Grants Management System Online Instructions for Grant Applicants Greater Twin Cities United Way. March 2012

Transcription

1 Grants Management System Online Instructions for Grant Applicants Greater Twin Cities United Way March 2012

2 Contents SECTION 1: PREPARE YOUR APPLICATION TEAM... 2 SECTION 2: LOGIN TO THE ONLINE SYSTEM... 3 Install a Supported Browser... 3 Register as an Agency Portal User... 3 Login to the Agency Portal... 3 Recover a Password... 4 Recover an Address... 4 SECTION 3: REVIEW THE AGENCY DASHBOARD... 5 Locate Dashboard Features... 5 Learn More About Dashboard Features... 5 Change Your Password... 6 SECTION 4: COMPLETE AN APPLICATION IN THE RFP SUBSITE... 7 Open a New Application Form... 7 Start an Application Form... 7 General Guidelines... 8 Section-Specific Guidelines... 9 Save and Close Your Application in Progress Retrieve a Saved Report Delete An Application Form Prior to Submission SECTION 5: REVIEW AND SUBMIT AN APPLICATION Review the Application for Errors and Completeness Submit Your Application SECTION 6: CHECK THE STATUS OF AN APPLICATION P a g e

3 SECTION 1: PREPARE YOUR APPLICATION TEAM The new grants management system allows an agency to have a team of staff prepare an online application, using individual user ID s and passwords. While this is an advantage, it also creates the need to think about how best to organize and use this team effectively. United Way strongly recommends that Agencies follow the team preparation steps below to minimize the potential for problems with the application process. 1. Decide who will work on the grant application. From an Agency standpoint, it s helpful to identify who will help prepare the application before you start. From a United Way standpoint, we need to know who is on your team so they can be set up before you actually start an application. 2. Register each person on the team with United Way. Each person who is to be on the team should support@unitedwaytwincities.org and ask to be registered, if they have not already received an with their initial password from United Way. Include agency legal name, staff name, staff address, and whether the application on which they will work has already started or not. Team members need to register before an application is started. Directions on how to register can be found in Section 2of this document. 3. Give one person authority to open the application. It is very easy to open applications. Avoid unnecessary duplicates by assigning one person the authority to open the application. If a duplicate or unnecessary application is created, United Way intervention is necessary to delete it. 4. Assign each team member a specific section of the application. Avoid the potential for staff to overwrite each other s changes by clearly identifying who is responsible for working on which part of the application. 5. Give one person authority to approve the application. Make sure your application represents your Agency by giving one person, typically the Executive Director, sole authority to approve the application as final and ready to submit. 6. Give one person authority to hit Submit. Applications are very easy to submit. Avoid the potential for early, unauthorized submission of applications by assigning this task to a specific person. If an application is submitted before complete, United Way intervention is necessary to reopen it. 2 P a g e

4 SECTION 2: LOGIN TO THE ONLINE SYSTEM Install a Supported Browser The online grants management system is a browser-based tool, built in SharePoint. To use this tool, you must install one of the Internet browsers listed below on your computer: Internet Explorer 7 (IE 7) and above. Google Chrome Firefox 3.6 and above Safari 4.04 and above (including Safari on an ipad) As long as your computer has and can support one of these browsers, you will be able to access and use the Agency Portal, where your application forms and information about the RFP are posted. If you do not have one of these browsers installed or are uncertain, please work with your Agency technical staff to complete this step prior to attempting to login. United Way staff does not assist with this step. Register as an Agency Portal User Before you login for the first time, you need to register as an Agency Portal User. Note: All Agency team members for a given RFP should be registered before an Agency opens an application in response to that RFP. If you have received your initial password from United Way, you are already registered. If you have not received an initial password in your , take these two steps before attempting to login: 1. Provide the following information in an to support@unitedwaytwincities.org and request to be added as an Agency Portal User: Your full name Your address The legal name of your agency 2. Watch for a confirmation with your initial password, labeled: From: GTCUW Administrator Subject Line: United Way Grant System Password Has Been Reset Login to the Agency Portal 1. Go to where you will see the login screen, shown in Figure Enter your address. This will normally be your individual address at your agency. 3 P a g e

5 3. TYPE the password you received into the login screen (if you copy/paste, be sure not to inadvertently add a space at the beginning or end of the password; if you do, you will not be able to login successfully). Figure 1. GTCUW Portal Login Window Use your address and the password sent to you by GTCUW staff. Have a new password sent to you if needed. If you receive an error message when you try to login: o First, try again. Re-enter your address and password in case an error was made when it was initially entered. o If you continue receiving an error message, support@unitedwaytwincities.org or call the Help Desk at More than one person from an agency can have a login to the site. Each person s login will be unique. Recover a Password 1. Navigate to the login page, found at 2. Click on Forgot User Name/Password. 3. In the window that pops up, enter your address to have a new password sent to you. Recover an Address 1. Navigate to the login page, found at 2. Click on Forgot User Name/Password. 3. In the window that pops up, you ll see the phone number to call to have United Way staff assist you in recovering the appropriate address for you ( ). 4 P a g e

