Managing grantmaking programs can be challenging. It involves tracking dozens of applications and executing and evaluating giving programs. It can be hard to do in a single excel worksheet, so grantmakers need grant management software. In addition, the software will help in saving time, making the processes more effective. So, what criteria as a grantmaker should you use software to execute a program?
What is grantmaking?
It refers to a process in which a country requests a global fund turned into one or two grants. The country coordinating mechanism and global fund work together with the partner implementing the fund, the main recipient, to prepare the grant.
How to pick the right grantmaking software
Before Starting your grant campaign, you need grant making software to make it succeed. So first, start by looking for one that will suit your campaign. The market is flooded with several digital grant management services. So you need to know what your target is. Next, look at different options and align them with your grant programs and make a decision on the quality and software features you need. To help you decide, here is how you can make your selection.
1. interviews vendors
Software packages are different in their capacities. Finding an impressive software functionality package doesn’t mean it will be a great fit for your organization. For an easier process to identify if grant making software will work well for you, it’s essential to do vendor interviews. This will help you ask important questions to find the right fit.
2. Data migration
It doesn’t matter if you use an online management system as a first-timer or have used it before. Mostly your grant program is linked to some sources of data. In this case, data migration is the main quality indicator when it comes to granting management. So it’s important to entrust your grant program to a software solution that can put all the separate data streams into one source of information.
3. Integration
A Lot of workloads are involved in grant management. Then you might need to integrate grant management software with your current financial systems or third-party applications. Always check if your vendor is good at integration before making the final decision.
Grant management systems come with various features that make work easier. Before picking one, check your foundation’s requirements, do a demo of your program, and take it online.
