GMAS Tip/Trick: Coordinating Special Instructions for Financial Deliverable Submissions

Did you ever wonder how special reporting instructions are tracked in GMAS?  What should you do if you receive special instructions from a sponsor regarding the preparation or submission of a financial deliverable?   

In most cases, the award notice will outline the financial reporting and/or invoicing requirements of the sponsor.  These financial terms and conditions are reviewed by OSP’s Research Finance Operations Team, as each Action Memo is issued in GMAS.  All financial reports and invoices are recorded in GMAS to capture the report type, reporting period, due date, and submission details, as part of the process known as “Information Management.”  For information on how to navigate the financial deliverables screen, including details on the available fields, please refer to the GMAS Financial Deliverable Job Aid.   

If the award notice includes additional details for reporting, OSP Research Finance can record “Preparer Instructions” in the Status Summary Details section of the financial deliverable(s). “Preparer Instructions” are also viewable on the HART Scheduled Reports dashboard to help users proactively prepare for upcoming financial deliverable submissions.   

Most special reporting requests can be handled directly by OSP Research Finance with no involvement by the Department Administrator, such as:  

  • Additional financial support (e.g. HART Transaction Listing) 
  • Reporting in foreign currency 

Other special reporting requests may require the involvement of the Department Administrator to provide information or supporting documentation to OSP Research Finance, including:  

  • Requirements to submit receipts and/or invoices as supporting documentation 
  • Projections or forecasting of expenditures from the PI/department 
  • Sponsor templates that include financial and programmatic reporting 
  • Submissions that must be coordinated with the PI and/or department administrator 
  • Reporting that is due prior to a GL close or project period 

Generally,  these details will be captured as part of “Information Management” by OSP’s Research Finance Operations Team.  However, there may be special circumstances where a department administrator may receive special handling instructions directly from the sponsor.  In these instances, the department administrator can contact the OSP Central Financial Administrator from the GMAS Administrative Team through the Financial Deliverable Comments (see the Comments job aid for more information on how to email directly from the financial deliverable) or via regular email. The portfolio owner will review the request and coordinate any updates to be made in GMAS to ensure the special handling requests can be met.   

See also: