Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment

Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment 

Conflicts of interest and commitment occur in academia. They are a co-occurring part of enhancing the mission of the University. The disclosure of all actual and any potential conflicts of interest or commitment to the UMSI Leadership Team and the University is important.  All disclosed conflicts are reviewed and some cases may require a formal Conflict Management Plan.  At UMSI, COI or COC should be brought to the attention of the Associate Dean for Faculty and the UMSI Chief Administrative Officer.

Definitions

1. Conflict of Interest

   • A potential conflict of interest exists whenever personal, professional, commercial, or financial interests or activities outside of the University have the possibility (either in actuality or in appearance) of (1) compromising a faculty or staff member’s judgment; (2) biasing the nature or direction of scholarly research; (3) influencing a faculty or staff member’s decision or behavior with respect to teaching and student affairs, appointments and promotions, uses of University resources, interactions with human subjects, or other matters of interest to the University; or (4) resulting in a personal or family member’s gain or advancement at the expense of the University. For purposes of subsection (4), family members include spouse, domestic partners and dependents.

2. Conflict of Commitment

   • A potential conflict of commitment exists when a faculty or staff member’s external relationships or activities have the possibility (either in actuality or in appearance) of interfering or competing with the University’s educational, research, or service missions, or with that individual’s ability or willingness to perform the full range of responsibilities associated with his or her position.

More information is available in the U-M Standard Practice Guide: 201.65-1 - Conflicts of interest and conflicts of commitment and on the University of Michigan Office of Research (UMOR) Research Ethics and Compliance page (Conflict of Interest).

To make faculty and staff aware of the laws that apply to their activities and what people must do to meet them, the University created the online Compliance Resource Center. The information provided by the center addresses the University’s core areas of activity: research, teaching, health care, and athletics. One section of the website deals specifically with the important topic of conflict of interest and conflict of commitment.

Disclosure

All faculty and researchers with grant funding are required to file yearly disclosures of outside activities via M-Inform (https://minform.it.umich.edu/) whether or not they have any conflicts of interest or conflicts of commitment to report. If new conflicts arise or there are changes in relationships previously disclosed during the year, these should be disclosed in M-Inform within 30 days of the new activity or change.

M-Inform submissions are reviewed at the school level by the administrative director. However, if conflicts emerge you must inform the Leadership Team (by reaching out to the Associate Dean for Faculty) and disclose the information in M-Inform (M-Inform will not automatically alert the Leadership Team of updates).

The U-M Policy and Requirements for COI Disclosure and Management in Research can be found here: https://research-compliance.umich.edu/sites/default/files/resource-download/coi_research_policy.pdf.

If you have questions about a potential conflict, please reach out to UMSI Chief Administrative Officer. If you have questions about the M-Inform process, please reach out to The Director of Research Administration.