Complete, timely, and high-quality reporting is necessary to ensure compliance with the OMAFRA-U of G Agreement, to support performance measure reporting, to avoid inefficient revision workflows, and to enable effective knowledge mobilization efforts by OMAFRA and U of G. Below are key tips for ensuring compliant and quality reports but does not include all report fields. Responses to all fields should be as fulsome as possible.
Annual reports are due 30 days past the anniversary of the start date. Final reports are due 60 days past the project end date. Reports become available to the researcher 45 days before the due date.
U of G program staff will perform a review of your report and will send non-compliant reports back for revisions prior to OMAFRA review.
Special Note for Final Reports: Do not submit a Final Report if the project is not complete (e.g. data collection or analysis is ongoing) or project objectives or deliverables are not fully met. OMAFRA will not approve Final Reports for projects that are not complete. Guidance for requesting project extensions is available on the Amendment Requests webpage.
Milestones Table: If a milestone has started, indicate the actual start date in the Actual Timeline field. Do not provide actual start dates if the milestone has not started, and do not propose a new target date in the Actual Timeline field (i.e. future dates).
An end date is only required in the Actual Timeline field if the milestone has been fully completed. If the milestone is not completed, leave the end date field blank. A brief explanation should be provided for any milestones that have either been completed or are past their Planned Timeline start date. Any delays, complications, or changes in the Milestones should be commented on in the Explanation section of the table.
For Final Reports, the expectation is that all milestones will be completed and have an actual start and end date. If a project milestone cannot be completed as planned, a clear explanation must be provided.
Progress on Objectives, Deliverables and Milestones: This field allows for further discussion on project progress and can be used to relate milestone progression to the achievement of project objectives and deliverables. Ensure a rationale is provided when a project is not progressing as originally proposed. This field is not for reporting results.
Project Results: Provide a summary of the results of the project. Even if results are limited, please provide preliminary observations or activities. Technical language is appropriate. Results should be written to demonstrate progress on project objectives. Additional results documents can be uploaded if applicable. The Final Report should contain a comprehensive summary of results.
KTT Plan Table: If a KTT Plan activity has started, indicate the actual start date in the Actual Timeline field. Do not provide actual start dates if the KTT Plan activity has not started, and do not propose a new target date in the Actual Timeline field (i.e. future dates).
An end date is only required in the Actual Timeline field if the KTT Plan activity has been fully completed. If the KTT Plan activity is not completed, leave the end date field blank. A brief explanation should be provided for any KTT Plan records that have either been completed or are past their Planned Timeline start date. Any delays, complications, or changes in the KTT Plan should be commented on in the KTT Progress Update section of the table.
For Final Reports, the expectation is that all planned KTT activities will be completed and have an actual start and end date. If a KTT activity cannot be completed as planned, a clear explanation must be provided.
KTT Activities Table should document knowledge mobilization efforts by all team members that are relevant to the project. The KTT Activities table is distinct from the KTT Plan table as this is where all KTT Activities that have actualized from KTT Plan are required to be documented. Please ensure that any KTT that is noted in your KTT Plan table appears as distinct activities in the KTT Activities table.
All conferences, meetings, presentations, workshops, focus groups, etc. that have occurred are required to be entered as distinct records within this table by selecting the “New KTT” button. It is greatly appreciated when documents or URLs associated with the KTT activities are included.
KTT activities will be assessed against the KTT Plan from the proposal. Please ensure you review your KTT Plan and explain the rationale for any planned KTT activities that were not carried out during the project.
The Publications Table is where all publications and articles that have resulted from the project are required to be documented. All published articles in journals, websites, newspapers, magazines, theses, reports etc. should be entered as distinct records within this table by selecting the “New Publication” button. It is greatly appreciated when documents or URLs associated with these documents are included.
Please be aware that publications in this table are available on the Ontario Agri-Food Research & Innovation Portal (OAFRIP) [1]. For this reason, please do not add draft publications.
Team Member Table: Fully describe the involvement of each team member and estimate their FTE contribution to the project over the reporting period. The Actual FTE and Actual Activities in the project should be updated with each report.
HQP Table: Please ensure all HQP engaged in the project are identified in the HQP table. HQP identified as “TBD" during the application stage should have a name attached to this role in the reports. New HQP entries can be added during reporting as well.
Content in this tab should be written in plain language. Avoid the use of first-person language. Focus on the outcomes of the research.
Key Summary Statements (final report only) are of particular importance as they are translated and used for the Ontario Agri-Food Research & Innovation Portal (OAFRIP) [1]. Special attention should be given to this field to ensure the statements are clear, concise and communicate what was done and what the key outcomes were. Avoid technical language and acronyms.
Information provided in this the Confidential Information section of the report is accessible only to program staff and OMAFRA reviewers. Issues with project progress can be described in more detail here.
Comments on Financial Report: The Lead Applicant should provide an explanation for any significant variances between the actual expenditures and the approved budget. If an FRS snapshot is not present, please reach out to rescoord@uoguelph.ca [2]. Projects that receive operating funding but do not have an FRS Snapshot alongside the completed Comments on Financial Report will be sent back for revisions prior to OMAFRA review.
If you have a Collaborative Research Agreement (CRA) associated with your project, you are required to append a financial report of expenditures to date using the Alliance CRA Financial Report Template (found in File Attachments below) in the Financial Report field. This template is required to be filled out by the collaborating institution for their expenses only. If there is more than one CRA associated with a project, please ensure there is a separate CRA financial report from each institution.
If you Receive a Revision Request
If an administrative review determines that a report is not complete or compliant, it will be sent back to the Lead Applicant for revisions via an RMS system-generated email. A report may also be sent back for revisions following the technical review. Please respond to revisions requests within 14 days.
Use the ‘Researcher Response’ field to respond to the requested revisions (answer questions posed or indicate the changes they have made to the report). Appropriate changes must also be made directly within the report.
When to Contact Program Staff
It is very important that program staff are made aware of issues with project progress as they occur. If you are encountering issues carrying out the research as proposed or if there are significant changes in the use of approved project funds, please reach out to a Research Program Coordinator at rescoord@uoguelph.ca [2]. We are here to help!
Program staff should also be made aware if partner funding is lost or new sources of leverage are secured.
Details on how to request a project amendment, including project extensions, are available on the Amendment Requests webpage [3]. Extensions should be requested at least three months before the end date of the project.
