Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation

1. Administrative Support for Large-Scale Funding Applications – Session 2: Communicating Project Goals and Objectives Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation Sarah Whitaker, Sr. Research Officer August 22, 2012

2. Goals • To offer professional development for research administrative staff, enabling continuous improvement in the quality of support for research funding applications. • To increase the number of research support personnel on campus who have the skills and knowledge needed to support the development of large-scale research applications. • To increase the University’s overall capacity to support a growing number of large-scale applications for external research funding.

3. Session 2 – Communicating Project Goals and Objectives Topics to be addressed include: • Project Summary writing for large scale applications • KMb strategies and writing formats • Writing about outcomes/outputs/deliverables • Balancing partner/stakeholder interests • Effective communication of feedback to researchers • Common challenges and strategies for success

4. Project Summary Writing Be sure to address: • the need for the research • what is new, what is different, what is better? • why is it critically important to pursue the opportunity at this time? • the quality of the research, team, partners, etc. • the methodology • the expected project outputs • target audiences, policy, etc. • the objective – what will be different once this project is complete? • the benefits to Canada, as appropriate

5. Project Summary Writing con’t Other items may include: • alignment with institutional strategic research goals • how the proposal aligns federal and/or provincial research strategies • E.g., the Government of Canada’s Science & Technology Strategy four target areas. • E.g., the Ontario Innovation Agenda • alignment with funder mandates • governance structures, if significant to the funder • sustainability of the project and/or project outputs • information specifically requested in the guidelines

6. KMb Unit at York University York University is a recognized leader in Knowledge Mobilization (KMb) in Canada and internationally. KMb is a suite of activities that enhances the two-way connection between researchers and research users. It provides services to maximize the impact of research and employs dedicated knowledge brokers to support: • Researchers in all disciplines by matching them with an organization to enable the impact of their work on policy or professional practice • External organizations in seeking research expertise and collaboration from York

7. KMb Plan

8. Writing about outcomes and deliverables • What are the project outputs or deliverables? What format are they in? • What is the anticipated value of the research? • What are the anticipated impacts of the research? • On the filed of research? • On the policy community? • On the public? • On the private sector? • On the public sector?

9. Writing about outcomes and deliverables Other considerations may include: • value of new knowledge • industrial application • potential for economic benefit • impact on society • impact on areas such as health or the environment • impact on the nation’s/province’s economy • enhanced global profile for York or for Canadian research

10. Outputs What are possible project outputs?

11. Milestones and Deliverables Project Management Milestones • e.g. hire manager, refine governance structure, appoint advisory body Research Capacity Building Milestones • e.g. hire post-docs, engage graduate students, collaborative website live, etc. Research Milestones • e.g. literature reviews completed, data collection completed, data analysis completed, # of publications accepted, gray literature produced, etc.

12. Milestones and Deliverables con’t Commercialization Milestones • What is the commercialization potential of your research and when do you expect it to be achieved? • Identify the financial, social, environmental and/or ethical goals. • Outline your commercialization path, including strategy for achieving your project’s short and/or long-term commercialization potential and practical application to industry. • Address potential for knowledge transfer to the industry. Other Milestones • conferences, workshops, visiting faculty, youth outreach, other publications, exhibits, graduated students, website activity, films, policy forums, etc.

13. Outcomes • How will the research program lead to tangible benefits for society? • Appropriate measures are in place to transfer the research results and outputs to potential end users in a timely manner. • How will we measure outcomes? Is it possible to do so within the project timeframe? • Qualitative vs. quantitative

14. Balancing Stakeholder Interests • How do we balance the interests of large groups of scholars and/or partners? • How do we reconcile different timelines between organizations? • Activism vs. Scholarship • Industry driven vs. University driven • How do we balance information requested by funders vs. information teams wish to provide to a funder?

15. Effective Communication of Feedback to Researchers • provide examples from both successful and unsuccessful applications • refer to objectives and established assessment criteria for the program • refer to specific instructions. Has the researcher addressed the question directly? Have they answered all parts of the question? • investigate the differences between the project and the application for funding • offer “recommendations and comments” for consideration • reiterate information on the availability of services

16. Common Challenges and Strategies for Success • strike a balance between technical and non-technical language • use language of the funders/funding agency • can you name the project outputs and potential impacts? • can name the measures for success? And on what timeline? • after reading the draft, can you briefly summarize the research? • situate the project globally, nationally, etc. • encourage peer review from different disciplines or from outside the academy, if appropriate • engage support services on campus (e.g., KMb unit, Faculties, ORS, others)

17. Feedback Please complete the feedback form in your kit as your recommendations will help us improve subsequent sessions. Thank you!

18. Up Next… Session 3 – Budgeting for Large-scale Projects August 23, 2012 from 10am – 12pm, 626 YRT