Post-Award Support
- Negotiate and Accept Award
- Grant Management Orientation
- Project Management Plan and Meetings
- Guidelines on Purchasing Equipment,
Supplies, and Travel, and on Reimbursement - Guidelines on Hiring Employees Funded by Grants
- Guidelines on Hiring Contractors Funded by Grants
- Monitor Cost Share Funding,
Expenditures, and Collections - Project Site Visit and Audit Preparation
- Manage Changes and Extension
- Concluding the Project
After you receive award notification, the director of grants management can assist with the management of your award.
Negotiate and Accept Award
Any correspondence, such as award notification letters or checks from the funders, should be forwarded to the director of grants management immediately. The director of grants management and the principal investigator (PI) will need to review the award and project plan to determine if a revised plan/budget needs to be submitted. The director of grants management needs to be contacted if your award has a contract.
Grant Management Orientation
The director of grants management will host two grant orientation meetings with the (PI) after the funding has been awarded. This will include one session with the PI only, and one session with the PI, department chair, support staff/department designee, and Business Office and Information and Media Technology (IMT) as needed. The first meeting will involve an overview of the project management plan, budget, equipment, supplies, employees, contactors, etc.
Project Management Plan and Meetings
The director of grants management will assist in setting up meetings and reviewing the process to track all related key tasks and answer all project-related questions. Periodic reviews with the director of grants management about the timeline and progress reports will be scheduled.
Guidelines on Purchasing Equipment,
Supplies, and Travel, and on Reimbursement
After the PIs develop management plans and budgets, they can start spending the funding awarded within the limits of the categories and amount allowed by the contract. The grant website includes grant-related forms and policies related to purchase, travel, and reimbursement.
Guidelines on Hiring Employees Funded by Grants
If there are new grant-funded positions needed for the project and those positions have been budgeted in the proposal or revised budget, the PI must adhere to Human Resources procedures to hire grant-funded employees. See Guidelines on Hiring Employees Funded by Grants (PDF) for more details. apu.edu/humanresources/forms/#employeerecordsandevaluation
Guidelines on Hiring Contractors Funded by Grants
Please confer with OSRG or the director of grants management before hiring a consultant or contractor, as employment consideration can vary from grant to grant. To proceed with a hire, complete a Supplemental Services Agreement form, which is for detailing the external contractor/consultant’s credentials and qualifications for the role to be performed in the project, and the purpose of the proposed hire. apu.edu/businessoffice/departments/payable/independent
Monitor Cost Share Funding,
Expenditures, and Collections
Account expenditures should be reviewed monthly to identify underspending, overspending, or errors. A regular meeting with the grant accountant will be set up to go through the expenses, cost sharing, payroll redistribution, subaward management, and project income/revenue reconciliation. The grant accountant works on indirect cost recovery reconciliation and prepares invoices for income/revenue collection and fund drawdowns.
Project Site Visit and Audit Preparation
Depending on the sponsors’ policies and requirements, there may be a sponsor site visit during which the sponsor learns more about the project’s progress, success, and continued potential and conducts an audit. When the PI/project director receives notification about an impending visit, the director of grants management should be notified immediately. Preparation for internal and external audits is a key responsibility of the PI/project director. Grant recipients must cooperate fully in all such internal audits.
Manage Changes and Extension
During the grant period, changes may occur unexpectedly and may prompt the need for a no-cost extension, rebudgeting, carry forward request, change of key personnel, change on scope of work, and investigator change. As soon as those changes are identified, notify the director of grants management to get the change request prepared and submitted to the funding agency, if necessary.
Concluding the Project
Allow enough time to prepare final closeout reports before the final closeout date. The PI will review the research outcomes and compare them to the project plan and goals to make sure the final project progress report is prepared and submitted to the director of grants management by the deadline.
