Building an Effective Partner Ecosystem for Your Grant Management System

Data visualization. Document signatures. Fund accounting. Gone are the days when each of those systems required a different login and manual data manipulation to get what you needed.

Now your grant management system (GMS) is the hub of your grantmaking organization, and simple API integrations allow you to plug in the systems that work best for you. But before you start adding every tool available, take some time to identify the partners and processes that add value to your grantmaking.

Here are tips for building an effective partner ecosystem for your grantmaking organization, including some common integration challenges to avoid.

Understand What Is Most Important to Your Organization

Like any new technology evaluation, you need to first define your organizational priorities and what you would expect from each new solution.

Define Your Needs

What is the problem you are really solving for? This is the first question you need to answer when building an effective partner ecosystem around your GMS. Understanding your needs helps you identify the integrations that will make your work more impactful.

Are you looking to streamline workflows, improve data accuracy, enhance reporting capabilities, or something else? Clearly defining your needs helps you select partners that align with your strategic goals.

Check for Integration Capabilities

Modern APIs enable you to have more control over the systems you connect to your GMS. Look for low-code or no-code options that simplify the integration process. With today’s tools, you shouldn’t have to hire a developer to get the functionality you need.

Ensure that the integration points are robust and flexible enough to accommodate your requirements—are you getting the data you need in a format that you can use? Evaluate how well the potential partners’ systems integrate with your existing technology stack and whether they support seamless data exchange. Look for other organizations like yours that use the integration.

Prioritize Security

When integrating external systems with your GMS, security should be a top priority. Ensure that your data is protected with industry-standard security measures. You should own the data, and it should be easily removed from the system permanently if needed. Verify that potential partners adhere to data protection regulations and have strong security protocols in place to safeguard your sensitive information.

Understand the User Experience

It’s crucial to assess how user-friendly the integration is from both the administrative and end-user perspectives. Does the data come over in a usable way? Is accessing the partner’s platform or integrated data intuitive? The user experience can significantly impact the adoption and effectiveness of the integration. Choose partners that offer a smooth and intuitive user experience, which will reduce the learning curve and increase productivity among your staff.

Plan for Scalability

Consider how your needs might change over the next few years. You might add additional funding programs that increase the number of grantees you need to communicate with, for example. Will the integration grow with you, or will you need to change partners?

Unplugging a partner you’ve outgrown isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but making adjustments is easier than onboarding a new partner altogether. Choose partners that can scale with your organization, adapting to your evolving requirements without causing significant disruptions.

Tips for Identifying Quality Partner Solutions

Through API integrations, the list of technology solutions that can plug into your grant management system is continually growing. But not all those systems are right for your organization. Here are some tips for narrowing the field.

Form a Selection Committee: Include a variety of people from across the organization who will approach each new vendor with curiosity and intentionality. The group can meet on an ad hoc basis as new opportunities arise or meet regularly to review any new recommendations and current integrations.

Interview Other Organizations: Talk to organizations that have a similar use case and ask for partner recommendations. Learn about their processes and see what you want to incorporate into your future capabilities. Post in your GMS vendor community about what works well with your core system.

Check the Vendor Client Base: Verify that the vendor works with organizations like yours or in a way you want it to work. This ensures that the partner has relevant experience and can meet your specific needs. Look for a preferred vendor list or marketplace to see if your grant management vendor has organizations they know work well with their system.

Common Integration Challenges

While building an effective partner ecosystem around your GMS has many benefits, it also comes with challenges. Being aware of these challenges can help you mitigate them proactively.

Compatibility Issues: Not all systems play well together. Compatibility issues can arise when integrating different technologies, leading to data inconsistencies and operational inefficiencies. Ensure that potential partners offer compatible solutions that work seamlessly with your GMS.

Security Concerns and Data Management: Integrating multiple systems increases the complexity of managing data security. Ensure that all partners have robust security measures in place and comply with relevant data protection regulations. Make sure your own data governance and data management policies are up to date so you have processes in place if an issue does arise.

Training and Adoption: New integrations require training for your team, so make sure they know the value that will come from adding this functionality to their day-to-day. Ensure that partners provide comprehensive training and support to facilitate smooth adoption. The more user-friendly the integration, the easier it will be for your team to adapt and maximize its benefits. Identify a power user for each partner who can be a point person to help the rest of the team get acclimated.

Cost Management: Integration costs can add up quickly. Be mindful of both the upfront and ongoing costs associated with each integration. Choose partners that offer transparent pricing and provide value for your investment and make a plan to review the costs on a bi-annual or annual basis.

Communication: Effective communication is critical for successful integrations. Ensure that partners have clear communication channels and updated schedules to keep you informed about any changes or issues that may arise. This is also important after the integration is established. You’ll want to keep informed about updates to the software that may change your workflows.

Enhance Your Grantmaking to Drive More Impact

Building an effective partner ecosystem around your GMS requires careful consideration of your needs, integration capabilities, security, user experience, and scalability. By following the tips provided and being aware of common integration challenges, you can create a robust and efficient ecosystem that enhances your grantmaking efforts.

Remember, the goal is to enhance your grant management system’s functionality and streamline your operations. With the right partners, you can achieve greater efficiency, accuracy, and impact in your grantmaking initiatives.

Want to see how Blackbaud Grantmaking is expanding its partnership ecosystem to include better integrations with Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT as well as data visualization and document signing partners? Check out our most recent Product Update Briefings to see our roadmap.