Proof Bravelo^® Works

United Way of Central Indiana United Way Finds Efficiency at the End of the Paper Trail

Granting money to some 90 human-service agencies of the United Way of Central Indiana (UWCI) is requiring much less paperwork these days for Bob Rush, UWCI Technology Fund’s Director and staff liaison. Faced with processing funding proposals from each of these agencies, Bob and the volunteer committee members instituted new procedures involving simple-to-use, on-line technology that has automated the Committee’s grant application process. As a result, the new changes have made a significant impact on staff efficiency and improved the level of service UWCI is providing to its community agencies, while reducing its overall processing costs.

The $2.5 million Technology Fund is chartered with helping local agencies improve community service by providing funds for hardware, software applications, phone systems, and other technology upgrades. To date, the fund has processed over 75 proposals submitted by the 90 agencies in the past 12 months and is scheduled to complete the remaining by year-end. Throughout the entire process, virtually all paperwork and related overhead costs were eliminated using Internet-based technology. As a result, Bob has seen a 92% improvement in manpower efficiency and reductions of 85% in paperwork and material cost, and a minimum of 60% in mailing costs. These results are significant considering other traditionally-run fund programs can involve substantial proposals, plus considerable manpower and material costs associated with collection, collation, and distribution of documents, and the coordination of meetings and schedules throughout the due diligence process.

The process change involved taking existing paper-based procedures and modifying them to fit available on-line technology. Sophisticated, yet simple-to-use software called Bravelo®, enabled UWCI to setup unique funding project web sites to centralize and provide access to all documents, communication, and schedules. The technology provided on-line interaction between UWCI staff, committee members, outside consultants, and the various agencies participating in the proposal process.

As the Director of both the Technology Fund and the much larger $60 million UWCI Capital Fund, a Lilly Endowment-backed grant program for facility improvements and development, Bob can contrast the beneficial impact of using technology over paper alongside the similarities existing in the due diligence process. In each case, agencies requesting a grant must submit an application, written proposal, and go through an evaluation and award process before any money is allocated. Although applications are fairly small, proposals can range between 25 and 100 or more pages and contain key information such as budgets, assessments, specifications and plans necessary for the due diligence process. Each month, selected proposals are condensed into review packages and sent to the fund committee made up of UWCI staff and executive-level volunteers who provide the expertise needed to evaluate requirements and make recommendations on the various projects. After reviewing the materials, the committee meets once a month to hear between two and five formal presentations given by applicant agencies to help determine the type and level of funding to be provided. Based on the presentation and the committee’s assessment, a decision or recommendation for funding is made and forwarded to the United Way Executive Committee for final approval.

Despite process similarities of the Technology Fund and the Capital Fund, notable efficiency improvements are demonstrated when comparing manpower effort and overhead costs. On average, four review packages must be organized, collated, and distributed to between fifteen and twenty committee members each month and can require up to five hours to complete. Add to this the material and shipping costs to send out four review packages, each ranging between 25 to 100 pages, the average expense can reach well over $10,000 a year for a relatively small fund. This, of course, can be compounded when considering the scope and resource impact of much larger funds such as the $60 million Capital Fund.

With the Technology Fund, “…virtually everything is electronic,” states Bob. With the exception of a four-page application, which still requires hard-copy signatures from agency executives, electronic documents and spreadsheets are sent to Bob and then organized and maintained in separate, on-line project folders within the Bravelo application for committee members to access. Once organized, delivery of the monthly review packages takes the form of a distributed email to all committee members with an attached link to the on-line project folder. The link takes members to a secure project area where they can open and read the documents, post questions and answers to other committee members or print them out if necessary. Bob comments, “What would typically take several hours to copy, collate and distribute to members, now takes between fifteen and twenty minutes.”

With the adoption of the on-line process, Bob has realized several other improvements. In the case of the Technology Fund, independent, outside consultants were employed to evaluate each agency and produce written assessments on each agency’s current capability, and what technology requirements, if any, were needed to provide better service. These written assessments, which were transferred electronically, tied the consultants into the on-line process and provided the basis for funding proposals submitted by each agency to the committee. This meant that the process could be opened up to resources outside of the typical UWCI staff and committee members making it more effective. The volunteer committee members were able to lean upon the trusted consultants to the Technology Fund to ensure the items requested in the proposals were needed and manageable by the agencies.

In addition, members can review proposals at their leisure from virtually anywhere and at anytime without having paperwork handy. On-line discussion boards help committee members maximize their time, become better prepared, and make well-informed decisions by giving them the ability to exchange ideas issues prior to the formal presentation. In several cases involving smaller projects under $25,000, committee members have been able to bypass the presentation stage entirely by conducting their due diligence completely on-line and making their recommendations. This has not only saved monthly meeting time, but also allowed the committee to move more projects through the process in the same amount of time.

In today’s economy, non-profits like UWCI face a difficult challenge of sustaining volunteer involvement. For busy executives volunteering their valuable time, the improvements have eliminated many of the constraints of a traditional document-based process. Keeping members well-informed with a firm understanding of exact agenda items to be discussed and in position to get “right down to business” has helped maintain continuity between monthly meetings. For the Technology Fund, this has translated into consistent, high monthly attendance from its volunteer members.

Hired as director of the Capital Fund based of his extensive experience in real estate management and construction, Bob admits being a technology novice. Like anyone who is faced by change, he didn’t know what to expect and was a bit intimidated seeing the process in place. “This (technology) was not my field and I was going to enter the 21st century leaping and screaming like so many do,” commented Bob. “After using it the first few times, I felt very comfortable with it. Now, I really, really enjoy it and it does make my life easier as a staff member of this organization.”

Despite the success with the Technology Fund, Bob realizes that further improvements can be made. “Right now, we still need hard-copy applications and signatures which means that manual copying and mailing of some materials has to be done. That, and not all of the agencies have full email capabilities or methods for inputting hard-copy documents or plans into the system, but it’s something we’re hoping to change.” In the future, Bob anticipates on-line application forms, digital signatures, and more widespread use of technology implemented throughout the agencies.

However, if there’s any question on how effective the change has been, one only need to look at Bob’s virtually paper-free desk. Even though UWCI requires all original documents such as applications and related paperwork to be maintained, the effects that on-line technology has made on the Technology Fund process is evident. “Having a single on-line location where the committee members can access the documents and info they need, share thoughts and discussions with fellow members and UWCI staff on each project proposal, check schedules, and monitor progress has been a huge asset and timesaver.”

Looking forward, Bob foresees the adoption of similar processes being used throughout the organization and with other funds. He’s now so comfortable with the technology and the advantages it has to offer that, when other agencies approach him with similar process issues, he’s eager to demonstrate the benefits to them. And, if somehow UWCI can help these other agencies find the funding for it, the technology will be a great tool for them to improve their processes and service.