Choosing between grants management systems is often a lengthy, time-consuming task. The potential wasted time and expense of a failed software implementation necessitate choosing the correct vendor and grant management system the first time. Given the investment involved with selecting this software, it’s worthwhile to take the time to fully explore your options. The right system can help you operate more efficiently, comply with regulations, and use resources more effectively. Ultimately, your chosen vendor could impact your organization’s ability to achieve its mission.
When choosing a new grants management software vendor, account for the vendor’s history with grants management, the software’s ability to manage the complete grants life cycle, and the flexibility of the grants management software platform. Here’s what to look for in grant management software.
When evaluating a new grants management software system, you should first evaluate the vendors.
The grant award management software market has a few long-established vendors with proven, stable systems and decades of experience implementing systems at an enterprise scale. Conversely, the market has seen a recent uptick in small vendors offering management solutions that lack the full suite of features that are available from the more experienced vendors.
While some of these new upstarts may offer lower prices upon initial implementation, their lack of experience can lead to costly delays, frequent rework, and the need to quickly move on to a more established vendor. Systems built by inexperienced vendors may lack the ability to scale. They may also encounter frequent bugs. An organization using this software may experience issues such as missed deadlines or noncompliance penalties.
Conversely, some long-established software companies will state that their platforms can be adapted to meet a grant provider’s needs. While the company may have software experience, lacking the specific knowledge of grant life cycle processes can lead to the same issues faced by the new upstarts.
Their systems may not meet the regulations and reporting mandates that grant management requires. Nonspecialized software is also less likely to fully meet your demands. While it may work for general grants management processes, it likely won’t capture all the intricacies of your processes.
This evaluation of vendors often leads to the selection of vendors with a proven history of providing grant management solutions that are similar in size and scope to those that government agencies or organizations give. This will lead to an implementation that is completed on schedule and on budget.
Grant providers must also evaluate the capabilities of the various grant management systems. If your agency requires purchases to go out to a Request for Proposal, or RFP, for grant management software, it may benefit you to view demonstrations of various products (such as IntelliGrants® IGX) first. Some Grant Providers will view demonstrations of various products as part of a Request for Information (RFI).
Regardless of the method used to solicit product demonstrations, this will allow you to quantify the capabilities of the various offerings, which will provide the necessary context to inform the composition of a specific RFP that allows the vendors to see and respond to your exact needs. Too often, public agencies issue vague, ineffective RFPs with hard-to-define requirements that lead to generic responses that don’t address the agency’s real-world needs.
When evaluating these vendors, the following considerations should be taken into account:
These grant management software tips help you discover whether the system is the right fit for you. Web-based access is essential for collaboration, enabling your team to work together, regardless of location. The system should support all grant types, allowing you to handle any type of funding you receive. For example, competitive grants require more robust application tools, while formula grants require more in-depth compliance tracking.
A system that supports multiple funding sources can help organizations handle funds from federal, state, private, and internal sources. You can financially track all finances in one place for seamless reconciliation and smoother audit processes. A SaaS system is generally lower cost to implement and comes with automatic updates, which can make it less resource-intensive for your team.
Finally, the system should be able to handle the entire grant life cycle and all associated documents. These abilities ensure the system meets your needs throughout every stage.
Here are some questions you can ask to fully explore platform capabilities and discover whether the solution would be a good fit for your needs:
Some of these questions may be more important to your agency than others. Discuss with your team exactly what it is your ideal system would do and which processes you would like to automate, and ask your prospective vendors to explain or show how their platforms can manage those tasks. The focus of this exercise should be to fully flesh out and document your business needs. This will accomplish two very important objectives:
The final major component when evaluating a new grants management platform is flexibility. Some vendors offer completely off-the-shelf systems with minimal configuration available, meaning that the system your agency buys will be practically identical to the system bought by an agency across the country.
IGX Solutions supports the templated approach while also offering a core platform that is configured to your exact needs: every form, document, report, dashboard, and business process is tailored to your exact needs, with your agency’s branding included throughout the system. IGX Solutions has a comprehensive library of grant systems across the country, which means we can build upon what worked for others to create a solution that uniquely fits your needs.
In the event that an agency would like to adopt a grant application and supporting processes that are already built and in use, we can simply copy the application that most closely meets the client’s needs. Both options can be valid in different cases. Some customers prefer a quick installation and adapting their processes to fit a new grant management software, while others prefer the ability to have a vendor configure a system to their precise needs.
There are some important questions to ask about flexibility before procuring a new grants management system:
Answering these questions prior to engaging in discussions with vendors will allow you to choose the vendor who most closely aligns with your agency’s goals. You can obtain a system that meets your needs today and can adapt to any future changes, from internal processes to evolving regulatory requirements.
Once you and your team have decided that you really need a solution with a best-in-class service provider, give us a call below or fill out our contact form! Our IntelliGrants IGX system is a great fit for those government agencies and organizations that prioritize quality, flexibility, and value.
The groundbreaking IGX release of IntelliGrants is designed to be one of the most flexible grant management systems on the market today, with its powerful grant management software solution benefits and features, allowing agencies to have software configured to their exact specifications. Ready to revolutionize your grant management? Request a live demo today.
