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Facilitating Large and Complex Proposal Efforts
Denise Wallen, Director, Research Development, Office of the Vice President for Research, University of New Mexico
Jane Schultz, Director, Research Development, Office of Research, University of California, Riverside
Carla Whitacre, Director, Research Development, Office of Research, University of California, Santa Barbara
NCURA Region VI & VII, Portland, ORApril 2008
The University of New Mexico
Denise Wallen, Ph.D. Director of Research Development
Office of the Vice President for Research
Why Are Large and Complex Proposals Different?
They usually involve multiple:– Investigators– Disciplines– Departments– Colleges– Campuses– Institutions– International components– Site visits
Why Are They Difficult?
Significant resources need to be dedicated to reach submission
Extremely competitive environment Multi-disciplinary projects mean participants
need to learn each others “language and culture” Trust needs to be built over time -- short time
frames stress the process They can be high risk, high yield, high profile Complexities abound within the scope of work,
budget, management
Is there one model or size to assist the process?
No one model or size fits all environments
Institutions and their cultures approach the challenge differently
Commonalities exist for us to learn best practices and adapt those to our environment
UNM’s Approach to this Challenge
Provide centralized support for large and complex proposal submissions
Office reports directly to VPR and works with pre- and post-award, compliance, foundation
Provide dedicated space – offices, war room If the project is also a limited competition we
manage the selection process OR decide on a strategic set aside
Relationship building with partners and “power infrastructure”
Research Development Services Office
Assess viability for large and complex research projects
Assemble research teams and work directly with PI et al
Provide ongoing support for proposal preparation and planning
Provide guidance and establishes timelines Provide editorial and graphics support Coordinate red team reviews, site visits Assist with management planning Assist with evaluation and assessment plans Assist with budget forecasting and development
Factors to Consider
Identify a strong faculty lead with knowledge, stature/credibility, commitment and time
Have champions - Chair, Dean, VP, Provost Establish realistic timeframes to develop a
competitive proposal and for “red team” and editorial reviews
Establish a complete understanding and agreement on the RFP requests
Have firm commitments for cost share, infrastructure support, space
Remember the human nature factor…
People will ask what is in it for me???
Who gets credit and recognition?
Who gets the F&A?
Who controls the budget?
Who controls the resources?
Addressing administrative issues
Establish submission timelines Garner commitment from participants to adhere
to timelines Establish robust communication among
colleagues (meetings, listserv, website) Define responsibilities for writing, research, and
budgeting and the final draft Identify and respond to all proposal
requirements
Are there special considerations for large and complex projects?
Subcontracting – Partners (industry/business, intl’, IHE)
Multiple research activities – how do they interrelate Education Plans – recruitment, retention, pipeline,
curriculum development, new degrees, etc. Outreach Component – community relationships Data Dissemination Plan Evaluation and Assessment Plan – outcomes, impact Diversity Plan Management Plan
Some Pitfalls to Avoid
Failure to articulate an integrated scope of work Failure to integrate proposal into a single voice Weak partnerships Weak management plan Unrealistic budget Lack of/or weak letters of commitment and
support
Helping with site visits
Remember what they are all about… It is an inspection and examination Project, individual and team, and
institution is under the microscope
Can you walk the talk???
Answer unaddressed questionsClearly illustrate strengths and capabilitiesShow that the PI is the expert in chargeShowcase the team as a “well-oiled
machine”Show the University administration is fully
on board
How RDS helps with the site visit
Prepare in advance for the site visit Discussion meetings and conference
callsConvene a complete rehearsalAssure all key individuals and partners
are available and prepared to participateProvide background data on site team
members
University of California, Riverside
Jane Schultz, PhD
Director of Research Development
Office of Research
GETTING THE BALL ROLLING
Difficult to encourage working across traditional subject matter boundaries
e.g., engineers in clinical areas, psychologists in the military, social scientists in the life sciences
Silo thinking - lack of ability to envision the application of research interests and tools to different questions
YOU MAY HAVE TO HELP
Getting the Ball Rolling
Overcoming fear of embarrassment and failure
Getting folks talking to each other–does beer help?
We’ve always done it this way. Why change?
Getting the Ball Rolling
Letting faculty know about the wide range of available solicitations – they tend to keep knocking on the same doors
Convincing faculty to start early Letting faculty know what resources are
available on campus
Getting the Ball Rolling
Interceding early with help in application preparation logistics
Release of faculty time to work in groups Negotiating small seed funds within the
institution Be available to help or find help for those
who want to try
SITE VISITS
Large multidisciplinary grants nearly always have a site visit
Agencies using reverse site visits more and more– Proposal team goes to the locale of the funding
agency (usually DC vicinity)– More likely if resources are not critical for
program– Make sure you bring along any props you need
SITE VISITS
Rehearse—several times!! Make sure that there is a dress rehearsal Gather a sophisticated audience–invite folks
from other institutions If you can afford it, hire a company that trains
for site visits Select your presenters carefully–don’t do a
cast of thousands but have all available to answer questions
SITE VISITS at Your Place
Make sure time is carefully planned but remain flexible
Visitors may throw a monkey wrench into your plans and you must go along
Visitors may not want to see all you wish to show them. Don’t be surprised
SITE VISITS at Your Place
Visitors may surprise you by asking to see something or someone unexpectedly–try to accommodate them
Plan some time for site visitors to meet with students who might be involved in the project. Enthusiastic students are always a plus
SITE VISITS
Try to have someone with a sense of humor and a pleasant personality leading the site visit on the campus side
Involve senior administrators who can attest to their support for and the importance of the project for your campus
The first few minutes can set the tone for the rest of the session and can result in a winner or a loss.
