Online Fund Portal FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions About the {Online Fund Portal}
The Online Fund Portal is meant to be used by any of these authorized decision maker(s) of a fund:
• original Donor(s)
• individual(s) appointed as Successors to the original Donor(s)
• appointed Committee Member(s), in the case of a committee
• individual(s) appointed as per their job role, in the case of an agency
The Donors, Successors, Committee or Staff Members described above are known as “Fund Advisors” in the Online Fund Portal.
The Online Fund Portal is an online fund management tool for South Saskatchewan Community Foundation (SSCF) Fund Advisors. The Portal offers you fast, efficient and convenient service as a value add-on to the support already provided to you by SSCF. The Online Fund Portal is hosted online in a cloud environment on our website – giving you access to your information 24 hours-a-day.
The Online Fund Portal enables you to:
• review and manage fund activity and balances – just like you would when you bank, purchase, pay bills or donate online.
• recommend grants
• review, print or save fund activity reports from 2020 onwards.
• review, print or save gratitude letters or invitations
• support environmental efforts towards reducing paper and printing resources, as well as financial efforts to reduce mailing costs
You may visit the Online Fund Portal as often as you wish to review your grant recommendation status or use any of the other tools available to you. We recommend visiting somewhat frequently in case there are invitations or other items in your files to review.
The Online Fund Portal is a value-added donor opportunity that was created when SSCF adopted a community relationship management (CRM) technology business solution.
The CRM fully integrates the SSCF’s internal fund, event and grant management functions to give a complete picture of what is happening at SSCF. In using the CRM, the SSCF is both a more efficient and a more responsive organization for your needs.
The CRM is created and supported by our technology partner, Foundant Technologies, who specializes in community foundations and the unique needs of its donors, and is the CRM of choice of several other Canadian Community Foundations.
You can opt-out of the Online Fund Portal by emailing us at info@sscf.ca. However, we are confident that with our ongoing support you will find the Portal to be efficient, convenient, responsive and timely to your needs.
This site and your private information are fully secured with the latest technologies and practices. Any activity and documents are visible to you and SSCF staff only.
In addition, just like prior to the Online Fund Portal, anonymity is protected:
• An authorized Fund Advisor(s) for an anonymous fund, along with SSCF staff, are the only ones with Online Fund Portal access to fund information.
• Anonymous donations or grants made to a fund retain anonymity when reviewed by a Fund Advisor of the recipient fund. Only the date of the donation/grant, the donation/grant amount and purpose (if one is specified) is visible in the recipient Online Fund Portal.
Frequently Asked Questions About {Access}
If you are the authorized Fund Advisor you will have access to the Online Fund Portal.
• A Co-Fund Advisor is someone who shares decision-making authority with another person, such as a spouse, a committee member or another staff member. If you are a Co-Fund Advisor, both of you will have access to the Online Fund Portal. However, each of you must have a different email in order to receive your login information. Our system does not permit multiple users to have the same email, and from a security perspective it is recommended you do not share login credentials.
• If you are a Fund Advisor acting on behalf of a committee or an agency, you are the person authorized to make decisions about grant recommendations on behalf of the committee or agency. The SSCF will consider your recommendations as being made with the committee’s or agency’s approval. To support your grant recommendation, you can attach committee minutes or other documentation, as required.
• Committees and Agency boards have the responsibility to notify the SSCF in a timely manner of a change in Fund Advisors. Once SSCF has written notice of the personnel change, it will transfer Online Fund Portal access rights to the new person(s) identified and invite the new Fund Advisor(s) to an orientation.
If you have a fund at the SSCF, contact the SSCF to let them know you are interested in accessing the Online Fund Portal. SSCF will email you a login name and a link to access your personal Portal. Click the link in your email and you will be prompted to create your own password to the Portal site. Once your password is created, the Login page appears and you can enter your user name and password to log in.
Once you have set your password, you can log in at anytime by visiting the Online Fund Portal login on our website.
