How better systems led to foundation-wide collaboration, meaningful grantee relationships, organizational resiliency, and greater impact.
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The Summit Foundation makes grants to foster the health and well-being of the planet, its people, and the natural environment. In 2019, the organization diagnosed a variety of inefficiencies in its grantmaking process tied directly to its Grant Management System (GMS). Their outgoing Director of Grants Management reported that they felt siloed as they were the sole user in the system. This presented significant challenges to foundation-wide collaboration, transparency, and financial planning.
Identifying the need for systems that could support their organizational goal for efficiency in grantmaking, The Summit Foundation set out to evaluate and purchase a new GMS. They wanted a GMS that could support a more streamlined, equitable, and trust-based approach to grantmaking. Their primary requirement was a GMS that grantmaking staff across departments could use and a tool that would serve as a central source of truth for their entire organization.
The search for a new GMS eventually led them to GivingData, which they initially chose for its ease of use, support of users in every department, and tools that enable trust-based approaches to philanthropy. Over time, the foundation also came to appreciate features in GivingData that improved organizational resiliency through long-term financial planning and helped the foundation empower grantees through multi-year grants.