Sponsored Projects Services Support Team
The Sponsored Projects Services (SPS) office guides and assists university faculty and research staff in their efforts to secure sponsored awards, assist with the submission process and manage funded projects. Our staff members help develop budgets, submit proposals, negotiate agreements and accept awards. We act as a liaison for department-PI and sponsor, establish accounts, ensure compliance for expenditures, submit invoices to sponsors and assist with closing awards.
Support from proposal development to managing your award
SPS serves the UB research community with professional staff who specialize in facilitating and administering the life cycle of sponsored funding. The team leverages the Research Administration Support Center (RASC) model, a centralized partnership with a clear separation of roles between two functional areas: Sponsor-Facing and PI-Facing. The RASC model's goal is to provide a unified, streamlined approach for delivering comprehensive support across the full research project lifecycle.
SPS is committed to offering consistent services and reducing administrative burden, enhancing the research environment by connecting faculty and staff with specialized expertise from proposal development through award closeout.
Our team is committed to providing:
- Delivering specialized and proactive support tailored to (PI's and other sponsored projects) researchers’ needs.
- Streamlining administrative workflows and reducing delays.
- Alleviating administrative burdens, giving faculty more time to focus on scholarship.
- Serving as a single point of contact for post‑award needs, simplifying communication and processes.
Pre-award services
A Notice of Intent (NOI) to submit a proposal must be completed for all proposals, 10 business days prior to submission deadline. Once your NOI is received, you will be assigned a proposal team consisting of a Proposal Manager (PM) and Budget Specialist (BS). If you are working with other support offices, your NOI will be forwarded to the appropriate office.
Your Proposal Manager will coordinate all administrative components of the proposal, including:
- Checklists and deadlines, so you can concentrate on research
- Review of sponsor guidelines
- Budget development in coordination with your Budget Specialist
- Working with you to develop Click approval forms
- Handling routing, coordination and submission steps
- Ensuring institutional requirements are met before submission
REMEMBER the 10 - 5 - 2 Submission Deadline Rule
The University Proposal Deadline Policy will be enforced: Proposals submitted outside of the deadlines will not be accepted.
- A Notice of Intent (NOI) to submit a proposal must be completed for all proposals, 10 business days prior to submission deadline.
- All administrative items must be completed and submitted within 5 business days ahead of the sponsor deadline.
- The science/research narrative must be submitted within 2 business days of the deadline.
Post-award services
Post-award each faculty member will be assigned a Finance Manager (FM) as their primary post-award contact. Your Finance Manager will:
- Serve as your primary contact for all post-award support
- Work alongside other PI-facing and sponsor-facing roles to provide proactive, comprehensive award management
- Monitor spending, burn rates and effort across your funding portfolio
- Support payroll, cost transfers, financial reporting, hiring, procurement and travel reimbursements
- Flag risks early—including end-of-award issues, deficits and upcoming deadlines
- Minimize (or eliminate) your direct use of Concur, ShopBlue, ePTF and similar systems
Note: FM assignments are based on award size, complexity and number of partnerships. This ensures a well-distributed workload. Your assigned Finance Manager will reach out directly to introduce themselves and schedule an initial meeting to discuss post-award support and expectations.
Contact your finance manager
The Finance Manager (FM) has primary responsibility for collaborating with Principal Investigators (PIs) to ensure the smooth financial management and oversight of a diverse funding portfolio. The FM is the first point of contact for all your post-award financial needs and will collaborate to ensure the efficient processing and reconciliation of financial activities.
From the hard sciences to arts or humanities, we can help calculate tuition costs and institutional overhead when putting together a grant proposal or managing your award.
We've compiled links to research process resources and training related materials for our research community. Find formal training in research conduct, systems, safety, protocol and more!
UB provides comprehensive training for research administrators at all steps of the research lifecycle.
Training Support for Researchers and PIs
Researchers and PIs can receive tailored trainings through Sponsored Projects Services, including budgeting basics, proposal lifecycle navigation and creation of research profiles.