Global Partnership Inventory Tracking Tool (GPITT)

Contributors to this data included associate deans from all 15 University of Pittsburgh Schools, associate directors from all UCIS Centers, and colleagues from numerous offices with international engagement, including the English Language Institute, Global Engagement Team, Global Operations Support, Innovation Institute, Office of International Services, Office of Sponsored Programs, Office of Trade Compliance, Pitt Global Experiences Office, and numerous project administrators involved in active and recent agreements with this institution. Please note that if you are being asked for data, you are receiving only a small sampling of GPITT questions specifically curated for your role within the University and/or this partnership. 

Each relevant school, department, program administrator, or other collaborator will receive a very specific set of questions regarding any partners currently undergoing the GPITT. The amount of information being gathered is vast, however your GPITT questionnaire will be as  brief as possible and extremely specific to your particular role. If you have any questions regarding your questionnaire, please contact GlobalPartnerships@pitt.edu.

No. Currently, the vast amount of information asked in the GPITT may exist somewhere in the University; however, this information is extremely siloed. First, the partnership team collects information methodically from a large pool of existing data systems and key contributors pulling as much data from existing systems to create a high overview. UCIS then utilizes its various regional centers and affiliated offices, such as the Global Experiences Office, Office of International Services, and more. However, collaboration is happening at every level of the university, which is why later in the inventory process, all Pitt schools, associate deans, and relevant project administrators are asked to contribute. Approximately 55 individuals complete unique set of questions catered specifically for their role in the university.

Not only does this allow for a comprehensive collection of data, but it allows our faculty, schools, and departments an opportunity to showcase their most meaningful projects and make the most of these helpful tools to meet established global goals, draft annual reports, and use existing connections and/or data to further their own objectives.

The GPITT is intended to understand all of the many touchpoints that exist between Pitt and our international interinstitutional partners. This initiative is not intended to oversee or police any efforts of our faculty and staff, but rather to empower and support our colleagues' global initiatives. The GPITT looks holistically at the level of investment Pitt both gives and receives from our partners. By understanding existing connections, we can more strategically and nimbly navigate these partnerships, allowing for greater collaboration opportunities, additional promotion of successful partnerships, and showcasing Pitt's global impact to peers, prospective students, alumni, and other collaborators.

Once per calendar year. The Global Partnerships & Partner Engagement (GP&E) team will reach out to all data stewards at the beginning of each year with a complete list of institutions undergoing inventory for the calendar year. Data stewards will have approximately six months to consult with their colleagues, pull relevant data, and submit to the global partnerships team. Data will be collated and analyzed in the months that follow and complete GPITT reports will be sent to relevant data stewards and stakeholders by the end of the calendar year.

On occasion, you may receive more than one questionnaire during a GPITT term. The most common example for this is when a faculty member is a chair of an office or department and is also listed as PA for a specific program agreement with a partner institution. If you do receive multiple questionaires or are asked to assist a colleague in completing their questionnaire, this is simply an indication that you have multiple touchpoints or information on this partnership. Please review any and all requests carefully as those receiving more than one request are not duplicate emails. Rather, you are being asked separate sets of curated questions based on your role/relationship with the partner(s) in question.

Both the GPITT and the new MoveOn database are critical in supporting the Plan for Pitt and Global Plan for Pitt. Not only will these initiatives offer benefits to Pitt leadership as they work towards the insitutional global goals, but this data can be extremely helpful to schools, departments, and individuals. Not only will colleagues across campus be contributing this information and adding engagement data to the MoveOn database, but all will be able to request information from this large collection of data for their own benefit - whether to recall their own historical data or inquire as to how the rest of the Pitt community is engaging with partners, within regions/countries, or around specific areas of study. The more information that is added via the GPITT and MoveOn reports, the more connected the university becomes to not only our partners, but to our colleagues, our communities, and our global network.