Case Study: a Top-Rated Research University in Seattle streamlines award management with Bright Spectrum

Top-Rated Research University automates 15 grant workflows with Bright Spectrum

The Chemistry Finance Department at Top-Rated Research University faced a time-consuming and error-prone challenge, managing its complex grant award lifecycle through a series of disconnected Excel spreadsheets. This manual process required staff to hand off data, draft individual emails, and create project folders for each award. Bright Spectrum was engaged to develop an automated solution using Microsoft SharePoint and Power Automate.

Bright Spectrum architected and built a centralized Microsoft 365 solution featuring 15 Power Automate flows. This automated folder creation, sent notifications for deadlines, promoted data between tracking lists, and provided real-time visibility into the award status. The result was a largely automated process that replaced the manual spreadsheets, saving staff significant time and eliminating errors, while giving both staff and principal investigators transparent, real-time visibility.