An academic staff member means the principal investigator, co-principal investigator, and any other person at the University who is responsible for the design, conduct, or reporting of research or educational activities. The executive unit head means the chair, or equivalent of other units such as the director of a center or institute, in whom primary administrative authority resides. If a conflict exists for an executive unit head, the term refers to the head of the next level of administrative authority in the normal reporting line. A conflict of interest may take various forms but exists when there is a divergence between an individual's private interests and his or her professional obligations to the University such that an independent observer might reasonably question whether the individual's professional actions or decisions might be influenced by considerations of gain, financial or otherwise, for the individual or his or her family members or for other parties. A conflict of interest depends on the situation, and not on the character or the actions of the individual.
Conflicts of interest are common and practically unavoidable in a modern research university.
Conflicts of interest can arise out of the fact that a mission of the University is to promote public good by fostering the transfer of knowledge gained through University research and scholarship to the private sector. Two important means of accomplishing this mission include consulting and the commercialization of technologies derived from University research. It is wrong, however, for an individual's actions or decisions, made in the course of his or her University activities, to be determined by considerations of personal financial gain. Such behavior calls into question the professional objectivity and ethics of the individual and reflects negatively on both the institution and the external sponsor of the research activity. Members of the academic community should conduct their affairs so as to avoid or minimize conflicts of interest, and must respond appropriately when apparent conflicts of interest arise.