Molemolemo: Building Research Administration Excellence in South Africa

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PROJECT SUMMARY The growth of research activities at The Aurum Institute (Aurum) in Johannesburg, South Africa, and its objective to engage in more primary research awards on the African continent, have highlighted the desire for improved administrative oversight of NIH/NIAID grant awards and compliance with NIH funding policies. To achieve the aims outlined in this application, we will work together with Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) to receive advanced grants administration training and exposure to best business practices. VUMC will assist in performing a mixed methods needs assessment of the research administration and management environment at Aurum and generate an Action Plan that will identify training needs, prioritize processes, and guide program implementation. VUMC will lead virtual training workshops on a variety of administrative topics and will host a Grants Management Practicum to be attended by the two PIs. A major focus and output of the collaboration with VUMC is the in-house development of a structured Grants Management Training Course for non-US-based organizations, to be comprised of essential and elective modules. This will be the vehicle through which we will ensure lasting impact of the training support offered through this grant. With technical assistance and course materials from Vanderbilt, this program will be developed to enhance and improve training in grants management and research administration. In the second year of the practicum at Vanderbilt, Aurum administrators will create video training modules, which will be instrumental in rolling out a standardized Grants Management Training Program across the different Aurum entities in South Africa and elsewhere in Africa. In addition to recorded modules, the Aurum grants management team will regularly, at a minimum twice a year, lead both virtual and in-person classroom training workshops per the developed training curriculum on a variety of administrative topics ranging from proposal development through award closeout. The applicable mandatory modules will become part of the on-boarding program for new staff and we will continue to develop and update the training course as and when needed. The proposed development award will enable the creation of a high-quality research administration environment at the Aurum Institute, its affiliates, and collaborating partners, that is knowledgeable and compliant with the fiscal and management standards of sponsored research.