Contract Processing
Following the appropriate process for the different types of agreements and contracts will expedite contract preparation and execution, allowing faculty and staff to begin working on their projects more quickly.
Every contract and agreement handled by the Contracts & Industry Agreements team goes through the same general stages for contract processing. The timeline for contract drafting, negotiation and execution will vary depending on a number of factors, including the type of agreement, type of sponsor, and the nature and complexity of the project. However, having all needed documentation available and appropriate approvals for projects in place before the Contracts & Industry Agreements team receives the contract agreement will avoid unnecessary delays.
Financial Agreements
The Contracts & Industry Agreements team has a close, daily working relationship with the Research Service Centers to ensure university, sponsor, and government rules and regulations are followed. Below are some general guidelines for faculty and staff to ensure timely and appropriate administrative action is taken prior to the initiation of the contract process.
By the time the Contracts & Industry Agreements team receives a contract or agreement for funding faculty or staff sponsored projects (research, education, service, etc.), the Office of Sponsored Project Administration (OSPA) should already have an approved proposal on file. If no proposal has been routed through one of the six Research Service Centers, then the faculty or staff member will be contacted to route the needed proposal documents through the appropriate Research Service Center. A contract or agreement for sponsored project activity will not be negotiated until the proper documentation has been routed.
Non-Financial Agreements
Some contracts, such as confidentiality agreements, material transfer agreements, teaming agreements, and memoranda of understanding, normally do not include funding, as sponsored projects do. Thus, these non-financial agreements do not require routing a proposal through OSPA. The Contracts & Industry Agreements team will negotiate those contracts and agreements and will contact the faculty or staff member if additional information is needed to prepare and execute the agreement.
Incoming Subcontracts
These are subcontracts to UTSA (incoming), with a prime awardee (for instance, The University of Texas at Austin). The UTSA work scope and budget should be routed and approved as part of the original proposal before initiating the contract process. This documentation should be located in the sponsored project file, to be available for use by the Contracts & Industry Agreements team at the contract review stage.
Outgoing Subcontracts
These are subcontracts issued by UTSA (outgoing). The subcontract will be drafted and negotiated by UTSA’s Contracts & Industry Agreement team. The other institution’s work scope and budget should be routed and approved as part of the original proposal before initiating the contract process. This documentation should be located in the sponsored project file, to be available for use by the Contracts & Industry Agreements team at the contract drafting stage.
If you have additional questions, please contact us.
