delegated. I understand that I am responsible to initiate all expenditures against this research
fund and that all expenditures must be made in accordance with sponsor/donor and university
policies and requirements. My signature below attests one of the following statements ( please
check one of the following). Please note there is no requirement to complete Section 3 if you
select A or C.
A

I take sole responsibility for the initiation all expenditures including:
o Payroll (stipend/salary/benefit/scholarship related transactions)
o Travel and Reimbursements (travel and subsistence costs, including personal
reimbursements)
o Pcard (purchases made using a U of S Pcard)
o Purchasing (procurement including purchase requisitions, cheque requisitions)
o Journal Vouchers
o Stores (internal vendors such as Campus Computer Store, Bookstore, college stores,
college laboratory services)
B

I delegate signing authority on this research project for the stated period of time and that I
have provided the following named individual(s) with all the details concerning this
research project. Please complete Section 3.
I rescind the signing authority previously granted to:
C

Name:
NSID:
Signature of Grant Holder (in blue ink)
Date (dd/mm/yyyy)
Section 3. Affirmation of Delegate Accepting Signing Authority
(Copy this section for multiple delegates)
Name of Delegate (please print)
NSID
UniFi Fund Number
Term of Delegation – start date (dd/mm/yyyy)
Term of Delegation – end date (dd/mm/yyyy)
The above mentioned delegate is given the authority to initiate all expenditures to this fund as follows:

Payroll

Travel and
Reimbursement

PCard

Purchasing (Unifi and
Cheque Requisitions)

