Inside eRA, February 4, 2002 (Vol. 3, Issue 2)

eRA Announces Partnership Funding Opportunities

eRA announces an initiative to develop partnerships between the NIH and the private sector for development of applications and services that will assist the research community with electronic grant submission. Sponsored by the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), this effort invites applications by April 17, 2002, from for-profit organizations that are eligible for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) research and development grants. 

A public briefing scheduled for 10 a.m., March 4, at 6700B Rockledge Drive, Room 1202, Bethesda, Maryland, will be available as a webcast. The Request for Application (RFA RR-02-004), including additional information on the public briefing, is available online in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts.

New Committee Management Advocate Joins eRA

Anna Snouffer, Deputy Director of the Office of Federal Advisory Committee Policy (OFACP), Office of the Director (OD), became the eRA Advocate for Committee Management (CM) on January 25, replacing Claire Benfer, who has accepted a new position. Anna brings 25 years of NIH experience, including ten years at OFACP, to her new role on the eRA Project. Anna has been involved with the IMPAC II CM module since 1996. She served on the original CM Joint Application Development (JAD) team, tested the module’s functionality, and trained new users. She has remained active in supporting the CM module and participates in eRA user groups.

At OFACP, Anna provides specific advice on the use of advisory committees and their activities and develops NIH policies on committee management, procedures for committee management functions, and statistical data about NIH advisory committees and their members. 

Anna will apply her business area expertise to the redesign of the Committee Management module. You can reach her at 301-496-1750 or by email at snouffea@od.nih.gov.

Helpdesk Alert: IC Centralized Email Addresses Needed

Phase III of the IMPAC II Summary Statement process [see the January 17 issue] was successfully implemented in the January deployment. Beginning with the May Council round, IMPAC II will be the only comprehensive source of summary statements. At that time, when each summary statement is finalized, email notification will be sent to the Program Official (PO) responsible for the grant. In addition to the PO email notification, Institutes and Centers (ICs) that provide the Helpdesk with a centralized email address will receive a daily zip file of finalized summary statements for printing and distribution. To ensure that your IC obtains its finalized summary statements via email, send a centralized email address to the Helpdesk at helpdesk@od.nih.gov.

Updating IMPAC II SRA WRK Addresses

Grant application snap-out mailers now derive Scientific Review Administrator (SRA) address information from the IMPAC II work (WRK) address. If this information is missing from IMPAC II or is incorrect, applicants may not be able to contact their committee SRAs. 

The Helpdesk asks all designated SRAs for committees to review their WRK address and to update this information when they move to a new office or Scientific Peer Review Group (SRG). Instructions for updating WRK addresses are available on the IMPAC II website. For assistance, please contact the Helpdesk at 301-402-7469 or by email at helpdesk@od.nih.gov.

Migration of All OLTP Person Data to the IRDB Completed

The IMPAC II development team migrated all Person data from the Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) database to the IMPAC II Reporting Database (IRDB) in late December. The consequent increase in available information marks a new era in IRDB Person data management. IMPAC II users now can query and report “role” level information for Principal Investigators (PIs), providing the ability to view both current and historical data. Previously, only current profile-level PI information was available. See the IMPAC II website for detailed information.

Sunset Dates Announced for Certain IRDB Objects

To facilitate the integration of Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) Person data into the IMPAC II Reporting Database (IRDB) [see Migration of All OLTP People Data to the IRDB Completed in this issue], certain IRDB database objects—tables, snapshots, views, and synonyms—must be dropped (deleted). With the exception of synonym PERSON_INVOLVEMENTS_T, which was dropped on December 21, 2001, all other deletions will occur on March 1, 2002. A complete list of these objects is available on the IMPAC II website. If the planned deletions pose an undue burden on your IC, contact the Helpdesk at 301-402-7469 or by email at helpdesk@od.nih.gov.

Human Factors Analyst Advises eRA on Effective System Design

“The interface is the product,” states Bob Kreigh, Ph.D., Vice President and Principal Human Factors Engineer at UserWorks, Inc., a Silver Spring human factors consulting firm. A Certified Human Factors Professional (CHFP), Bob brings 15 years of experience in user-centered design and usability engineering to his assignment of improving screen design in the next generation of eRA systems. The transition to a Web-enabled user interface provides opportunities for enhancing the quality of user interactions with the NIH Commons and IMPAC II while increasing productivity and minimizing input errors. 

