Many grant professionals shared a lot of insight, feedback, and ideas during last week’s #GrantChat on Twitter. Thank you for letting us participate in the grants community!
If you haven’t heard about #GrantChat, just go to Twitter and search using the hashtag “#grantchat”. To read the full conversation chronologically, here’s the full Storify of #GrantChat.
It went quickly and there were hundreds of tweets, so here’s just a few key points from the conversation.
A1: https://t.co/fUyTwnG6fu is our Go-To place for #federal #grants. It is where we start with all of our projects. #grantchat
— smartegrants (@SmartEGrants) December 13, 2016
Q2: Have you noticed any ways that the government making it easier to apply for federal grants?
The federal government recognizes that new grant applicants can find the process daunting & launched the Grants Learning Center in 2015. There are also iterative improvements to systems & online interfaces.
A2a: YES! I started federal #grants when we had to send bound paper copies! #grants.gov e-submissions keep getting better #grantchat
— Jo Miller, GPC (@JM_Grants) December 13, 2016
A2_4: Coming in 2017: the phasing out of the old PDF package application on https://t.co/AE0qiaQTr6 & addition of online forms #grantchat
— Grants.gov (@grantsdotgov) December 13, 2016
A2 Wait, what? no more pdfs? *emerges from under desk with a tiny smile* #grantchat
— Kimberly Hays deMuga (@KHaysdeMuga) December 13, 2016
Yes, online HTML-based forms will be added to Workspace in February 2017. Applicants can choose to apply with individual PDF forms or edit the forms within your web browser. More details here.
Q3: What is this “Workspace” thing? #grantchat
Workspace is the new standard application method where applicants manage & submit applications. Check out the Workspace Overview page to learn more.
A3: Workspace allows teams to work on applications, saves time by reusing & cascading your data, & catches your mistakes for you! #grantchat
— Heather Stombaugh (@heatherJWS) December 13, 2016
Q4: What do you think about Workspace so far? If you haven’t used it, what have you heard? #grantchat
We’ve received diverse feedback. Some people love it, especially the ability to reuse forms from past applications. But, others haven’t used it or ask for changes after trying it.
Need to watch these MT @JM_Grants: A4: I am learning about #Workspace via training videos https://t.co/LX4O3Ytahk #grantchat
— Amanda Ripstra, GPC (@AmandaRipstra) December 13, 2016
A4_3 Biggest request has been the ability to add people from a different organization to their Workspace. This is coming in R16.0 #grantchat
— Grants.gov (@grantsdotgov) December 13, 2016
Q5: What challenges have your organizations faced in trying to apply for federal grants (with or without Workspace)? #grantchat
Grant pros shared a variety of challenges, including technical hiccups, team communication, tight deadlines, and complex application packages. The intent of Workspace is to simplify at least some of these.
A5_1: To help you apply, we’ve created a resource listing tips for transitioning your org to #Workspace #grantchat https://t.co/oX7cgxTld8
— Grants.gov (@grantsdotgov) December 13, 2016
A5: Always can have tech challenges, but the hard part of federal grants is always internal collaboration to actually write it #grantchat
— Robert Pergament (@RobertPergament) December 13, 2016
There were so many more of your ideas and feedback that we could include in this post (e.g., more training, simpler account & role management, suggestive search). Look for them to appear in future system update and #ReplyAll blog posts. Note: Follows, re-tweets & shares are not endorsements. Comment Policy and Privacy Notice.
#GrantChat A10: I am excited to hear what is coming for @grantsdotgov in 2017!
— Bethany Turner, GPC (@turner_bethany) December 13, 2016
We were really into #grantchat yesterday & all listening intently to your feedback! Thanks again for sharing your insight #grants community pic.twitter.com/Wj1oXLJihF
— Grants.gov (@grantsdotgov) December 14, 2016
great
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