Higher Education Institutions Facing Increased Pressure to Meet Research Compliance, Reporting and Productivity Demands
Scottsdale, AZ (PRWEB) March 18, 2014 -- rSmart, a leader in enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for higher education, released today its http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fhttp://www..rsmart.com%2Ftrends-in-higher-ed&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNGat8kyyG8rodeGwiXagvn2SArzfg [Trends in Higher Ed Grant & Research Management Report and infographic __title__ Trends in Higher Ed Research Admin Report & Infographic] highlighting the challenges colleges and universities are facing in the management of their critical research enterprise. The report and infographic also address how electronic research administration (eRA) solutions can streamline sponsored program and compliance management.
In 2013, rSmart surveyed nearly 100 sponsored programs professionals at more than 65 colleges and universities. Participants, ranging from proposal managers to executive directors, were asked what challenges they were facing as research administrators and what best practices and new tools can help address these issues.
Key findings in the Higher Ed Grant & Research Management Report include:
- At a time when business processes in higher education are largely electronic, grants and research are managed primarily by paper, spreadsheets, or homegrown systems that only address a portion of the research administration lifecycle.
- Without automated solutions to manage research more effectively, research volume growth goals will be hard to attain.
- The majority of institutions say that improving research administration is a high priority yet budgets are significantly disproportionate.
- Electronic research administration gives institutions better access to information, reduces administrative burden, and reduces compliance risk.
- The most important capabilities of an eRA solution are an integrated system across the full research administration lifecycle, electronic workflow, and a Grants.gov submission process.
“In my 30 years of research administration, I have never seen the funding landscape in higher education research so competitive,” said Diane Barrett, senior research administration consultant. “At a time when administrative burden continues to grow, institutions that are still managing their research administration processes by hand are increasingly vulnerable, and it makes their oversight and collaboration more time-consuming and complicated.”
To address these challenges, rSmart provides a Grant & Research Management Suite to help institutions of all sizes streamline their sponsored program management. Built on open source, community-developed Kuali Coeus software, the suite is delivered in rSmart's education-focused cloud with added capabilities like out-of-the-box reporting, tailored configuration, and system integrations, along with services and support to ensure success.
The rSmart Grant & Research Management Suite, including the new Cloud Enterprise for Kuali Coeus, will be on display at the NCURA 2014 Pre-Award Research Administration (PRA) Conference March 18-20 at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square.
rSmart will also host a free online webinar titled Sponsored Program and Compliance Management in the Cloud at 9:00 a.m. (PDT) March 26. Space is limited; more information and to register.
Download a free copy of the Trends in Higher Ed Grant & Research Management Report.
About rSmart
rSmart, a leader in enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for higher education, empowers colleges and universities to embrace community-driven, open source software. We make Kuali ERP software enterprise ready with cloud delivery, enhanced functionality, professional services, and support. Our Customers significantly reduce research, financial, and student administration costs through improved processes and freedom from expensive, overly customized, and difficult to maintain legacy and proprietary software. rSmart is privately held and headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ.
Tiffani Nichols, rSmart, http://www.rsmart.com, +1 (602) 490-0478, [email protected]
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