An integral part of UAB’s Research Strategic Initiative: Growth with Purpose is to identify and implement a new, enterprise-wide research administration solution that will maximize efficiency and accommodate continued growth and complexity in UAB’s research portfolio.
Finding a new electronic research administration solution to replace IRAP, the current tool, was one of the five key priorities for immediate action identified by consultants Huron Consulting and Urban Impact Advisors during their evaluations and meetings with internal stakeholders during the early stages of the Research Strategic Initiative in summer 2023. Stakeholders were particularly interested in a single, cloud-based solution that could integrate with other crucial campus software solutions.
After a request for information was released and an advisory group was named in January 2024, two qualified vendors submitted responses. A comprehensive and collaborative vetting process followed that included input from stakeholders across campus through vendor demonstrations and hands-on engagement. After approval by the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees early this month, UAB has selected the Huron Research Suite (note this is a separate division from the Huron Consulting group). This integrated, cloud-based platform — which will be named myUABResearch — is considered to be industry-best and once fully implemented will replace both IRAP and Bioware, resulting in a single solution for all UAB researchers that will streamline workflows and support UAB’s research infrastructure.
“We looked at the best technologies available to meet our needs,” said UAB President Ray Watts, M.D. “What we want is to empower investigators to better accomplish their important work through a transparent and more efficient process. That is what our investigators will be able to do with myUABResearch.”
“myUABResearch will enable UAB researchers to identify issues and communicate quickly and easily with their administrative teams while helping administrators and reviewers efficiently support their part of the research enterprise process,” added Christopher Brown, Ph.D., UAB vice president for Research.
Key benefits of myUABResearch include:
- role-based user dashboards that provide ease of use and transparency;
- enhanced reporting capabilities at the project, department and school level;
- smart-form technology to provide electronic submission directly to UAB’s research offices;
- direct system-to-system submission to the NIH, CDC and other grants.gov agencies; and
- automated system alerts informing researchers when important due dates are approaching.
Now that the new system has been selected, initial implementation of key modules will occur over the next 12-18 months, as the new system runs in parallel with IRAP. Complete implementation of all modules will take an additional 12-18 months.
“I want to thank all of the committee members and stakeholders who have contributed to this process,” Watts said. “This is a significant step forward as we invest in enterprise-wide technology solutions that will support our ambitious goals to make an even greater impact on the lives of people in Birmingham, Alabama and across the world through our research endeavors.”
For additional information on myUABResearch, visit uab.edu/research/home/myuabresearch.
