How Pima Community College Increased Grant Funding

Grant funding is essential for many colleges, covering everything from student support services to cutting-edge research. Yet securing these funds is not as simple as submitting a proposal and waiting for approval. The process requires meticulous contract management, seamless collaboration, and strict deadline tracking.

Without the right systems in place, institutions risk missing out on crucial funding due to slow approvals, lost documents, or misaligned teams. Pima Community College (PCC) experienced this firsthand—until they implemented a cloud-based contract management software that transformed their approach.

This article explores the key challenges in grant and contract management, the impact of workflow inefficiencies, and how institutions like PCC are overcoming these obstacles to secure more funding.

Why inefficient contract management puts funding at risk

Colleges rely on grants for millions of dollars in annual funding, but outdated contract management processes introduce roadblocks that jeopardize these opportunities. Common issues include:

• Scattered communication: Stakeholders rely on email chains that are difficult to track, leading to lost information and delays.
• Approval bottlenecks: Legal teams, financial services, and procurement often work in silos, causing contract reviews to stall.
• Lack of visibility: Without a clear contract storage system, teams struggle to see where contracts stand, leading to missed deadlines.

At PCC, these issues resulted in lost funding opportunities. With 20% of its annual budget dependent on grants, the college needed a way to streamline the process and keep teams aligned.

How a centralized CLM system changes the game

To eliminate these inefficiencies, PCC adopted Concord, an AI-powered contract management software that transformed their workflows. The switch from email-based processes to a centralized system had immediate benefits:

1. Clearer communication and collaboration

Instead of chasing approvals via email, stakeholders—from academic divisions to financial services—collaborated directly within Concord. The platform’s discussion tab allowed teams to track conversations, eliminating confusion and misalignment.

“It gives us the ability to have those discussions right in the discussion tab,” said Julie Delayo, Executive Director for Sponsored Programs, Grants, and Contracts at PCC. “And it sends out emails so everybody stays in the loop.”

2. Faster approvals and reduced bottlenecks

Legal and financial teams often slow down grant applications due to lengthy review cycles. With Concord, PCC was able to speed up these approvals by providing real-time visibility into contract status and automating notifications for pending tasks.

This change alone made a significant difference—General Counsel reviews that once caused delays were now handled more efficiently, allowing grant applications to move forward faster.

3. Improved deadline tracking

Missing a deadline can mean missing out on funding. With a CLM system in place, PCC had better tracking mechanisms for due dates and approval timelines, ensuring they met critical submission deadlines.

4. Role-based access for security and efficiency

Grant management involves multiple stakeholders, each needing different levels of access. With Concord’s flexible permissions, PCC assigned tailored access to departments without compromising security.

“You can give somebody full view who needs access to all contracts,” Delayo noted, “and then you can narrow it down to a department.”

The impact: More funding, fewer headaches

With an optimized contract workflow, PCC saw immediate improvements:

• More successful grant applications – The first year of using Concord resulted in a significant increase in secured funding.
• Faster approvals – The time required to get legal and financial sign-offs dropped substantially.
• Better contract oversight – Centralized tracking allowed for proactive management and improved compliance.

These improvements strengthened PCC’s ability to secure funding and manage contracts efficiently, directly benefiting students and faculty.

What other institutions can learn

PCC’s experience highlights a critical lesson: colleges that rely on grants need modern contract management tools to stay competitive.
Institutions looking to optimize their processes should focus on:

• Moving beyond email for approvals and discussions – A centralized CLM platform keeps everything in one place.
• Increasing visibility into workflows – Real-time tracking prevents bottlenecks and missed deadlines.
• Automating notifications – Keeping stakeholders informed reduces the need for manual follow-ups.
• Setting up role-based access – Ensuring the right people see the right documents improves security and efficiency.

By adopting smarter contract management practices, colleges can maximize their funding opportunities and operate more efficiently—just as PCC did.

For institutions looking to secure more grants and simplify their processes, investing in a CLM system is no longer optional—it’s essential.