Project Administration


Consultancy and Commercial Research
	Developing a Project
	Project Administration
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Project Commencement
Project Accounts
Administrative Support
Archival Support
A Note on Expert Witness Cases

When a Commercial Research or Consultancy project has been awarded to QUT it must be managed in a professional manner to the client’s satisfaction. The project procedures used by OCS for managing typical Commercial Research and Consultancy projects follows. Special attention is given to the support services provided by OCS, and what OCS requires of QUT consultants/project teams.

Project Commencement

The client or funding body will usually contact the consultant/project leader directly to advise him/her that a specific project has been approved and awarded to the University. At this point, OCS should be advised. No work should commence until a formal agreement has been negotiated with the client. This is to avoid disputes arising from differing expectations of the partners.
The agreement may take a number of forms, ranging from a contract prepared by the client or by the University, to written acceptance of a QUT quotation previously forwarded to the client.

On receipt of all completed documentation, OCS will open a project account.

Project Accounts

For each major project, OCS will establish a separate account. The account should be opened by OCS within the relevant Faculty, School or Institute cost centre and is operated by OCS project staff.
As soon as the account has been opened, both the consultant/project leader and relevant School Administration Officers are advised of the account which is used for all of the project’s transactions.

It is important that OCS be notified of all transactions relating to a project. Transactions which are unrelated to the project should not be made against the project account. All documentation relating to financial matters must be sent to OCS. For accounting and auditing purposes it is important that all funds used for the project have the same account code. If for any reason this is not the case, OCS must be informed.

Administrative Support

During the course of contract negotiations, a project timeline will be developed by the project team in conjunction with the client. The timeline typically includes the due dates for interim reports and payments. OCS must be notified of all budget changes.

Invoices and journal transfers must be processed by OCS. Other transactions such as purchasing and petty cash forms should be processed by the finance officer of the Faculty. A copy of all documentation relevant to these transactions must be provided to OCS for internal and external auditing purposes.

Progressive Income Statements can be sourced by you from the QUT Finance & Resource Planning Portal. If you are not registered for access, please speak to your School Finance Officer. It is important that you check your account regularly to ensure that transactions charged to your account code are correct. Please note that you will need to justify any large variance to the budget.

Alternatively, OCS will provide regular reconciliations or income statements, the format depending on the complexity of the project.

Certifications, Financial Statements and Audits will be arranged by OCS for funding agencies.

OCS will provide a financial reconciliation report when the project is complete and all funds have been received. Confirmation that the report is correct is required and final disbursements of the remaining balance should be given to OCS. Fees to QUT consultants are normally made when the project is complete and all other costs have been paid. Consultant's fees may be made:

As salary (Note: payroll tax and worker's compensation costs will be deducted from the payment before processing); or
Into a nominated surplus account.

Copies of interim reports and the final report to the funding agency (if applicable) must be forwarded to OCS either on disk or as a hard copy.

Archival Support

OCS maintains file records of all projects for a period of seven years. Should staff / Schools / Faculties wish to access project information within the seven years, OCS can do this upon request. OCS is required to comply with both government and University archival regulations.

A Note on Expert Witness Cases

At times QUT staff may be asked to undertake a consultancy in the role of an expert witness.

Regardless of the value of such work, OCS must be notified.

This helps avoid the potential hazard of a QUT colleague being asked to appear as an expert witness for the opposition. Should such a situation arise, you will the have the option of declining the case prior to commencing the consultancy. It is more difficult to withdraw if the client has received the report.

OCS will negotiate a contract and help prepare a quotation for the client (usually a firm of Solicitors).

The consultant must keep accurate record of hours and expenses incurrent on the case. The record will be submitted to the solicitors at the conclusion of the case. The hours incurred on an Expert Witness Case may include the actual time taken on research, testing, report writing, meetings with the solicitors and pre-court briefings. Expenses may incur the use of your own vehicle for travel, parking fees, etc.