Journal Voucher

Stores
Affirmation of Delegate Accepting Signing Authority
 I accept responsibility as delegated signing authority for the above research project.
 I have been provided with the terms of the research project by the grant holder
 I have the skill and knowledge necessary for the effective discharge of this signing
authority
 I will use funds for the purposes for which they were awarded by ensuring all
expenditures
o Are supported by appropriate documentation,
o Conform to the terms and conditions by the sponsor/donor,
o Are processed to the correct account codes,
o Occur within the research award period, and
o Are consistent with the research project budget where applicable.
Signature of Delegate (in blue ink)
Date (dd/mm/yyyy)
Institutional Approvers for Tri-Agency Expenditures
Agriculture & Bioresources
Arts & Science
Centre for Continuing Distance
Education
Viet Truong
Doney Pan or
Doug McKinnon
Medicine
Jim Greuel
Pharmacy & Nutrition
Nursing
Graduate Studies and Research
Heather Lukey
Edwards School of Business
Engineering
Education
Jill Salamon
Viet Truong
Jae-Anne Peace
School of Environment &
Sustainability
School of Public Policy
School of Public Health
Toxicology
Kinesiology
Don Steponchev
VIDO
Law
Tracey Wray
Global Institute for Water Security
Library
Dale Amerud
Veterinary Medicine
Jae Saul
Shawn Anderson or
Mary Ellen Cox
Leanne Berglund
Tracey McHardy
Tracey Howell-Perret
Shari Peters
Adriana Brown
Lorne Vanin or
Judy Schmidt
Tiffany Schlosser
Ralph Hildebrandt or
Nadine Kozakevich
Brenna Stuckel
* source http://www.usask.ca/fsd/colleges_depts_research/research_administration/how_do_i_know_institutional_approver.php
New Delegation of Authority Form
• Modify form to be a UofG form with appropriate
reference for listing of UofG Institutional
Approvers
• Create database to store form and make
accessible for all Institutional Approvers
• Revise database held by units responsible for
processing a transaction (eg. Accounts Payable)
to search for signatures of Institutional Approvers
– Review existing forms held in A/P to see if they can be
utilized for this purpose
• Transition from old forms to new forms
New Delegation of Authority Form
•
UofG will be implementing a new form and it will be almost identical to the USask
form.
•
Question regarding 2nd page of the form – Should delegates know the terms of the
award?
– Please note that Section 3 of the delegation form (page 2) stipulates what the
delegate is agreeing to when they sign the form. Therefore, the delegate should
know the terms of the award.
•
Question from the group: Can we incorporate electronic signature (like adobe
signature etc.) on the delegation form?
– Developing this form and the database structure to manage it will require some
planning and some effort. Although the form is almost completed, there are a
number of things that UofG must consider when revising the Delegation of
Authority Form and the associated process of compliance review by the
Institutional Approvers. Some of these include:
• Can an electronic signature be incorporated into the form
• How do we address the issue of employee numbers being stored in the
database (especially when the Institutional Approver is a central department
such as Central Animal Facility and would need access to the entire database
instead of those within a specific academic department)
New Delegation of Authority Form
• Question re: CRD Matching grants – Do all Tri-council rules apply to
the matching industry grants?
– Yes, the Tri-Council rules do apply to the matching industry grants.
However, our current controls do not impose a Tri-Agency delegation
of Authority Form on the matching industry grants.
• Question re: SMCs – no physical signature – How to check signature
or authorize the expenses?
– Some thought will need to be given to SMC’s along with a number of
other internal charges, internal stores and Pcard expenses to
determine the most appropriate control and process to check for an
appropriate authorization of the expense. More work is to be done on
this. As shown in the chart in the following pages, RFS will be
following up to complete the chart and where there are unknowns, we
will be following up with the appropriate person or department to
understand the process and determine who the institutional approver
will be and how they will be inserted into the process.
Institutional Approvers
• Institutional approver (can not be a delegate), is
responsible for reviewing a transaction for:
– Expense eligibility
– Compliance (appropriate person has initiated expense)
– Department Administrators are Institutional Approvers.
You are responsible for being knowledgeable about
expense eligibility and compliance review.
• To learn about expense eligibility, you should:
– refer to the Tri-Agency Financial Administration Guide
http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/Professors-Professeurs/FinancialAdminGuideGuideAdminFinancier/index_eng.asp
– Attend the Department Administrator sessions
– Contact RFS if uncertain
Institutional Approvers
• Remember these boxes
• Attempt to create a table that identifies the Initiator,
Approver and Processor for each type of transaction
at UofG
Institutional Approvers – Summary by Transaction Type
Type of Transactions
Initiation
Institutional
Approval
Posting/
Processing
Personnel
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
HR System
Travel
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
Treasury Operation
Other expenses through Travel
Expense Claim
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
Treasury Operation
Pcard (Procurement Credit Card)
Grant Leader or Delegate
LVPO (Low Value Purchase Order)
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
Accounts Payable
HVPO (High Value Purchase Order)
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
Accounts Payable
SMC (Supply managed Contract)
Grant Leader or Delegate
Petty Cash
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
Treasury Operation
Grant Leader or Delegate
Dept. Admin.
Controller Office
Journal Entries (JEs) – except
internal charges
Couriers (Purolator, FedEx,
UPS etc.)
Grant Leader or Delegate
Accounts Payable &
Purchasing Office
Accounts Payable
Accounts Payable
Institutional Approvers – Summary by Transaction Type
Type of Transactions
Internal Stores:
Contact Person
Initiation
Central Animal Facility
Janet Ferguson
Grant Leader or Delegate
Lab Services
Karen Nakatsu
Grant Leader or Delegate
Hospitality
R MacDonald, A. Rigby
Grant Leader or Delegate
Physical Resources
Matthew Lawrie
Grant Leader or Delegate
CCS
Mladen Stojanovic
Grant Leader or Delegate
Parking Services
Jeanette Laws
Grant Leader or Delegate
Physics Machine Shop
