1. business and industrial
2. business operations
3. management
4. project management

Who is the Stranger Working on this Grant?
Navigating Collaborators and Consultants
Minessa Konecky
Manager of Operations
The Curadel Companies, Worcester, MA
Beth Doiron
Research Administrative Director
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA
Objectives
By the end of this session you will be able to
• Identify if a person on a research project should
be a collaborator, consultant, or subrecipient
• Recognize potential issues with each of these
categories
Sunday, April 26, 2015
1
Agenda
•
•
•
•
What do you know
Definitions
Risks
Guess Who Activity
Sunday, April 26, 2015
2
What do you know
• Get into groups of 4 and discuss the following
questions
– Does your institution issue independent contractor
agreements for research projects and/or vendor
agreements?
– Does your institution allow investigators to use the term
Consultant for an unpaid collaborator?
– How you do you decide if a paid collaborator should be a
subrecipient, vendor, or an independent/contractor?
– Does your institution allow existing employees to be a
paid as a consultant on an internal research project?
Sunday, April 26, 2015
3
Subcontract/Subreceipient
• Substantive portion of the programmatic effort on an
award
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Co-investigator
Design, Conduct, and Reporting (DCR)
Sponsor requirements
Performance measured against meeting program objectives
Senior or key personnel
Program/project rather than good or service
End results
Services are complex
Significant portion
Intellectual property/publications
Sunday, April 26, 2015
4
Vendor
• Individual, business or other entity which supplies
products or services
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Similar goods or services
No decisions
No sponsor regulation
Competes
No research results
Established rates
Goods and services are secondary
No patient or copyright
Perform services only
No one individual
Sunday, April 26, 2015
5
Independent Contractor Consultant
• Individual or business whose expertise is required to
perform the project
- A service that is a distinct part of the project but not part of the
programmatic development
- Not usually responsible for design, conduct, or reporting
- Not responsible for project outcome
- Responsible for individual deliverable, but has independence in how the
work is accomplished
- Fee
- Similar service/good
- Not senior
- Uses own resources
- Does not define the scope of work for their portion
- Not an employee
Sunday, April 26, 2015
6
Other Significant Contributor
• Individual whose expertise is required to perform the project.
• The NIH indicates that Senior/Key Personnel cannot fall into this
category
• Do not commit any specified measurable effort (i.e., person months) to
the project
• Individuals with measurable effort may not be listed as Other
Significant Contributors (OSCs).
• Consultants should be included if they meet this definition.
Sunday, April 26, 2015
7
Risks: Employees vs. Independent Contractors
• Twenty Factor Test
• Employee is someone whose work can be
directed by the employer.
• Legally entitled to time off, leave, benefits, etc.
• ICs are not eligible for any legal protection and
must pay all their taxes on their own in full.
NOTE: Be aware of State specific independent
contractor laws!!!
Sunday, April 26, 2015
8
Risks: Consultant vs. Subcontract
•
•
•
•
•
•
Programmatic Reporting
Use of consultant’s home institution’s facilities
Effort Reporting
FCOI
Scope of work
Protection for investigator & Consultant
Sunday, April 26, 2015
9
Risks: Vendor vs. Subcontract
•
•
•
•
Indirect Cost Allocation
Key Personnel/Non Key, Effort
Technology Transfer
Fixed Price
Sunday, April 26, 2015
10
Guess Who Activity
• Divide into groups of 3 or 4 and review the case
scenarios to determine if you would define this
individual or entity as subrecipient, vendor or
contractor/consultant
Sunday, April 26, 2015
11
Conclusion
• Know your institutions policies, and the
resources available to help ascertain the
appropriate designation
• Ask questions of your investigators rather than
asking them what role a particular person fills
• When in doubt, contact the sponsor
Sunday, April 26, 2015
12