A consultant should be someone who has previously consulted in the area in which he/she will be contracted. Consultants should have an established hourly or daily rate, not to exceed the sponsor’s guidelines for consultants. Some federal agencies have a daily maximum rate for consultants that cannot be exceeded. In the case where the estimation of the consultant is not in compliance with sponsor policy, the PI/PD must adjust the scope of work or find another consultant with the same area of expertise.

A consultant agreement may not be executed if the individual is an employee of OHIO in any capacity. Federal and University policy dictate that former OHIO employees with a separation date of two years or less cannot act as a consultant on a university funded project. Should you need the expertise of a former employee that meets the above criteria, that person cannot act as a consultant but may engage in a subcontract with that person’s new institution or entity, or a short-term employment contract with OHIO.

Obtaining a Service
If in your proposal you have the need for a service to be provided by an outside agency, which does not contribute to the programmatic content of your research project and is generally an expertise in an area other than the specific subject of the research project itself (such as web design, DNA sequencing, translating or editing), you need to issue a service provider agreement.

This agreement is managed on the PI/PD level without assistance from the ORSP staff. The GCA staff will ask that you have such a document on file before agreeing to reimburse a service provider for services rendered on your behalf.

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