Janice Hall
Grant Leader or Delegate
Chemistry Stockroom
Barbara Reid
Grant Leader or Delegate
Chemistry Machine Shop
Barbara Reid
Grant Leader or Delegate
Chemistry Electronic Shop Barbara Reid
Grant Leader or Delegate
Poster Printing - Chemistry Barbara Reid
Grant Leader or Delegate
Institutional Posting/
Approval Processing
Institutional Approvers – Summary by Transaction Type
Type of Transactions
Internal Stores:
Contact Person
Initiation
Poster Printing - CBS
Nora Teri
Grant Leader or Delegate
CBS AAC Billing
Nora Teri
Grant Leader or Delegate
MCB Stockroom
Nora Teri
Grant Leader or Delegate
IB BIO Stockroom
Nora Teri
Grant Leader or Delegate
Biobar
Jamie Jones, Sandra Good Grant Leader or Delegate
RSSA fees - Research
stations
Janet Ferguson
Grant Leader or Delegate
Plant Ag Growth Facilities Jill Selby
Grant Leader or Delegate
BDDC Lab charges
Jill Selby
Grant Leader or Delegate
FACScan (OVC)
D. Dinesen, K. De Uslar Grant Leader or Delegate
Pathobiology Media
Charges
D. Dinesen, K. De Uslar Grant Leader or Delegate
OVC HSC Research Billing Jackie Radley
Grant Leader or Delegate
Institutional Posting/
Approval
Processing
Research Financial Services Update
• We are noticing an increase in:
– Reports and invoices to be completed for March 31st
– Email and telephone calls
• While we try to answer emails and phone calls
in a timely manner, there will be delays in our
responses over the next couple of months as we
try to complete the required reports and
invoices.
Research Financial Services Update
• A common question we are receiving is in
regards to new accounts and when they are
open. We aim to set up the account on the
day that you receive the email from Office of
Research (exception Fund 301 accounts).
• General rule … receive notice on Wednesday
for a new account. Start using the account
on Friday.
Case Studies
• Depending on your:
– role,
– your experience and
– your involvement in Research Administration, some of you
may find these cases easy
– For those of you who find these easy, please recognize that
these cases studies come from questions that we have
received in RFS and are for the purpose of everyone in the
audience
• I am always open for suggestions and topics to make
these case studies fit with what you would like to learn
and promote the opportunities to share with each
other
Case 1: Personnel Expenses
You have been asked by RFS to review a transaction listing
for a Cluster trust account under Growing Forward 2. As
you go through the account you notice the account is
underspent by $25K. After a few moments you realize that
personnel costs are unspent! Luckily, you determine that
two employees – Grace Iris and Addison Wolf – have been
charged to the wrong trust account.
How many expenses can you move to the GF2
account?
How much expenses can you move to the GF2 account?
Case #2 – How much money do I have left to spend?
You have been asked to review a trust account to determine the
remaining balance a researcher in the School of Management has to
spend in Trust Account #1. For this account, the Award-Amount is
$100,000 with an indirect charge of 40%. The researcher has agreed
to transfer $25,000 of this Award-Amount to another researcher
within the UoG, School of Pathology ,Trust Account #2.
Facts:
• There is a surplus in the Trust Account #1 of $12,500. The total amount of indirect
costs reported on the last financial statement and applied in FRS is $21,428.57.
• All funding has been received and applied as expected. From the prior claim, the
collaborating researcher had spent all funding and RFS reported and collected
funding accordingly.
Questions
• Determine the award-amount remaining and the amount of expenses claimed in
trust account #1.
• What are the implications of the internal transfer for both trust accounts?
Answer
Description of Activity
Total
Step 1:
Award Amount , TA#1
75,000
Step 2:
Prior Year Claim
(50,000)
Step 3:
New Expenses
(12,500)
Step 4:
New Indirect Costs
(5,000)
Award Amount Remaining 7,500.00
Direct Expenses 5,357.15
Indirect Costs 2,142.85
Implications:
False Surplus in Trust Account #1
• Revenue of $25,000 should be transferred to Trust Account #2
Overstated indirect costs in Trust Account #1
• $7,142.86 in overhead should be transferred to Trust Account #2
Case #3
• Review of a Travel Claim
– A sample travel claim was provided to the group.
Case #3 – Travel Claim – Points to be
addressed
• Ask PI for more details regarding the purpose of conference; must
be related to research – The PI must make a statement that
connects his research to the conference. e.g. “this conference
relates directly to my research on Inuit Health for which I received
an Nserc grant.” Prospectus or brochure is not sufficient as per tri
council reps.
• The length of your trip seems quite extensive.
– Why travelling on the 5th when the conference did not start until the
8th?
– What research work was conducted on March 19-22nd?
• Who did you visit?
• What was the nature of the work?
– What research work was conducted from March 9th – 18th and March
23rd – 25th?
• Who did you visit?
• What was the nature of the work?
Case #3 – Travel Claim – Points to be
addressed
• The tip for ground transportation seems excessive
• 2 bedroom suite at the hotel is excessive. Ask PI why he booked a
bedroom suite? Standard accommodation was available.
– Deduct the difference between standard and suite and only reimburse
the standard room amount.
• Ask why a rental car was needed for the duration of his trip?
– Why should we pay for additional parking costs prior to start of the
conference (March 5th – March 8th)?
– The distance between LA and San Diego is 125kms. Return trip should
be 250kms. Why have you submitted a claim for 750kms?
• Why did you rent a 2 bedroom apartment for the balance of your
trip?
– Was cheaper accommodation not available?
Case #3 – Travel Claim – Points to be
addressed
• Per diems only allowed on days when research was conducted and
for meals not provided during the conference.
• On March 22nd, hospitality expense should include the following
information:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Names of attendees
Titles of attendees
Institution or organization
Affiliation to PI research
Dates of the event
Number of participants
Purpose of the event
Counter signature by the department head or dean for hospitality expenses claimed by
the grantee
• One over one authorization of travel - Dean or Chair
• Flight change for thesis defence is not eligible on research grant.
• Business class is not eligible unless it is for medical reasons which
are documented in confidence at the institution.
Next Session
• Suggested Topics
• Suggested Case studies
• Next Session Date
– Sometime in May