Grant Management systems enable the administration of grants throughout their entire lifecycles. Functions include, but are not limited to, processing grant applications, assessment of eligibility, management of grant funding, tracking of grants and grant programs, auditing, and reporting. These functions are common across many government agencies, and many solutions are highly adaptable.
Grants are administered by responsible agencies following the Commonwealth Grants Rules and Guidelines 2017 (CGRGs). CGRGs contain the key legislative policy requirements and explain the better practices and principles of grants administration.
Publish on GrantConnect
GrantConnect is the centralised location for publishing Australian Government grant opportunities and awards. The system contains information that can be used to search for new grant opportunities, find out who has been awarded grants, and watch for future programs. It is a requirement of the CGRGs that grant opportunities are published on GrantConnect, and that Agencies report (on GrantConnect) information on grants no later than twenty-one calendar days after the grant agreement for the grant takes effect.
Reuse existing designs, patterns, and investment
In addition to GrantConnect, the Commonwealth has established two centralised grants hubs to be operated as shared service arrangements, providing grants administration services to client entities. These hubs increase the consistency in the administration and management of grants to support more joined up and seamless government services, reduce systems risk in the application of proven designs and achieve financial efficiencies through economies of scale. The two central grant hubs are:
- Community Grants Hub: Administers mainly community-based grants on behalf of Australian Government departments, agencies, and organisations.
- Business Grants Hub: Administers mainly business-based grants on behalf of Australian Government departments, agencies, and organisations.
Under the shared service arrangements, client agencies are responsible for grant policy and the development of grant programs, while the hubs are responsible for administering grant programs at the direction of policy owners and consistent with the requirements of the CGRGs.
Agencies should onboard to the appropriate grant hubs except where there is a specific reason to not do so. For enquiries relating to Commonwealth grants administration arrangements and the relevant estimates memorandum, please contact grantsadmin@finance.gov.au.
In addition to the grant hubs, several alternative technology solutions which represent candidacy for future consolidation exist in the Commonwealth landscape. In instances where onboarding to the grants hubs is not mandatory as above and represents program risk due to onboarding timeframes or technical interoperability complexities, these alternatives represent an option for achieving consistency with existing practices that will simplify future consolidation. Most available solutions are highly configurable and can support numerous variances in:
- Process
- Workflow
- Data collection template
Build for Reuse
Where specific requirements have been defined and assessed against previous investment, and reuse has not been determined viable, agencies should provide evidence of which systems across government have been investigated and demonstrate how any new investment may be extensible and operationalised for reuse.
Implementing a Grant Management system with broad applicability across agencies is critical for reducing risk, increasing efficiency, and supporting consistent implementation of grant programs across government.
Any new system should be designed with a modular and scalable architecture, allowing for future integration into other agency structures. Emphasising interoperability and standardisation in technologies and data formats ensures adaptability across different agencies. Additionally, user-friendly interfaces and comprehensive documentation should be incorporated to facilitate ease of implementation and use. This will allow for a streamlining of processes and promotes consistency across agencies.
Engage the Department of Finance
When wanting to develop their own Grant Management platform, Non-corporate Commonwealth Entities (NCEs) should contact the Department of Finance in the first instance.
For all enquiries relating to Grant Management please visit Grants - getting started | Department of Finance.