University| Search
| News | A-Z
Index | Contact us
TRAC Project Implementation Plan
|
| ||||
|
|
|
||
| TRAC Home | What is TRAC? | TRAC Update | TRAC Steering Group | ||||
| Target | Activity | Timescale | Responsibility |
| A. Develop appropriate financial and administrative frameworks to implement TRAC at project level | (1) Define roles and responsibilities (2) Enhance existing business practices and systems (3) Develop appropriate costing schedules and project costing templates (4) Initiate Faculty-based briefing sessions (5) Train key central support groups - Finance, Grants and Contracts Support Unit, Research and Innovation Services (6) Review existing RAM and QR allocation protocols |
April 2004 to December 2004 | See Interim Impletmentation Plan - April 2004 to December 2004 |
| B. Integrate fEC approach into financial reporting and planning processes | (1) Provide further training for
Principal Investigators and Departmental/School-based administrators and
clerical support staff (2) Commence costing and managing research and knowledge transfer projects on a fEC basis (3) Further modelling of impact of fEC on research income (4) Integrate fEC approach with financial planning processes at departmental level (5) Rationalisation of pay scales and conditions of service to inform development of time allocation and reconciliation methodology (6) Approve a revised Costing and Pricing Strategy (7) Brief F & GP Committee and Council on TRAC and fEC (8) Amend Financial Regulations as appropriate (9) Respond to Research Council timetables for addressing TRAC at project level (monitor revisions to schedule for introducing TRAC-based applications to Research Councils) |
January 2005 to July 2005 | TRAC Steering Group Finance Department Finance & General Purposes Committee Council |
| C. Full implementation of fEC for research and knowledge transfer activities | (1) Improve robustness of time
allocation data and roll out methodology for logging time spent on individual
projects (move to actual rather than proportional time allocations) (2) Review all costing schedules and project costing templates (3) Develop new management information reports, reporting structures and performance indicators (4) Review Research and Knowledge Transfer Strategies in the light of TRAC and reflect in Corporate Plan for 2006/07 to 2008/09 (5) Update induction programme for new Heads of Department to incorporate fEC and TRAC training (6) Update Initial Training Programme for new members of academic staff to include costing and pricing principles (7) Scenario planning exercise at Lay Retreat to establish priorities (8) Interim evaluation of project implementation (9) New Finance System Project Team to ensure finance system specifications are consistent with fEC reporting requirements |
August 2005 to July 2006 | TRAC Steering Group Strategic Planning Group Research Committee Knowledge and Innovation Services Internal Audit |
| D. Development and implementation of institutional financial sustainability strategy | (1) Extension of fEC to broader
range of institutional activities (2) Reconciliation of time allocations across teaching, research and other activities (3) Development of investment strategy for physical infrastructure (4) Embedding new systems and reporting structures (5) Progression of the new Finance System project (6) Respond to Research Council requirements and contribute to any national evaluation exercises (7) Review financial planning procedures |
August 2006 to July 2007 | TRAC Steering Group Strategic Planning Group Space Management Committee Finance and General Purposes Committee Council |
| E. Implementation of fully robust systems for direct and indirect project costs | (1) Ensure all direct and indirect
cost allocations are compliant with national requirements for robustness
(TRAC Manual Vol. III) (2) Monitor performance indicators and evaluate impact of fEC on research profile (institutional and departmental impacts) (3) Review and enhance audit trails and robustness of departmental and central records (4) Develop archiving strategy (5) Develop methodology for testing year on year sustainability of institutional activities (6) Ensure all new business practices associated with TRAC are clearly articulated and readily accessible (pull together in single user-friendly reference manual - if not already in place) |
August 2007 to July 2008 | TRAC Steering Group Research Committee Finance Department |
| F. Review and evaluation of project implementation | (1) New Corporate Plan for 2009/10
to 2011/12 to reflect SMART objectives for financial sustainability (2) Verification of time allocations by funding sponsors (3) Review institutional research priorities and funding allocations in the light of the outcomes of RAE2008 (4) Five-year review of project implementation |
August 2008 to July 2009 | Stategic Planning Group Internal Audit Audit Committee Finance and General Purposes Committee Council |