Blog
October 7, 2022
Attain Partners was excited to visit St. Louis, MO, for the 2022 CACUBO Annual Meeting, joining business and finance professionals from higher education institutions across the Midwest.
Our industry experts Andy Campbell and Sean Davis spoke to attendees and identified two main themes important to conference-goers.
The need for qualified talent
The “Great Resignation” has been a highly discussed topic across the workforce for a while now. Virtually every industry has been impacted to some degree, and CACUBO was a reminder of just how prevalent the issue remains in higher education. The loss of talent is affecting most, if not all, colleges and universities, especially the back-office staff who handle the accounting and research administration operations. Loss of staff and hiring freezes are delaying work streams. Several college and university finance and business officers expressed their frustration with staff loss, and many credited these high turnover rates to the private sector, which has been offering significant pay increases. These developments are increasing strain on their already overextended resources.
There IS hope—selecting to bring in interim team members is a great solution to avoid hindering or stalling operations, especially when it comes to potential compliance issues. Attain Partners is a vital partner in finding key people to re-staff accounting and research administration teams and can help place qualified personnel with industry experience at your institution. Learn more about our Interim Staffing Services here.
Maximizing limited resources
Many attendees had a clear understanding of Andy and Sean’s focus on Equipment Inventory, Building Componentization, and Property Insurance Valuation, but expressed interest in ways to improve efficiency and maximize limited resources. Strategic Financial Performance ranked high for institutions to easily compare metrics against best practices in their peer group and areas of risk to get a better understanding of their financial health.
Additionally, adding library studies and Utility O&M Analysis to increase their F&A rates on sponsored projects was a consideration for many. Library costs are often overlooked when institutions are developing F&A cost proposals for indirect cost recovery—which is why Library Cost Analysis Studies exist! A Library Cost Analysis Study can help institutions increase their indirect cost rate by identifying, counting, and assigning a purpose of use to library expenses used for funded research, instruction, patient care, or other institutional uses that would otherwise fly under the radar. Learn more about our Library and Planning Services here.
Learn more
Compliance is critical to your organization’s ability to make an impact. Our team provides world-class expertise navigating the complex and dynamic regulatory environment, implementing industry best practices, and optimizing performance. Learn more about our compliance services here.
Interested in chatting with our experts directly? Contact us today!
