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ePPQ Questions Share This OHSU Content

What is the ePPQ?

As of January 1, 2013, all proposals submitted through Research Grants and Contracts require submission of an Electronic Proposed Project Questionnaire (ePPQ) in InfoEd. InfoEd is now required for all “new money” actions that are routed through RGC. This includes new proposals, resubmissions, competitive renewals and amendment/supplements.

Please note, the ePPQ will apply only to grants routed through RGC. Proposals routed through CTO, TTBD, the IRB, etc. will retain the paper PPQ for the time being.

The Proposed Project Questionnaire is an internal checklist used to ensure that compliance is in order for grants and contracts submitted by OHSU. Until now, the process has been to create a paper PPQ and then route it for signatures; with the ePPQ, you will use the InfoEd system to accomplish the same task. We believe that, ultimately, not only will this tool reduce paperwork, but it will also make proposal set-up faster and easier. It will also allow for much-needed reporting that departments have been asking for.

Key differences

  • All RGC-based proposals will now be initiated in InfoEd, regardless of their funding source (NIH, private foundation, etc.)
  • All federal proposals that can be submitted electronically through Grants.gov can be submitted through InfoEd instead of using Adobe forms. Until now, we used InfoEd for NIH, CDC, and AHRQ. 
  • All approvals will now be routed electronically, rather than by hard copy.
  • You no longer need to fill in information on your PPQ that is already included in your proposal.  Wherever possible, the ePPQ will auto-fill with previously entered information.
  • Only proposals that request funding will use the ePPQ. We are developing a different tracking process for proposals that required PPQs in the past for compliance reasons but that do not have a dedicated funding source (i.e. 'unfunded' research).
  • Conversely, the existing PPQ processes for Technology Transfer & Business Development and for the Clinical Trials Office will not change at this time. In the near future, however, the approval process for the CTO will also become electronic.

Training Schedule

Register for trainings or find self-paced online learning materials on the RATE Bridge.

ePPQ Demonstration

The following video is a recording of July's Research Adminstration Information Network meeting (RAIN). PowerPoint slides are available for download on the RAIN website.

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

All of my division's projects are simply handled via the eIRB.  How is InfoEd different from the eIRB?  Without InfoEd access, how will I be able to access the ePPQ?

The ePPQ is for proposals submitted through the Research Grants & Contracts (RGC) pre-award office. Conversely, the existing PPQ processes for Technology Transfer & Business Development and for the Clinical Trials Office will not change at this time. In the near future, however, the approval process for the CTO will also become electronic. Unfunded research does not require InfoEd submission. This only applies to grants proposals to external sponsors.

 

What about grant submittals that need to be sent through Fastlane.  Will InfoEd work with FastLane or will we need to do 2 separate submittals?  What about other online grant submittal agencies?

If the funding opportunity/NSF Program Announcement allows for Grants.gov submission then we are now encouraging everyone to use InfoEd as the system for submission through Grants.gov to Fastlane.  If the funding opportunity doesn't allow for grant submission through Grants.gov but directly into Fastlane, then the generic proposal template should be used and the proposal elements that are required should be put into InfoEd.

 

Can we route to more than one person at once? Sometimes we have grants with a HUGE list of signers. We could start weeks in advance and not make it through the list.

At this time, we cannot route to more than one person at once although we are research alternatives to building routes that could potentially allow this.

 

What role does the ePPQ play when building the grant application? Specifically, how does the ePPQ interact with the rest of the proposal?

The ePPQ auto fills based on information already entered in the other proposal tabs.  Questions that have no other place for data to pull from are the ones that need to be answered on the ePPQ after the other required proposal tabs have been completed.

 

We need a way to be notified if an approver is unavailable. With a paper PPQ I know if somebody's gone and I can get somebody else to approve. Without that notification, we lose review time and miss deadlines within RGC.

One of the things we'll be looking at during the pilot is routing – to multiple people at the same time and approval backups that proposals will get routed to automatically if the primary person isn't available.  This was something that was looked at when OHSU first implemented InfoEd, however it didn't work as expected.  That was a long time ago and many improvements have been made so we're hoping that this is something we can utilize.

 

I work on a lot of secondary data analysis projects that are not funded.  Will I have to create a InfoEd for each one (which I don't do now)?  Can I skip the budget/grant questions?

The ePPQ is only used for applications that come through the Research Grants & Contracts office.  Actions that go through the IRB office, will still use the paper PPQ until they are able to build an approval process within eIRB.

 

Since many/most of our PIs don't go into the InfoEd system, will we be able to download a draft ePPQ form that we can send them for review, before we finalize it in InfoEd?

When you open the ePPQ there is an option to print it and you could print it to PDF and then send them the PDF of it.  The only drawback I see is that in the current format, each section of the PPQ is a different page so you most likely won't want to print a hard copy. In a future version of InfoEd, we'll have more control over creating these types of forms so I anticipate that we will have more flexibility for formatting and may redesign the ePPQ but that won't happen for at least a year.

 

What about grant submittals that need to be sent through Fastlane.  Will InfoEd work with FastLane or will we need to do 2 separate submittals?  What about other online grant submittal agencies?

If the funding opportunity/NSF Program Announcement allows for Grants.gov submission then we are now encouraging everyone to use InfoEd as the system for submission through Grants.gov to Fastlane.  If the funding opportunity doesn't allow for grant submission through Grants.gov but directly into Fastlane, then the generic proposal template should be used and the proposal elements that are required should be put into InfoEd so we can capture the required data and signatures and you will enter the full proposal in Fastlane.

Get Help

If you have a question that isn't addressed above, please contact Research Grants & Contracts.