Grants can be a major source of funding for those seeking higher education. The grant process can be stressful and time consuming, not only for those seeking grants but for those who distribute funds.
Grantmakers often need to manage numerous requests for multiple types of grants, each with their own documentation, deadlines and compliance requirements. The amount of paperwork can be overwhelming, making it difficult to manage it all. Thankfully, there are grant management systems available that can help.
Grant management is the process of overseeing a grant’s life cycle through each of its phases. In general, there are three major steps in the grant process:
Depending on a school’s organizational structure, there may be a single individual in charge of grant oversight or a team of collaborators. A grant administrator is generally responsible for ensuring the process is adhered to and that grants are awarded properly. They are also responsible for timely communication with applicants and those reviewing submissions.
Tracking numerous applications and giving each the attention they deserve is a major responsibility, and the result can be life changing for a student in need. Ensuring that each grant is handled properly is also necessary for compliance.
Using an enterprise grant management system can help issuing organizations with their grant administration services and grant tracking through automation and streamlined processes. Software solutions like Enterprise Content Management (ECM) are helpful tools for managing the complex grant process.
With increasingly tighter budgets and faculty being pulled in multiple directions, it’s important to equip teams with the tools they need. Instead of working on grant proposals and reviewing submissions, many individuals spend their time on administrative tasks like completing forms, routing documents, gathering approvals and tracking down paperwork.
ECM technology allows for automated workflows and routing, and minimizes paper-based processes to reduce the time spent developing grant proposals. It can help manage the grant process from beginning to end and minimize redundancies from one grant to the next. It also helps:
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Implementing an ECM system to manage grants can be a transformational investment that will bring many benefits. Those benefits go beyond dollars and cents. Generally, the improved productivity and job satisfaction of administrative staff alone will be worth it.
It can be difficult to precisely calculate an ECM system’s ROI, but some surveys indicate ROI ranges from as little as 38% to more than 600% depending on the situation.
It’s important to note that ECM software is not limited to the grant process. It can serve as a central repository for all organizational records and be customized to improve workflows in every department, from accounting and HR to admissions and other administrative functions. When factoring in its ability to streamline an entire campus or organization, the possibilities are limitless.
Grant management often requires a custom ECM solution to help optimize the unique grant process. Enlist the help of Gordon Flesch Company’s business analysts to help you decide which ECM application is best suited for your situation. Just as importantly, they will guide you through the implementation and training needed to use it.
Want to learn more about the various functions and benefits of ECM beyond grant management? Check out our helpful guide below!