6 SECTION 3: REVIEW THE AGENCY DASHBOARD Locate Dashboard Features When you first enter the agency portal, the home page, called the Agency Dashboard, will have important information pertaining to the RFPs available to your specific agency, and information to help manage your applications (Figure 2). The Agency Dashboard includes links to: Available Application and Report Forms Applications in Process Awarded Applications Declined Applications Announcements United Way Contacts Figure 2. Agency Dashboard (Home Page) Change Passwords Review Announcements Scroll for More Info Apply for funding Contact CI Staff Learn More About Dashboard Features Available Application and Reporting Forms includes links to all currently open grant opportunities for which you are eligible to apply. In the future, this link will also take you to grant-reporting forms. At this time, reporting is not yet functional in the system. Applications in Process include any applications an agency has started or submitted, for which a decision has not yet been made by United Way. You can see the status of your applications here. 5 P a g e

7 Awarded Grants include those grant applications for which the agency has been awarded funding. Going forward, only the most recent three years of awarded grant applications will be displayed. Grants awarded through GIFTS (the previous grants-management software) will not display. Declined Applications include those applications for which funding was not received. Going forward, only the most recent three years of declined grant applications will be displayed. Grants declined through GIFTS will not display. Announcements provide timely information regarding RFPs and other grant-related activities. The Community Impact staff is responsible for adding announcements. United Staff Contacts provide links to key staff. Change Your Password The password the United Way s to you is complex and may be difficult to remember. To change your password: 1. Login to the grants management system. 2. Near the top right side of the Agency Portal page, click on the Change Password button (Figure 3). 3. In the Change Password pop-up window, change your password, taking care to meet the minimum requirements for passwords. New passwords must be between 7-20 characters long and contain at least one character from each of the following groups: a. Upper-Case Letter b. Lower-Case Letter c. Number d. Special Character (e.g., #, *, %, $) Figure 3. Change Password Window Change Password Button Change Password Pop-up Window 6 P a g e

8 SECTION 4: COMPLETE AN APPLICATION IN THE RFP SUBSITE Click on a specific RFP name under Available Applications and Reporting Forms on the Agency Dashboard to go to the application and reporting page (or RFP Subsite ) for that particular RFP. Here, each designated contact in your organization can manage all aspects of the process to submit an application for funding (Figure 4). Agencies can submit multiple applications for grants under the same RFP if they have multiple eligible programs. Figure 4. RFP Subsite: The Location to Access Application Forms Check RFP Title Review RFP Announcements Check Deadlines Contact RFP Staff Start/Re-open Applications Review RFP Guidelines Open a New Application Form 1. Login to the grants management system. 2. On the Agency Portal page, click on the title of the RFP in which you are interested, in the Available Applications and Reports box. This will open the RFP Subsite page. 3. On the RFP Subsite page, click on Start a New Application to open a new application form. The form will pop up in a new window (Figure 5). Start an Application Form The application form is structured as a single page with the following sections: 1. Organizational Background Information 2. Program Information 3. Program Resource and Budget Information 4. Program Outcome and Indicator Information 5. Program Demographic Information 6. Service Delivery Locations 7 P a g e

9 In addition, you will need to add an Application Title in the introductory section of the application. General Guidelines Figure 5 shows the first page of the application form. Figure 5. Grant Application Form RFP Title Scroll Bar Application Title As you complete the form, follow these general guidelines, which are applicable to all sections: 1. Use the scroll bar on the right side of the window to navigate to different sections in the form. 2. In ALL sections, complete ALL fields. Fields are prepopulated with zeros so that you only need to complete those fields that are relevant to your program. 3. Click Save to save your work as you go. Always click Save immediately before exiting the form. 4. Do NOT click Submit until you are completely finished, have reviewed your work for accuracy and completeness, and have obtained the approval of your Executive Director. 5. Be careful if you allow multiple users in the system: o Application forms can be saved multiple times by different users as an agency completes them. o More than one user can access the application form at once. o Multiple staff working in the same area of an application risk overwriting each other. 6. Copy/paste from Word if you wish. However, all formatting will be lost. 8 P a g e

