Streamlining grant management for startups at UMASS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Client
MassAITC (Massachusetts AI and Technology Center for Connected Care in Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease) is a collaborative initiative funded by a $20 million grant from the National Institute on Aging, aimed at developing AI-enhanced technologies to improve in-home care for older adults and Alzheimer's patients.
It’s related to UMass Amherst and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
MassAITC selects pilot research projects for funding and had a process on Airtable for grant management.
The Challenge
- The Airtable base was a stack of spreadsheets with duplicated content. Ex: there were 5 places to update a project email address.
- Didn’t have time to set up the correct airtable structure.
- It was a manual/time consuming process following up and verifying if reporting data had been collected.
- 2 admin staff, currently 25 funded projects. Couldn’t scale with these manual efforts.
The Solution
- Connex migrated their Airtable structure to be more of a database with linked tables instead of disconnected spreadsheets.
- Connex built automations and forms, for reminders and data collection from mentors and funded programs.
- Connex improved the interface for reporting to key stakeholders.
The Results
- Mentors and Project leader satisfaction increased through more simple reporting process and reminders.
- Admin staff saved 1 hour a month per funded project allowing them to scale projects without adding staff.
- Admin staff understands Airtable better and can manage and grow the system.
