Case Study
Department of Children, Youth and Their Families
The Client
San Francisco’s Department of Children, Youth and Their Families (DCYF) provides $35 million in annual funding to over 200 community organizations and city departments—funding that supports early childhood development, academic enhancement, health, employment and cultural enrichment programs. DCYF’s goals are defined in a Children’s Services Plan, which is updated periodically with data about the city’s youth and the services available to them.
The Challenge
In 1997, DCYF decided to implement a computerized grant-management system to reduce the volume of paperwork and bring greater consistency to their grant-management process. The system had to collect information in several formats: narrative, statistical and financial. “We needed to track details of each grant and then bring the data together for an aggregate view of the fund,” said Shawn Ewing, DCYF IT Manager.
In the mid-1990s, San Francisco was also on the front edge of Internet technology. As a result, the Department sought a web-based application that could serve as a collaborative work environment. The goal was a win-win outcome, in which grantees would spend less time reporting and DCYF would gather data in a more usable format.
The Solution
Working with DCYF staff, Cityspan developed a custom, web-based solution configured to include many of the Department’s existing grant forms, reports and accounting practices. Using the system, the Department now begins each grant cycle by requiring every grantee to submit an online Annual Work Plan, which includes contact information, service locations, types of services to be provided, client demographics and methods used to evaluate outcomes. The Department then adds a budget and set of fiscal tracking forms.
Once the Annual Work Plan is complete, grantees submit reports on a monthly and quarterly basis. Monthly reports include narrative descriptions of program activities, the number and types of services provided and a financial report that serves as an online invoice. On a quarterly basis, grantees report progress toward identified outcomes and give examples of best practices. At year-end, the software combines these reports into an overall summary of fund performance.
Benefits and Results
Cityspan’s solution has allowed DCYF to reduce the resources allocated to document management and focus instead on improving the quality of the services it funds. In the past, when changes in data collection required printing new forms, it would take time before old paper versions were out of the system. The online solution allowed the Department to revise and improve its requirements much more quickly and at a lower cost. The focus has shifted to content, rather than how forms will be updated and delivered. As a result, DCYF has increased it ability to measure and evaluate grantee performance and target funds to specific activities and outcomes.
Grantees have also benefited from the efficiency of paperless transactions. Program and financial reports are now easier to complete and the turnaround time for expense reimbursements has been cut in half. Grantees frequently recommend the system to other funders, whose outdated paper systems continue to prove the advantages of web-based document management.