10 7. Print a copy of the application: i. Click on the Print Preview button near the top left side of the screen, on the ribbon. ii. In the print preview window (Figure 6), choose one of the following options: Click on the printer icon near the top of the window OR Right click to bring up a drop-down menu Select Print from the drop-down menu Figure 6. Print Preview Window Printer Icon Print Command Section-Specific Guidelines Follow these additional guidelines for specific sections of the report: Application Title o This is a unique title that you provide for your application. It does NOT need to be the same as the program name. The application title will show up in the Application List on the RFP Subsite page, as well as the Applications in Progress list on the Agency Portal home page. The system will add a date stamp to the application title to assure the name of the application is unique over time. Organizational Background Information o Enter your agency s legal name. o Enter your agency s mission statement and the remaining information requested. o IF YOU ARE A NEW AGENCY AND ARE NOT CURRENTLY FUNDED BY UNITED WAY: 9 P a g e

11 Answer the additional capacity questions, which become available when you select no when asked Are you a currently funded Greater Twin Cities United Way Agency? Upload the 3 mandatory documents: 501c (3) documentation Current roster of Board of Directors Copy of your most recent financial audit To upload the required documents: 1. Click on Click here to attach a file at the appropriate spot in the application. 2. In the popup window, click on Browse to find the appropriate document on your computer. 3. Click Open to prepare the document for uploading. 4. Click Attach to upload and attach the document to the application form. To remove an incorrect document from the attachment list: 1. Hover over the large paper clip icon to the left of the file name. 2. Click on the small paper clip icon that appears, opening the command list. 3. Click on Remove to delete the file from the application. Program Information o Enter your program contact information. o Enter general program information, including the program name, a brief description, and how the program fulfills the requirements of the RFP. Program Resource and Budget Information o Provide your staffing information, including information on employee counts, FTEs, and volunteers. o Provide your income and expenses by category. The % column on the right is automatically calculated for you. Total income and expenses is automatically calculated for you. Program Outcome and Indicator Data o Provide the information requested for the outcomes and indicators. Program Demographic Data o For each demographic category listed, provide information for your clients. Include actual, estimated, and grant year totals. The system will alert you if your totals do not match or if incompatible data types are entered. o Note that most data requested is client count data. However, income data is requested by household. Service Delivery Locations o Identify the locations from which your program will deliver services to clients. You can enter as many as are applicable. Please enter location data for every delivery location in the 9-county metro area. EXCEPTION: If you deliver services at individual homes or other locations where 10 P a g e

12 individual privacy must be kept, you are NOT required to provide service delivery location information. o To add space for an additional location, click on the hyperlink at the bottom of this section, titled: To add space for additional addresses, click here. Save and Close Your Application in Progress 1. Save your application at any time by clicking on one of the Save buttons found throughout the application. 2. Close your application without submitting: Click on the Close button on the ribbon near the top left side of the page (Figure 7). Closing the application will return you to the main RFP Subsite page. Figure 7. Close a Partially Completed Application, Without Submitting Until you Submit an application, it will be in Draft mode. o Draft mode allows changes by agencies. o Once your application is Submitted you will no longer be able to edit it. Retrieve a Saved Report 1. Login to the system as usual 2. Click on the application name to reopen it: 11 P a g e

13 o o You can open the application from the list of Applications in Progress on the Agency Portal home page OR You can open the application from the list of Applications on the RFP Subsite page Delete An Application Form Prior to Submission If you should inadvertently open an extra application or determine that you need to delete an application, please contact support@unitedwaytwincities.org. Only the United Way has rights to delete applications. 12 P a g e

14 SECTION 5: REVIEW AND SUBMIT AN APPLICATION Review the Application for Errors and Completeness The new application form will check for certain types of errors and prepopulate the form for you: The form will check for: o Incorrect budget or client totals o Incompatible data types For your convenience, the application form prepopulates many fields with zeros. Make sure you change the zeros to the values needed for your program. Always double-check the form for the accuracy and completeness. Submit Your Application 1. Finish your completeness and accuracy check. 2. Print a copy of the application for your records, using the Print Preview button above the top left side of the application. 3. Obtain all necessary internal approvals, including approval from the Agency Executive Director. 4. Hit Submit near the beginning of the application. Agencies should make sure their applications are fully complete and final before hitting the submit button. Once an application is submitted, United Way intervention is necessary for the Agency to re-open and change the application. To have United Way reopen an application, send an to support@unitedwaytwincities.org. 13 P a g e

15 SECTION 6: CHECK THE STATUS OF AN APPLICATION 1. Login to the grants management system. 2. Navigate to the Agency Portal home page. 3. Under Applications in Progress find the title of the application in which you are interested. 4. Just to the right of the application title, view the status of the application. o Draft means the application is still in progress and has not yet been submitted. o Submitted means the agency has submitted the application. o In Review means United Way has assigned the application to a reviewer and it is being evaluated. o Appeals means the application is in appeals status after a decision has been made. Once United Way makes a decision on an application, it will move from the Applications in Progress section to either the Applications Awarded or Applications Declined section, depending on the decision. In addition, United Way program staff will contact agencies to let them know whether an application has been funded or declined.. 14 P a g e