Get Started with Funding Sources

There are several reason sources are beneficial to the grant-making process in GrantsConnect, including:

• Funding sources can be used by budgets as a bucket from which to pull funds.

• Funding sources are beneficial to organizations that require more intricate accounting methods as they provide insights into where (e.g., locations, branches, etc.) the funds available in your budgets originate.

• They help you organize your funds across multiple programs, including helping to differentiate between cash and in-kind awards.

• They help you streamline reporting, offering a means for breaking finances into more manageable time periods (e.g., annual, quarterly).

To begin, you will need to create at least one funding source followed by at least one budget.

1. Create a cash or in-kind funding source that will be used to feed your budgets.

   Note: When creating a funding source, you will need to know the type (cash or in-kind), the total funds that will be allocated, and the Payment Processor.

2. Create a budget that will be used for your program cycles.

   Tip: If you are creating multiple budgets at a time, it is recommended to use theBulk Import feature to save time and effort. Otherwise, you can use the Create Budget > Single Budget tool.

3. Add the funding source to the budget.

You can continue to create as many funding sources and budgets as necessary.

Note: For more information, see the Get Started with Budgets guide.

In addition to program cycles, funding sources are surfaced in the following areas.

• Applications - The budgets and funding sources used for Awards payments will appear in the Applications area. They can also be updated for each application or payment.

• Payment Processing - Each payment created will have a budget and source listed.

  Note: The budget assigned to a payment can be edited if the payment is Pending. Learn more.

• Ad Hoc - Reports can be built for both budgets and funding sources using the Ad Hoc tools.

  Tip: Several budget reports are available in the standard report templates. Additionally, reports can be created specifically for the Budgets and Funding Sources areas.

• Dashboards - Custom dashboards can be built to display the financial information for your grant programs over a period of time.

  Note: There are currently no standard dashboard templates that show budgets and sources explicitly. However, you can add and configure your own widgets to display this information.

• Insights - The Funding Source Insights Dashboard offer a breakdown of these assets. They are included in the Insights tools out-of-the-box.

It is recommended that you follow the best practices outlined below for using funding sources in GrantsConnect.

• It is recommended to close budgets and funding sources at the end of the year if they are not in use for an active program cycle.

• It is recommended to create new budgets and funding sources at the start of the year to use for new program cycles rather than adding funds to existing sources. This makes reporting easier and helps align funding reports with the appropriate cycles.

• For year-over-year budgets or funding sources, it is recommended to include the time period (e.g., 2022, 2023, Q1, Q2) in the name.

There are more advanced features that can help streamline your workflow level routing and review processes as it relates to funding sources, including:

• Create more than one funding source to better support more intricate accounting methods.

• Permissions required

• Add funding sources to budgets

• Close funding sources

• Add funds to funding sources