Guidelines for the Transfer of Funds between Faculty Accounts and the University of Waikato Research Trust

General

The University of Waikato Research Trust (the Trust) was established to provide for the advancement of education through academic research at the University. It holds, manages and administers funds that are set aside from the University's operating budget and allocated to staff for that purpose.
The Trust Deed stipulates that the Trust Board should comprise at least three but no more than five members. Appointments to the Board are made in accordance with the rules laid out in the Trust Deed. The current Trust Board is made up of the following members:
- The Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research
- The Chief Operating Officer (who is also the University's Chief Financial Officer)
- The Pro Vice-Chancellor Education
Authority for the approval of these guidelines rests with the Vice-Chancellor. Responsibility for regular monitoring and review of these guidelines in consultation with relevant staff and committees rests with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research.

All transfers to the Trust of funds from Divisional, School or Faculty budgets or research projects, or of funds otherwise generated or received by staff from external sources, are subject to two-layers of approval:
1. the approval of the relevant Pro-Vice-Chancellor, or Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori (in the case of the Faculty of Māori and Indigenous Studies); and
2. the approval of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Chief Operating Officer.
Where any issues about the transfer of funds to the Trust arise and cannot be resolved by the relevant Pro Vice-Chancellor or the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori, final authority to determine whether the transfer may be made rests with the Chief Operating Officer.
Funds must not be transferred to the Trust if it means that the relevant Division, School, Faculty or Research Institute may not be able to meet its annual budget.
Pro Vice-Chancellors, or the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori in the case of the Faculty of Māori and Indigenous Studies, must assign an owner to any funds that are transferred from their Division/School/Faculty to the Trust; the owner may be either an individual staff member (either themselves as Pro Vice-Chancellor/Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori, or a School Dean or another named individual) or a research team.
Any decision to transfer funds to the Trust must comply with the University's Financial Authority Policy.

Any monies transferred to the Trust must have been generated from externally-funded research or research-based activity (including commercialisation of intellectual property (IP), consultancies and professional services), or must otherwise fall into one of the following categories outlined in clauses 11-18 of these guidelines.
Any funding generated from a research contract or from consultancy activities that rely on the use of University resources may not be transferred to the Trust unless it falls within one of the categories outlined in clauses 11-18 of these guidelines.

Funds that have been awarded by the Vice-Chancellor, a Pro Vice-Chancellor/Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori or an external party to individual researchers or research group(s) in recognition of meritorious achievement, as part of a recognised awards programme, may be transferred to the Trust.

The budget for any research project must be calculated on the whole of the contract and must be signed off by the relevant Pro Vice-Chancellor/Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori. Under no circumstances are funds received under one contract to be spread across, or transferred to, other research projects that are funded under separate contacts or funded internally by the University
No project is allowed to run in a deficit position. Any project deficits that may arise will need to be fully reimbursed by the relevant Faculty/School.

Any surplus remaining at the conclusion of an externally-funded research project will first be subject to the requirements of the funder's contract. Any surplus remaining after all contract obligations are met may be transferred to the Trust, subject to the approval of the Chief Operating Officer. Any surplus should be determined after all overheads (including any unfunded costs) have been deducted, i.e. direct costs, salary cost, and indirect costs (centrally as well as at Faculty/School level).
Any transfer to the Trust at the conclusion of a project will be actioned by the Research Officer as part of the monthly accounting process. All such transfers should have clear evidence of the relevant approving authority, as outlined in clauses 4-8.

'Small ad hoc consultancy' is defined for the purposes of these guidelines as a consultancy valued at less than $6,000 per calendar year per staff member. Small ad hoc consultancies may include, for example, board directorships, marking theses for other universities, sitting on advisory panels and peer-reviewing publications.
The maximum of $6,000 per calendar year per staff member may be transferred from any number of small ad hoc consultancies to the Trust, provided that a full declaration of the purpose of each relevant consultancy has been made to the relevant Pro Vice-Chancellor/Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori and no University resources were expended in fulfilling the consultancy contract.
If University resources are used for a small ad hoc consultancy, a commercial contribution of 22.5% will be deducted prior to any transfer being made from the consultancy to the Trust.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and the Chief Operating Officer each has authority to approve requests for the transfer of funds that fall outside the scope of these guidelines; decisions by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research or the Chief Operating Officer in such circumstances will be in consultation with the relevant Pro Vice-Chancellor or the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and the Chief Operating Officer each has authority to review transfers made to the Trust at any time, and where he or she considers that a transfer is not in accordance with these guidelines, or not bin the best interests of the University, to have it reversed back to the appropriate Division/Faculty/School; decisions by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research or the Chief Operating Officer in such circumstances will be in consultation with the relevant Pro Vice-Chancellor or the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Māori.

Approved by the Vice-Chancellor: Professor Neil Quigley

October 2021