Welcome to Day 3 of the 30-Day Grant Readiness Challenge!
We want to avoid this scenario: A grant deadline is two hours away, and the only person with the login credentials for the foundation portal is on vacation (or worse, left the organization six months ago).
Institutional memory is a cornerstone of grant readiness. Day 3 will help you ensure that your team has secure, centralized access to every portal you use.
Why Password Management Matters
Losing access to a grant portal doesn’t just cause stress—it can lead to missed deadlines and lost funding. By centralizing your logins, you ensure that your grant-seeking strategy can continue regardless of staff turnover.
Today’s Challenge: Audit All Your Passwords
Take 15 minutes today to identify where you store credentials for:
- Federal Portals: SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and eRA Commons (for National Institutes of Health, if applicable for your organization).
- State & Local Systems: State-specific grants application and management sites.
- Foundation Portals: Foundant, Fluxx, and other private funder dashboards.
Pro Tip: Avoid the “sticky note” method. Use a secure, encrypted password manager or a protected internal drive that is accessible to at least two members of your leadership team.
Dive Deeper into Team Readiness
Managing passwords is part of a larger strategy for team success. Explore these existing resources to help:
- Read: Check out our blog Grant Writing Isn’t a Solo Sport. Learn how to build a collaborative environment where information (and access) is shared.
- Review: Visit our Grant Readiness Resources Page for more tips on organizing your digital workspace.
- Assess: If you haven’t yet, take the GRASP Tool Assessment to see how your organizational habits stack up against industry standards.
Join the Discussion
We want to hear from you! How does your team handle password security? Leave a note in the comments below and share your best tip.
Did you miss the launch of the 30 Day Grant Readiness Challenge? It isn’t too late for you to start! You can sign up at any point and it will start you back on Day 1!