CALS Business Operations Newsletter
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Get CBO Help at:
919-515-4226 or cbo_help@ncsu.edu
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COVID-19: CBO Updates Webpage
Keep up-to-date on business operations updates and guidance related to COVID-19 on the
CBO Updates – COVID-19
webpage.
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Upcoming Business Partners Meeting
Join us for our upcoming Business Partners meeting on
Wednesday, May 20
from
10:30 a.m. - 12 p.m.
We will likely hold the meeting via Zoom, but will update the calendar invite and send out a notice closer to the meeting with those details.
If you missed the March meeting, you can view the meeting recording and slides, along with the 2020 meeting schedule on our
Business Partners webpage
. Please be sure to share any pertinent information from these meetings with your departments.
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Travel Restrictions
Travel restrictions are currently in place until further notice. If and when a restriction is lifted, an official communication will be sent directly from the university. To request an exception to the travel restrictions, individuals can submit an appeal by completing the
Travel Appeals Form
. The approval form must be uploaded to the Travel Authorization (TA) and Travel Reimbursement (TR), otherwise the TA and/or TR will be denied back to the traveler. Please go to the following link to review the restrictions
https://controller.ofa.ncsu.edu/travel-restriction-guidance/
. This link also provides questions and answers that can assist you with cancelled, postponed and future travels.
PCards should not be used to purchase travel expenses until after TA's are approved.
Under the current travel restrictions, TA's for travel to restricted areas will not be approved and travel expenses should not be purchased on a PCard for employees or non-employees. Cardholders are responsible for requesting a full refund from the vendor or reimbursing the University if travel expenses are incurred without an approved TA, no exceptions are authorized.
Travelers with approved TA's
who will receive a credit with a vendor
for a purchase made on their PCard
should email
cals_cbo_pcard@ncsu.edu
with the following information:
- Cardholder Name - The name of the person the NCSU PCard is issued to.
- Traveler Name - The name of the person who will receive the credit from the vendor. (This may not always be the cardholder name). This should always be specified.
- The amount that will be credited.
- The expiration date of the credit.
- Documentation that could support travel related credits due to the coronavirus. This documentation would be unique to the situation and the vendor. However, the most common documents used to support a coronavirus cancellation include (1) a copy of the university communications regarding the travel restrictions; (2) communication from an event organizer that the event is cancelled; and (3) if cancelling travel to an unrestricted area, a statement from the traveler, with support of their supervisor, that they no longer wish to travel due to concerns for personal safety.
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Shop MarketPlace First- FY2021 Change
Shop MarketPlace First is an Initiative which kicked off in July 2017. The initiative is for NCSU Faculty and Staff to purchase all low dollar supplies from
NC State MarketPlace
. When making purchases for supplies that are available from MarketPlace catalogs*, the MarketPlace system should be the method used to purchase those supplies. Voucher payments for supplies $250 and below was the threshold as of 8/29/2017, where Procurement required shoppers to pay via PCard and can only pay via voucher if vendor 1) does not accept visa/mastercard (will be confirmed by Procurement, or 2) Invoice that is $250 and below is part of a larger PO, and the voucher is a portion of the payment on the PO.
The amount will change
as of 7/1/2020
, where voucher payments for supplies
$1000 or less
must be purchased through Marketplace or paid via a PCard.
*MarketPlace catalogs provide all vendors available in MarketPlace. You must use the vendors through MarketPlace, Business Services can not pay a voucher to a vendor listed in Marketplace.
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Options for Uploading Supporting Documentation to ServiceNow or PCard Center
As we are all getting acclimated to working remotely we have to consider alternative options for uploading invoices and documentation to ServiceNow or the PCard center. There are a variety of apps for smart phones for scanning documents. Two examples of applications for scanning are Scanbot and Turboscan for forms. As it relates to receipts, you can take a picture with your phone and upload the image to the PCard center.