In addition to developing graphical user interface (GUI) standards for eRA’s Web-based applications, Bob and a UserWorks colleague recommend “best practices” for achieving compliance with Section 508, a federal ruling that specifies mandatory guidelines for making federal websites and property accessible to people with disabilities. UserWorks experts are providing Section 508 training for eRA development, support, and testing staff. For Bob and for eRA, the goal is the development of systems that help users perform their jobs and provide a good return on investment.

eRA Receives Progress Report on Data Quality Improvement

At an eRA Project Team meeting in January, QRC presented a status report on the development of strategies for improving data quality [see the June 7 issue]. QRC has a vital role in helping NIH prepare for the reopening of Commons registration in June 2002. The immediate goal is to guarantee that each grantee enrolled in the Commons corresponds to a single, accurate IMPAC II profile. The long-term goal is to correct all IMPAC II Person data discrepancies and to implement solutions that will minimize future errors.

Of the approximately 2,000 Principal Investigators (PIs) registered in the Commons, 105 accounts do not map to discrete IMPAC II profiles. Assuming a similar rate of inconsistencies across a base of 50,000 grantee profiles, 2,000–3,000 accounts potentially could include erroneous information. QRC will use 308 profiles validated by authorized officials (AOs) to establish a one-to-one relationship to IMPAC II profile data and resolve inconsistencies. The remaining 1,600 non-verified accounts will be reconciled with IMPAC II before Commons registration reopens.

Possible solutions to eRA’s data quality issues include the establishment of a data quality office in each IC and development of new business area rules.

The Data Integrity Advocacy group holds monthly meetings, which are open to all interested persons. Contact Dr. Belinda Seto at setob@od.nih.gov or Robert F. Moore at moorerf@od.nih.gov for more information.

eRA Awards Security Contract

In the aftermath of recent terrorist attacks, federal agencies are strengthening their security posture by identifying and mitigating vulnerabilities. eRA has awarded Richard S. Carson & Associates, Inc., a contract to perform an end-to-end risk analysis and develop a project security plan. The contractor will work with eRA System Security Officer Bobbi Spitzberg and the eRA Security Working Group [see the January 17 issue] to recommend strategies that reduce and manage risks in compliance with federal regulations. All eRA systems will be certified and accredited, and security requirements will be incorporated into software design.

Inside eRA Readers Respond to Survey

Based on the responses to Inside eRA’s recent reader survey, we’re on target in meeting our readers’ needs. A substantial majority of survey respondents consider article length, level of detail, technical tone, and frequency of publication appropriate. According to respondents, the most useful topics include updates on major eRA initiatives, specifics of IMPAC II releases, hyperlinks to additional information on article topics, and explanations of technical issues. Thanks to everyone who provided feedback that will help us better meet your information needs.

IMPAC II Releases as of February 4, 2002

The next IMPAC II deployment is scheduled for March 15. Check the IMPAC II website for release notes that document the January 18 deployment. For information about upcoming releases, contact the Helpdesk at 301-402-7469 or by email at helpdesk@od.nih.gov.

IMPAC II Training Schedule as of February 4, 2002

The Human Resource Development Division (HRDD) has scheduled the following IMPAC II courses.

Course Title	Number	Date	Time	Location	Tuition
Committee Management for CMOs and CMAs	5834	05/01/02 06/12/02	9 am – 4 pm	Executive Plaza South	$221
Committee Management for GTAs and Review Staff	5833	04/10/02	9 am – 4 pm	Executive Plaza South	$221
Committee Management for SREA Staff	5835	03/20/02	9 am – 12 pm	Executive Plaza South	$184
CRISP Plus	5829	03/12/02	9 am – 12 pm	Executive Plaza South	$141
Grants Management	5827	03/07/02 06/13/02	9 am – 4 pm	Executive Plaza South	$221
Peer Review	5825	04/17/02 06/19/02	9 am – 4 pm	Executive Plaza South	$221

The following courses are also offered; however, there are no scheduled sessions at this time or scheduled classes are full. For more information or to request a class, visit the HRDD website at http://learningsource.od.nih.gov or call 301-496-6211. 

Course Title	Number	Duration	Tuition
Institute and Center Operations (ICO)	5828	½ day	$184
QuickView	5830	½ day	$141