University of California, Santa Barbara
Carla Whitacre
Director of Research Development
Office of Research
Multidisciplinary collaborations benefit from:
Mutual interests, consensus on common (delimited) topic Developing a common vocabulary Opportunities to interact – colloquia, research reviews,
collaboratories Shared resources, infrastructure New organizational units – non-departmental centers, institutes,
research parks Trust & flexibility; charismatic leadership; mutual management New models for collaborations Access to scholarly publications & data Access to funding & resources - money goes to best ideas and
these tend more and more to require multidisciplinary partnering Visionary administrators; strong institutional support
Individual & institutional challenges
Promotion and tenure – recognizing contributionsof all parties
Specialization vs. synthesis Space assignments F & A recovery distribution Sponsored project credit Administrators
understanding of benefits Infrastructure for
collaboration
University of California, Santa Barbara:
UC campus since 1944; current location since1954 AAU Member since 1995 Ladder Faculty: ~850
– 5 Nobel Prizes since 1998 – NAS, NAE, IoM members; Guggenheims; AAAS
3 colleges; 2 professional schools 18,000 undergrads; ~3,000 graduate students $176 M sponsored projects funding Top 25 in NSF funding; top 8 among public U’s in DoD basic
research Home to 12 national centers: Kavli Institute for Theoretical
Physics; National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis
How UCSB Encourages a Multidisciplinary Framework
Young campus with institutional history of collaboration >30% joint appointments in 2 or more depts. Over 100 centers & institutes Charismatic, dedicated leaders Science & engineering faculty from industry Assigning credit – sr. administrators supportive of
junior/senior collaborations 5 Nobel Prizes – 4 in the field outside of PIs
departmental affiliation Diverse funding sources Allowance for risk – and failure
Multidisciplinary Proposal Development Team:
Goal: To enable greater collaboration among researchers from
different disciplines and colleges, To assist them to develop competitive proposals, and To facilitate continued program-building activities and
follow-on funding
Staffing:
RD director; RD analyst; senior writer/editor; outside contract workers, if needed
• Facilitates preliminary meetings with potential researchers • Helps identify additional collaborators (esp. early career faculty)• Explores ways to make project fit sponsors program• Facilitates proposal planning, preparation, university boilerplate• Assists with communication links,
e.g., listservers, conference calls, meetings• Runs interference with chairs, deans (commitments)• Assists with management plan; budget development• Reviews and edits proposal drafts; organizes red team reviews• Assists in inter-institutional partnerships and major university
research centers – UC Research Development Group• Helps locate seed, supplemental or follow-on funding
What do we do?
UCSB Case Study: Bio-inspired Materials, Biosensors and Information Processing
UC Biotechnology Research & Training Grant Program ($200K over 4 years)
DoD DURIP for shared instrumentation
UCSB Case Study: Bio-inspired Materials, Biosensors and Information Processing
DoD MURI: Bio-inspired design and fabrication of new materials and devices
W.M. Keck Fdn Science & Technology: Ecotechnology of Coral Reef Restoration
All of which eventually contributed to
Army UARC: Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies
UCSB-led collaboration with MIT, CalTech Interdisciplinary teams of molecular biologists,
chemists, physicists and engineers ~$50M+ over 5 years Four areas of emphasis (and growing):
– Biomolecular Sensors – Bio-inspired Materials and Energy– BioDiscovery Tools– Bio-inspired Network Science
14 industry partners, including Aerospace Corp, CytomX, Dell, Mitre Corp, Raytheon Vision Systems, Veeco Instruments
Some considerations:
Know your faculty– Faculty orientations– Expertise databases– Google search in your .edu domain– Brown bag lunches on selected topics– Attend symposia/research reviews in areas ripe for
interdisciplinary collaborations Build around faculty interests
– Stay connected to research-intensive faculty – Mediated fund searches– seed funding (e.g., internal, SGER, R21,
foundations)
Build on your institutions strengths– e.g., physics, materials, marine/environmental sciences– Consider social science & humanities perspective
in natural science & engineering ppls
Organize around specific funding opportunities… – NSF Partnerships for International Research & Education– DoD Multidisciplinary Research Initiative (MURI)– NEH Collaborative Projects– NIH Exploratory Centers for Interdisciplinary Research
…but make sure PIs are passionate about the topic and willing to commit to work at the proposal stage
More considerations:
Organize workshops/symposia around specific topics
e.g., climate change, nanotechnology, energy efficiency, whatever…working with industry, intellectual property/technology transfer; keys to foundation fundingbroader impactseffective management structures for large initiativesprogram evaluation & assessment
Invite agency program officers to participate
Be visible!
More considerations:
University of California, Santa Barbara