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Purchase Authorizations (PA) versus Purchase Orders
At times vendors may ask for a purchase authorization to satisfy an order of any value. CALS has a purchase authorization system. This system provides quick access to a purchase authorization number, however, it is not the same as a NCSU Purchase Order. The NCSU Purchase Order is required when a supplier/vendor will be providing goods or services over a twelve month (fiscal) period greater than $5000. The purchase authorization system (PA system) will be under construction in August/September 2020, because the PA is not officially approved by NCSU Procurement Services, however, is a resource for providing a vendor a purchase authorization number. The purchase of goods or services must still be an allowable expense, please refer to the
Basic Spending Guidelines
, prior to making purchases, or contact the CBO Helpline for assistance at (919) 515-4226.
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Why do I need to provide both a project and phase for expenditures?
The college receives funding allocations from a variety of sources, including federal capacity funds and state funds to name a few. Annually we must report to the federal government and other entities on our uses of these funds. When we report on our activities, having both project and phase information helps us to accurately align the expenditures to effort. Hatch funding is an example of federal formula-based funding we receive because of our land grant status to support agricultural research. Any faculty member with a research appointment of at least 15% is required to submit a Hatch project and is assigned a "Hatch Phase". This "Hatch Phase" is a phase number assigned to a specific faculty member that allows for efficient and effective annual reporting of their financial expenditures across all funding sources. A Hatch project is active for 5 years and upon expiration must be renewed. As faculty and staff make purchases (MarketPlace, PCard, travel, purchase vouchers, etc.), they may be asked by CBO staff to provide additional phase information if a project number is provided without a phase. For additional information about our college use of phase numbers, please contact Sean Munday at
scmunday@ncsu.edu
.
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Contract Review Reminder
Only the Chancellor and those delegated by the Chancellor have the authority to execute contracts for the university. Anyone else executing a contract that purports to bind the university or its subunits is acting without authority and could be held personally liable for the breach of the contract or for the full value of the contract.
A contract is any document that legally binds the university to another party. Contracts can take many forms, including affiliation agreements, memorandum of understanding (MOUs), terms and conditions (T&C’s), letters of agreement, online click-through agreements and a variety of other labels. Not all contracts involve the payment of money.
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MarketPlace Issues?
If you are having trouble checking out while shopping in the MarketPlace, this could be due to an error when using Google Chrome. Try Firefox or another internet browser and see if this corrects the issue. If not, reach out to the MarketPlace Help Desk at
help@ncsu.edu
or call (919) 515-HELP.
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PCard Updates and Deadlines
Please take a moment to review the deadlines and reminders below to help ensure PCard policies and procedures are being followed and transactions are processed in a timely manner.
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March Billing Cycle (Past Billing Cycle)
- The March billing cycle (February 21 - March 20) statement deadline is 5 p.m. on April 20.
- To allow cardholders and supervisors adequate time for approval, reconcilers will approve statements by April 7 unless additional information is required.
- If additional information is required in order to approve a statement, cardholders will received notification by April 7 from cals_cbo_pcard@ncsu.edu. Please be on the lookout for these communications.
- Additionally, cardholders who did not have their receipts uploaded for this billing cycle into the PCard Center as of 3:30 p.m. on March 23 would be required to submit a JV request via ServiceNow if the transaction was not charged to the appropriate project.
April Billing Cycle (Current Billing Cycle)
- The reconciliation deadline for the April billing cycle (March 21 - April 20) is April 22. However, in order to guarantee reconciliation of transactions, receipts should be uploaded by 3:30 p.m. on April 21.
- Anything uploaded after the April 21 deadline will be reconciled for this billing cycle only if time allows and the cardholder will be responsible for submitting any JV requests via ServiceNow if necessary.
As a reminder, to ensure deadlines are met, cardholders should do the following:
- Upload receipts within 1-3 days of the transaction date and avoid uploading all receipts the day before or on the day of the reconciliation deadline.
- Be sure receipts have written on them the project phase to be charged, a detailed business purpose, and the travel authorization number (if applicable).
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Updated Deadline for CALS SDC Monthly Submission
The University has updated it's April monthly payroll schedule and lockout has been moved up a few days. The CALS SDC monthly submission deadline is now
April 13
at
5 p.m.
