Regulatory & Compliance Oversight |
It is important to maintain continuous training in research administration. Failing to adequately train staff is one of the biggest risks, especially in an ever-changing federal landscape.
Introduction
Training programs are a strategic investment in research compliance and integrity. They represent an ongoing process that evolves alongside changing regulations and sponsor expectations. Organizations that prioritize training are far better equipped to mitigate non-compliance risks during audits and regulatory inspections. We present three scenarios showing the importance of training. Please read the stories and send your comments or other stories you wish to share.
Story 1
Imagine a new sponsored research award arrives at an institution. The proposal was submitted successfully, the funding is awarded, and the research team is eager to begin. A new coordinator joins the study, a financial administrator sets up the award, and the principal investigator delegates responsibilities to several team members. Along the way, sponsor requirements change, regulations are updated, and staff responsibilities evolve.
Now imagine that one person misses the required training. For example, key personnel failed to complete research security training at the proposal stage and didn’t disclose foreign in-kind support in Current & Pending (Other Support). Should this proposal have been submitted? Is the foreign in-kind support significant enough to be disclosed? Will this pose an institutional compliance risk?
Story 2
The research administrator is unfamiliar with a sponsor-specific requirement concerning Common forms in SciENcv and prepares Biosketch on the old forms. The proposal is due in 24 hours, and the team runs into validation errors in the grants submission system. Now the PI reaches out to you because the research administrator is not available. What would you advise the PI to do?
As a senior research administrator, you are aware that the ORCID ID needs to be linked to SciENcv as well as the eRA Commons account. The key senior personnel has only 24 hours to prepare the Common forms and link the ORCID ID correctly. Is this enough time to get everything in order so that a compliant proposal can be submitted? Visit the eRA Commons page (National Institutes of Health, 2026) and NCBI page (National Institutes of Health, 2026) for instructions on linking an ORCID ID.
Story 3
The research coordinator has never been trained on the institution’s financial procedures and submits a dinner reimbursement request for alcohol on an NIH-funded grant. This has come to you for approval now. What is the next step? What training would you provide for the research coordinator? Do you think the PI needs training?
Conclusions
Sponsored research administration is a layered responsibility. Everyone, from the research coordinator at the department, to shared offices, to the Office of Sponsored programs, should be trained in research compliance. Research administrators should develop expertise by keeping up with changes in sponsor policies.
As you can see from the stories, failing to adequately train personnel throughout the full lifecycle of a sponsored project is one of the greatest risks in research administration. Sponsored research is complex, ever-changing, and sponsor specific. Successful research administration requires a team of skilled and knowledgeable people.