Effort reporting and ecrt
What is ecrt?
The University of Akron has an online, web-based effort reporting system called ecrt (effort certification and reporting technology). The ecrt system facilitates compliance with federal & university requirements to certify the appropriateness of an employee's time & effort (salary & cost share) that has been charged to a sponsored grant in a previous semester.
A semester in ecrt is called a period of performance. Effort certification must be completed by all faculty (certifiers) assigned to an active grant after the end of each period of performance. Once a faculty member receives an email notifying him or her that a new period is open, (s)he has thirty (30) days to certify their own effort as well as their support staff's effort. Support staff includes graduate assistants, part-time faculty, lecturers, and contract professionals.
In addition to certification, each department is assigned an Effort Coordinator to monitor uncertified cards and process recently certified cards that contain estimated cost transfers.
ecrt Training
For concise step-by-step training slides & videos, click here. Both faculty certifier & effort coordinator training are available. These short tutorials will give you a greater understanding of the certification process and the payroll that builds the cards.
In addition, the ecrt training page explains how to view certification & card processing steps within the ecrt system itself.
ecrt policy & procedure resources:
- University Policy 3359-11-24, University policy for the certification of effort expended on sponsored project awards administered by the University
- UA's procedures for certifying effort
- Delegation of PI's Certification Authority (fillable pdf)
For further assistance, contact your department's Effort Coordinator or email ORA at ecrt@uakron.edu.