Groups that provide grant funding to organizations must set up guidelines for applicants to follow. Without an explicit structure by which these entities can measure the many applications coming through their doors, the selection process would be overwhelming and inefficient. As many nonprofit and for-profit organizations recognize, scope, operations and methods change over time. When grant guidelines need to be altered or differ depending on available opportunities, a reliable grant management software platform can help streamline operations.

Resist, a group that gives grants to grassroots organizations working hard for social justice offers five different types of grants. Each grant has six deadlines throughout the year and varying application guidelines. On a fundamental level, however, Resist has a strong mission statement that applies to every single organization vying for a piece of the funding. There are four core principles all hopefuls must meet, in addition to eligibility requirements and exclusions. If and when these guidelines ever need to change, monitoring the response and ensuring reviewers approve applicants correctly based on new criteria will be essential to the continued success of Resist.

Years back, the National Science Foundation made many changes to its Merit Review Criteria. The changes varied from items as minuscule as amended terminology to amendments as influential as adding the option to include recommendations from the National Science Board to the application. These changes could have a large impact on whether a candidate receives a grant or not. Many other alterations were listed on the NSF’s website and would be difficult for any reviewer to note during the selection process.

Managing change

Keeping track of all applicants for each type of grant, making decisions on who should receive funding, and tracking data over time can become time-consuming for groups like Resist and the National Science Foundation without a strategic system in place. Adopting grant management software better equips organizations supplying grant opportunities to others with the tools they need to effectively monitor submissions, review criteria, score applications, make decision announcements and ensure funding reaches the correct party.

In addition, a systematic approach to looking at incoming submissions may provide organizations with the ability to better track funding and how it is used after it has been awarded to recipients. Often following up on this data is what launches groups into future ventures and makes it possible to continue funding quality causes over time.

CommunityForce is a technology innovation firm that provides its customers a cloud-based platform that simplifies application submission, improves collaboration, and facilitates decision-making.

WhatMattersMost

It’s time for you to take the strain out of reviewing and accepting grant applications. This grants management software solution from CommunityForce allows you to choose from existing forms or customize your own to fulfill your requirements while viewing and managing all your existing forms on one screen. Add eligibility screening and accept as many as 50,000 applications in less than 30 minutes.

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