Monarch Project Team Making Great Strides in Tracking Down ODU's High-Value Assets
The Monarch Project, a team of Old Dominion University student workers charged with doing an inventory of ODU's assets valued at more than $5,000, is almost two-thirds of the way through its task.
The 10-member team has located more than 2,180 of the 3,600 assets, ranging from a single computer to a million-dollar boat. The assets have to be tracked down by their serial numbers and documented to prove that they're still in the university's hands. Other assets of interest have included items ranging from sports scoreboards to cadaver tanks.
"I would say that the inventory project has succeeded beyond my expectations in terms of how quickly our team is able to track down assets," said Felicia Smith, the Monarch Project's lead administrative intern.
The team members are among the brightest students at ODU, who together offer high-quality consulting services to help the university effectively manage its resources, said Bill Edmunds, acting administrative operations officer in ODU's Office of Finance. The students are filling an obvious need for ODU - finding efficiencies in a time of tight state budgets, Edmunds added.
The inventory process, which is divided among university departments, offices and centers, has proceeded faster than originally estimated. The team has already concluded its work with 40 different units, including the ODU Police Department, music department and the Frank Reidy Center for Bioelectrics.
"These three departments have been highly cooperative and successful in finding a large percentage of their assets," said Quinton Crawley, another administrative intern on the inventory team.
Marshall Wright, an intern who worked extensively with the ODU Police Department, said only two assets remain to be located, from an extensive list. "They were very cordial and respectful, always on time, available and open to meeting whenever necessary, and even fun to work with," Wright said.
The Monarch Project team has presented each of these three departments a certificate of excellence in recognition of their success.
The remaining 1,420 assets are spread throughout another 28 departments and offices of the university. The Monarch Project interns will continue searching for assets at full speed in hopes of achieving completion well before their Aug. 19 deadline.
The Monarch Project was formed through a joint effort by the ODU Finance and Internal Audit offices. It is modeled after the Manhattan Project, which grouped the brightest scientific minds from America's universities to create atomic energy.
The Monarch Project mission is to provide high-quality consulting services to ODU, provide meaningful work experience for students and help the university effectively manage resources one project at a time.