Check your spam or junk folder for an email from SSCF with the email “noreply@fcsuite.com”. Your Online Fund Portal link is essential for setting up your password and entering the site. If it hasn’t arrived within an hour, please contact us so that we can resend the information you will need to get up-and-going. To contact us, do not click reply as we will not receive your email. Instead, use any of the following: 306-751-4756 (toll free 1- 877-751-4756), email info@sscf.ca or visit the Contact Us page on our website.
The system will lock you out after five unsuccessful login attempts, but you can reset your password at any time on the Online Fund Portal login page by clicking “Forgot Password”. Enter your username and click the “Reset Password” button. Your username is the email that we have on file as being your primary email. Instructions to reset your password will be sent to your primary email address on file. If you still need assistance, please contact us.
The Online Fund Portal is a cloud-based system which means it has full compatibility on a wide-range of devices and browsers. That being said, the Google Chrome browser is more effective than the Internet Explorer or Edge browsers.
To create a fund with SSCF, please contact us at 306-751-4756 (toll free 1-877-751-4756) or info@sscf.ca.
Frequently Asked Questions About {Grant Recommendations}
Balances are confirmed to you early in the new fiscal year. The Portal uses the term “Available Cash” or “Spendable Balances” to describe what was previously known to you as Available Distribution or Granting Amounts. As soon as your balances are confirmed you can use the Online Fund Portal to make your grant recommendations.
There are 4 reasons why you cannot make an online grant recommendation:
1. The balances have not yet been confirmed to you.
2. The fund you are interacting with is a Designated Fund. Because the fund already provides stable and lasting support to a specific registered charitiy (s) and/or qualified donee(s) with a pre-determined amount or percentage, the ability to make a grant recommendation is not needed.3. The grant amount entered is less than $200.00.
4. Your fund may not be ready for Grant Recommendations:
i. the donation to create a fund is eligible for disbursement after one full calendar year has passed. For example, a fund that started in November of 2019 can grant in January of 2021.
ii. a fund must have a $10,000 balance prior to being eligible to grant.
1. Consider granting to the SSCF Smart & Caring Fund. SSCF research like Vital Signs and 50 Vital Community Conversations are used as guides by the Smart & Caring Committee in making its grant recommendations.
2. We are pleased to research charities that fit with your mission. If you are interested in further information or simply want to explore these options, please contact us.
Unspent balances at the end of the year return to the fund and contribute to its growth.
The Online Fund Portal posts the grant status at each stage of the grant recommendation.
Grant recommendations are typically processed within 2 weeks following receipt of your recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions About {Donations}
Yes, absolutely! Click “Donate” in the top right-hand corner of the Online Fund Portal to go to the Donate page or click on the donate button on the SSCF website home page.
If you want to donate online to your specific fund:
1. Choose the “general” fund option.
2. Use the optional note field titled “Message for the South Saskatchewan Community Foundation Inc.” to include a note to us to direct your online donation to your fund.
Please remember that:
• Donations appear on your Fund Donations page when SSCF has processed the transaction.
• Donations to an existing fund, online or otherwise,
- increase the amount to distribute or grant January 1 of the next year.
- are eligible for disbursement in the following fiscal year. For example, a donation made to an existing fund in November of 2019 can grant in January of 2020
• Donations to create a new fund are eligible for disbursement after a year has passed. For example, a donation made to create a fund in November of 2019 can grant in January of 2021.
Wire transfers, stock donations and cheque donations are processed through the SSCF office. For stock or wire transfer instructions, please contact us.
{For Further Information or Help}
There are a number of ways to get the information you need:
1. Review the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and/or the How to use the Online Fund Portal located on the SSCF website.
2. Call us at 306-751-4756 (toll free 1-877-751-4756)
3. Email us at info@sscf.ca or visit our website for a full staff directory to contact any member of our team.
4. Drop by our office at 1911 Broad St. (Path Cowork – Basecamp) in Regina for assistance at a mutually convenient time – you could even bring your electronic device with you, if you would like. We could also meet at a location of your choosing, should that be more convenient.
We’re Here To Help!
Share with us your goals for your investments and we help you choose the right fund vehicle to make your dream a reality.”