Instrumentl is committed to being your all-in-one platform for the full grant lifecycle — this includes post-award management! We know Grant Managers and Program Teams need a streamlined way to monitor grant finances, which is why we offer Budget Spenddown Tracking.

Note: Budget Spenddown Tracking is a feature exclusive to the Professional and Advanced Plans. You can learn more about the Professional Plan, specifically, here.

Simplify your organization's fundraising efforts from a financial perspective. Jump ahead to a section by clicking one of the three components of Budget Spenddown Tracking below:

I. Import expenses from your accounting software of choice

II. Stay within your budget by monitoring spending at the project and award levels

III. Break down your award spending with clear & organized expense categories

Instrumentl's Budget Spenddown feature is tailored for managing expenses through the grant management lens. You'll get a quick, at-a-glance view with key visuals and metrics. Increase financial visibility for grants, streamline communications and save valuable time!

Spenddown helps your organization spend within your award budget, reducing financial mismanagement risks:

Next, open up the opportunity from the Tracker or Awards view and navigate to the Financials tab:

Under Budget & Expenses, select + Add Expense Category:

This will trigger a window to pop-up on the right-hand side of your screen. Enter the category's Name (required field) as well as Description and Amount Budgeted (optional):

When finished, click Save at the bottom:

You can always add or make changes to the Description and Amount Budgeted later, as well as rename the category by selecting Edit from the Category Actions (three-dot dropdown menu) here:

If you wish to remove a category in your budget, you can select Delete from the Category Actions (three-dot dropdown menu) where the Edit button is as well.

Note: If you've added any expenses to a category, you will not be able to delete the category until you've first deleted the expense(s) or moved it/them to a different category.

Once you've created an expense category, you can select + Expense to enter an individual expense manually from the same Category Actions dropdown menu as Edit and Delete.

Alternatively, you can click + Add Expenses and choose the category afterwards:

Regardless of the button you choose to add an expense, you will see the following window appear from the right-hand side. Enter the Date and Amount as well as choose a Category (all required fields). You may also enter a Description and Transaction ID.

When finished, click Save:

Save time by adding expenses in bulk via importing a file of your expenses into Instrumentl. You can simply generate a CSV or Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) file from your current accounting software, such as QuickBooks, Sage, MIP, Financial Edge NXT, etc.

1. Change the opportunity's Status to Awarded and navigate to the 'Financials' tab, as outlined above.

2. Select + Add Expenses > Import expenses:

3. Open up the Expenses Import Template in Google Sheets > File > Make a copy

4. You can copy & paste data from your accounting software into this Google Sheets template and then download it as a .csv/.xlsx file, or you can first download the template as a .csv/.xlsx file and then enter your expense data into said file. Either way, your spreadsheet must be formatted as it is in the template.

5. When your spreadsheet is ready, select Select Expenses File > upload your CSV or Excel spreadsheet > select Next:

6. Select the Instrumentl Award from the dropdown menu and ensure your Amount Awarded is accurate > Next:

7. Map each category from your spreadsheet import to a Grant Expense Category in your Instrumentl award budget (Note: if you hadn't created categories yet, you can create new ones at this stage) > enter a Budgeted Amount for each category > select Import Expenses:

8. Check to make sure your spreadsheet was imported accurately. Mistakes? Start Over. All good? Go To Awards View:

Congrats! You've finished the import. Now go check the imported expense data in your award's Financials tab under Budget & Expenses:

In order to make any changes or to remove expenses from your Budget, expand the relevant Category via the "arrow" > open up the Expense Actions (three-dot menu) within the expense line > select Edit or Delete:

Adding an expense to the wrong category, or deciding later that to reorganize your budget are common scenarios. In such an event, you can move an expense from one category to another: select Edit > open the Category dropdown > select the new category for the expense > Save.

When you've navigated to the Awards View, your dashboard shows you how your Spenddown is tracking.

It defaults to show the percentage (%), but hovering over the statistic will show you both the amount available and total amount spent ($).

You'll also see both a Payments and Spenddown column in your Awards View, allowing you to track at a glance the payments received from the funder as well as the expenses you've made.

Click here to learn more about Payments Tracking.

Once you've clicked into the Financials tab for a specific opportunity in your Awards View (or Tracker), you'll see an overview of spending for that specific award.

Herein lies key information such as Award Amount, (Amount) Spent, (Amount) Remaining, as well as how you're tracking during the grant period as displayed on a graph. The On Track and Off Track icons are calculated based on the amount you've spent thus far and where you are in the grant period.

If you see Untracked, you need to add a Start and End date in the Overview tab.

Back in the Financials tab, scrolling down you'll find the breakdown of your budget organized by Category, ($) Budgeted, ($) Spent, ($) Remaining

Spenddown Tracking eliminates uncertainty around grant financials with intuitive visuals for smarter decision-making. We’re excited to continue improving Instrumentl's post-award management capabilities!

If you have any questions about our Budget Spenddown Tracking feature, simply message our friendly Support team via the chat bubble when logged into your account, or email us at hello@instrumentl.com.