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New Workflow for Reviewing Journal Voucher (JV) Requests
To ensure a smooth year end close process and address concerns about the trackability of requests, we will be implementing a new workflow relative to journal voucher requests submitted through ServiceNow that impact either appropriated funds or trust funds. This change is needed to address the numerous impacts that COVID-19 is having on CALS operations and to ensure departments and units are able to carry over as much discretionary funding as possible to address future needs due to the disruptions from this pandemic. Moving forward a query will be run at least daily (we will increase the frequency if volumes make that necessary) of any journal voucher requests that are submitted through ServiceNow. Budget Office personnel will then review each request to determine the allowability and appropriateness and either approve the JV in ServiceNow, for processing by Business Services, or request additional information from the caller. We don't believe that this change will impact the processing times of JVs, but if you do see a delay please reach out to either Sean Munday or Tiffany Bryant so that the CBO can make any adjustments necessary.
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CALS C&G COVID-19 Information
CALS C&G is working on creating a webpage that will include information in regards to COVID-19 and research programs. In the interim, please see below guidance:
Overview of Federal Memorandums and Guidelines regarding research funding and project management in the time of COVID-19: (NIH, DOD, NSF, Dept. of State, OMB):
Listing of funding opportunities for COVID-19 related research
:
Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research (FFAR): As a reminder, FFAR has a No Cost Extension (NCE) Policy available on their website and in investigators’ grant account interface. Investigators that anticipate needing a project extension should follow the policy guidance in requesting an extension. All NCE requests must be submitted through the
FFAR grants management system
. NCEs will be approved for up to a year and reevaluated at the end of the additional year if more time would be necessary.
Please
contact
grants@foundationfar.org
for
questions or help.
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NSF Mandatory Templates for Biosketch and Current & Pending Forms Released
Please see below communication from Jean Feldman, NSF Policy Office Head, Division of Institution and Award Support,
Office of Budget, Finance & Award Management.
Dear Colleagues:
We are pleased to announce the availability of both NSF-approved formats for the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support sections of National Science Foundation (NSF) proposals that fall under the revised
Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide
(PAPPG) (NSF 20-1) (see the
February 6, 2020 webinar
for complete details on all revisions to the PAPPG).
Although use of an NSF-approved format for submission of these proposal sections is not required until implementation of the revised PAPPG (NSF 20-1) on June 1, 2020, NSF is encouraging proposers to begin using the NSF-approved formats now
. NSF values the feedback from the research community, and we would like to hear about your experience with the new NSF-approved formats. Information about how to provide feedback is included below.
Use of an NSF-approved format aims to reduce administrative burden and improve efficiencies by providing proposers with a compliant and reusable way to maintain this information for subsequent proposal submissions to NSF, while also ensuring that the information is submitted in a standard and searchable composition.
NSF-approved Formats:
- SciENcv: NSF has partnered with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to use SciENcv: Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae as an NSF-approved format for use in preparation of both the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support sections of an NSF proposal. SciENcv will produce an NSF-compliant PDF version of the documents which proposers can save and submit as part of their proposals via FastLane, Research.gov or Grants.gov. Additional information about the NSF-approved SciENcv formats is available on the NSF biographical sketch and current and pending support websites.
- The SciENcv tool integrates with ORCID, enabling proposers to populate their Biographical Sketches by importing data directly from their ORCID records rather than having to manually enter all the required information. Additionally, Biographical Sketch data maintained in SciENcv can be quickly and easily updated on an ongoing basis for subsequent proposal submissions.
- NSF Fillable PDF: NSF is also providing a fillable PDF as an NSF-approved format for use to prepare both the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support sections of an NSF proposal. Proposers can download the respective fillable PDF form from the NSF biographical sketch and current and pending support websites and then submit the completed forms as part of their proposals via FastLane, Research.gov or Grants.gov. Note that the NSF fillable PDF for the Biographical Sketch does not integrate with ORCID.
It is important to note that beginning June 1, 2020, proposers will be required to use one of the NSF-approved formats for both the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support sections of NSF proposals. Proposals submitted via FastLane, Research.gov and Grants.gov will be compliance checked to ensure that the documents were prepared in accordance with this new policy.
