Conflicts of Commitment and Reportable Outside Activities

Department Heads should be familiar with the policy on Conflicts of Commitment and Reportable Outside Activities (III.B.1). This policy defines what constitutes a conflict of commitment and what outside activities need to be reported to the University.  Department heads are responsible for monitoring the reportable outside activities of those they supervise and determine whether they are within the University guidelines. If there are questions, contact Leslie Burns, Director of Financial Affairs.

The College of Liberal Arts also has a policy on conflicts of interest that are not limited to those involving financial interests or external (to Purdue) commitments which are the focus of the University policy. In September 2008, the CLA Faculty Senate approved a report from an ad hoc committee charged with creating a policy for the college to cover conflicts such as those which might arise in promotion and tenure deliberations. The policy identifies a procedure for disclosing potential conflicts, relationships that might produce a conflict of interest, and decisions in which those who have a conflict of interest should not participate. Click here for a copy of the report and the recommended guidelines.

New ROA pre-approval requests must be submitted using PERA’s Conflict of Interest/Conflict of Commitment Module. The PERA system includes training for conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment, which is required for all employees.

See also these resources:

• Operating Procedures for Reportable Outside Activity Requests
• Reportable Outside Activities Form Guidelines
• FAQs

 The following steps will be taken when CLA faculty appear on the list from the Office of Ethics of Compliance who have not submitted their ROA forms for a given fiscal year:

1. After receiving the list of ROA forms still needing to be completed or updated for the College of Liberal Arts, the ADFA will write to each unit head (or supervisor) with the list of names and a request to have them communicate with those employees about the urgency of completing this task, also providing them with the instructional video resources. 
2. Two weeks after sending out the communication described in (1) above, the ADFA will request updates from the unit heads and supervisors.
3. The ADFA will write personally to each individual employee who still has not completed or updated their ROA forms for this fiscal year and give them one week to respond. If respondents mention that there are technical issues or other reasons for not having completed the ROA, the ADFA will try to help resolve these.
4. One week after the individual email reminders that come directly from the ADFA are sent out, individual Teams meeting calendar invitations will be sent to each employee who still hasn’t completed or updated their forms. Those employees will be asked to meet with the ADFA, who during the Teams meeting will try to ascertain what the problem is and why the employee is not doing the task, and will help them troubleshoot the issue on the spot if needed and if possible.

If you have questions about conflicts of interest and compliance with university policy, contact Jen William, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs.