DOL Streamlines $10B Grant Application Process

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has deployed a business process management (BPM) platform as part of its department-wide E-Grants initiative. DOL plans to streamline and automate its annual grant application funds process with the goal of reducing grant turn-around time by 20 percent.

The E-Grants solution was mandated by the President’s Management Agenda (PMA) and is sponsored and developed by the Employment and Training Administration (ETA). The ETA accounts for about 90 percent of all grants administered by DOL. The ETA is the first of the nine agencies within DOL to use the E-Grants solution. The ETA site went live in November 2006, and sites for the other agencies will be deployed within the next several months.

The E-Grants system interfaces with Grants.gov, the federal portal facilitating online grant advertising and public submission of electronic grant applications. The site is the single access point for more than 1,000 grant programs offered by federal agencies. Together, the E-Grants system and Grants.gov allow DOL to electronically issue grant announcements and process grants while providing potential grantees an electronic means to apply for grants and track their application as it is processed.

Using BPM platform BizFlow, by HandySoft Global Corp., DOL expects to meet the standards set forth by PMA and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) by significantly reducing grants turnaround time and accelerating the distribution of awards to qualified organizations. Previously, the ETA was using manual, paper-driven steps which were not as efficient or reliable.

The ETA chose BizFlow after a thorough vendor selection process. A project team then developed the E-Grants system and configured HandySoft’s flexible BPM platform to address DOL’s specific requirements.

For more information on Handysoft and BizFlow, click here.