We Want Your Feedback
Although not required for proposal submission until June 1, 2020, we hope that you will start using the NSF-approved formats for Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support as soon as possible. If you have any feedback that would help us make improvements to the two formats in the future, please let us know. Feedback may be submitted by email to
policy@nsf.gov
or via the
Research.gov Feedback
page (select “Biographical Sketch” or "Current & Pending Support" under the Site Area dropdown menu).
Upcoming Webinars
To assist the community about these new requirements and to start using SciENcv now, NSF and NIH are planning to conduct a joint webinar that will include a walk-through of how to prepare the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending Support documents in SciENcv. Information will be provided as soon as it is available, and we encourage you to
sign up for notifications
.
We also invite you to participate in the next
NSF Electronic Research Administration (ERA) Forum
on May 14, 2020 at 1:00PM – 2:30PM EDT where we will discuss the NSF-approved format requirements, as well as the new capability to prepare and submit separately submitted collaborative proposals in Research.gov.
To sign up for ERA Forum notifications including registration availability for the May 14 event, please send a blank email to
NSF-ERA-FORUM-subscribe-request@listserv.nsf.gov
and you will be automatically enrolled.
Training Resources
The following training resources are now available, and NSF will continue to keep the community informed as additional resources are released.
Biographical Sketch Resources
Current and Pending Support Resources
Questions? Policy-related questions should be directed to
policy@nsf.gov
. If you have technical or IT system-related questions, please contact the NSF Help Desk at 1-800-673-6188 (7:00 AM - 9:00 PM ET; Monday - Friday except federal holidays) or via
fastlane@nsf.gov
.
Regards,
Jean
Jean Feldman
Head, Policy Office
Division of Institution and Award Support
Office of Budget, Finance & Award Management
National Science Foundation
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ORCID ID and SciENcv Biosketch Information and Steps
If you plan to submit or participate on an NSF submission, please follow the below steps to first create an ORCID ID, then a SciENcv biosketch. If there are any questions regarding the process, please contact the NCSU librarians for assistance at
group-lib-citations@ncsu.edu
.
Please f
ollow the instructions below to complete this task as soon as possible:
- Create or link your ORCID record to your Unity ID by clicking "Get Started" at this link: https://ci.lib.ncsu.edu/
- Add your publications to ORCID by following these directions: https://ci.lib.ncsu.edu/user/search-and-link
- If you need help importing publications into your ORCID record, send your CV to the Libraries through this link: https://ci.lib.ncsu.edu/user/cv-service
- Log into SciENcv: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sciencv/ and select "Click here to start"
- Select "See more 3rd party sign in options" and choose "North Carolina State University"
- Log into SciENcv using your Unity ID
- In the upper right corner, go to Settings by clicking on your username
- In Settings, scroll down to "Linked Accounts" and click the "Change" button
- Search for "ORCID" in the "Search for account name" box and select "ORCID" from the results (you should now see your ORCID record in the "Your Linked Accounts" section above)
- Click on "MyNCBI" in the upper right corner to go back to the main dashboard
- Proceed to the "SciENcv" section to start creating biosketches
Additional Information Regarding the SciENcv requirements:
If there are any questions regarding the SciENcv biosketch process, please contact the NCSU librarians for assistance.
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Business Services Team Updates
Michelle Fenner -
Michelle Fenner was promoted to the Program Associate position with our PCard program. Michelle joined the CBO, almost 2 years ago, in June 2018 and has established great relationships with her peers and customers. She will bring her knowledge and experience to assist us in building a strong customer service support in her role.
Katie Howe -
Katie joined Business Services on Tuesday, March 24. Katie has a Bachelor's in Sociology and an Associate's in Accounting. She joins us with retail and management experience.
Ryan Phillips -
Ryan joined Business Services on Tuesday, March 24. Ryan has a Bachelor's in Business Administration from NC State University. Ryan joins us from UNC School of Medicine.
Kimberly Yancey -
Kim joined Business Services on Tuesday, March 31. Kim joins us from Duke University, where she has worked as a Staff Assistant supporting Faculty and Staff with appointment and financial transactional support for over 20 years.
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