Technical support system launched for Endeavor electronic research administration platform

The Electronic Research Administration (ERA) unit in the Office of the Senior Vice President for Research and Economic Development has launched a new ticketing system for technical support requests related to Endeavor, Auburn’s new ERA system.

AU users can now request technical assistance for Endeavor modules. To submit a ticket, please visit https://aub.ie/endeavorsupport. Currently, assistance is provided for conflict of interest (COI) and Institutional Review Board (IRB) modules, but it will also support other modules as they are rolled out in the coming months.

The link is also accessible through the Research Compliance and ERA websites, or directly at aub.ie/endeavorsupport.

 Examples of when someone might need to submit a ticket include:

• A student who is not a registered user requiring access to the system;
• Difficulty finding an entity or location in the system;
• Encountering errors or having general questions.

As with other Service-Now support requests, requestors will receive an email related to their request and information on progress being made to correct the error or respond to missing personnel information. Most personnel and entity requests can be managed internally with a quick turnaround time, but some technical issues may require the ERA unit to submit a formal ticket to the Endeavor vendor for correction. Depending upon the severity of the issue, a request to the vendor could take a few days.

Some of the many requests we have seen in recent weeks involve CITI training data that does not appear when someone is added into the system. Initially this was a feed error which has been corrected. We have discovered that, in some case, users affiliated with Auburn University through CITI are using a prior institutional email address or personal account (such as Gmail) in their CITI profile. Once the email is corrected in the CITI profile, the training data appears. 

Other requests we received involve adding personnel to the system so that they can access Endeavor or have their name included on a protocol. The HR feed into Endeavor includes only paid employees. Unpaid students (both grad and undergrad) are entered into Endeavor only when requested. Some paid graduate students are in the system but not active for various reasons, such as not being paid during the summer or transitioning from a master’s level to a PhD level with a break in employment.

Other requestors may require the addition to the IRB of entities who perform as an external or collaborating IRB. Regulations require Auburn to collect certain information about the external IRB before we enter into a relationship with them. The entity can be added as a collaborating IRB in minutes and can be referenced in the protocol submission; however, obtaining the other information for input into Endeavor depends upon how quickly the external entity responds to our request for information.

The ERA unit and the other offices of the SVPRED are working diligently to assure the Endeavor system works for everyone who needs it. Implementing this new ticketing system will allow us to respond quickly with automated communication channels. We hope this provides value and consistency in managing your experiences with Endeavor.