What our users say

Case studies

Other testimonials

"Our experience of using ResearchConnect is very good. The database is updated constantly on a daily basis, is very user-friendly, and includes background information on funding programmes and policies. ResearchConnect has already notified us of funding programmes of which we were not already aware.

The database also enables us to carry out personal funding searches for researchers and students, which we use to develop their personal funding strategy and to make it even more attractive to come to our university to work and study."

"As the subscription with our existing funding opportunities provider was coming to an end, we decided to look at other products available in the marketplace. There were two key criteria driving our selection process. First, as a research-intensive university, we needed a product that would make it easy to search for, and share, funding opportunities with our academic colleagues. Second, we wanted a provider which was responsive to the changing and varied nature of the funding landscape, who actively works with their user base to improve and enhance their service.

We trialled GrantFinder 4 Education and were particularly impressed by how intuitive the system's interface was to use and how the individual user experience could be tailored according to need. At the end of the trial, Durham chose to subscribe to all 3 of the GrantFinder 4 Education platforms because of the value they add to our research applications and their excellent value for money.

Throughout the trial period, Idox consistently provided excellent customer support and showed themselves to be keen to work with us as we develop our research systems. We look forward to forging a close working partnership with Idox and to the possibilities for growth and development in the future."

"We took the decision to put out a tender for an online research funding opportunities tool following an internal survey of requirements, and the expiration of our subscription to another provider. Our key criteria were capability to search for up-to-date funding opportunities, sharing of information across defined groups and the wider communities at UCL, and to deliver these in a cost-effective manner. ResearchConnect delivered on these key properties.

"As we move forward in developing our research management information systems, flexibility in the integration of funding opportunities tools into our systems is of fundamental importance. Here again, Idox indicated their willingness to work with us to explore our requirements and to support the development of this integration."

"Securing external research funding will continue to be instrumental in order to sustain and further develop the research environment at UB. ResearchConnect offers the opportunity to find many national and international sources for funding across relevant research disciplines.

Weighing heavily in our evaluation of the database was the interface, allowing for quick and easy searching. Especially postdoctoral fellowships and travel grants are easily identified. The possibility of saving and sharing successful searches between individuals and research groups is anticipated to be particularly useful in our continued implementation of the database. Setting up customised email alerts is another function that ensures regular, updated feedback from the database.

Idox' support and advice on how to use the tool and how to implement it in the organization has been much valued by researchers and administrators alike."

"In a country with a very strong currency and in a region where industrial, export-oriented activities are crucial for the economic development, it is essential to identify tailored funding opportunities for research and innovation that will contribute to maintaining and enhancing competitiveness. This holds true for the academic but also for the industrial sector and in particular SMEs. The ResearchConnect service helps us, the Research and Innovation Department of our University, to discover new and interesting funding opportunities to be shared with the researchers of our institution and also the private sector in our region."

"As our previous provider's funding information service became ever less cost-effective – a great concern when the University has to ensure value for money in all that it does – we decided to seek a new provider. Our ideal provider was one that could deliver timely, accurate funding information, had a keen eye for product development, and offered excellent support before, during and after implementation – all in a way that made good economic sense for us. We expected to have to compromise on these requirements – but with ResearchConnect, we found exactly what we were looking for."

"The ResearchConnect service facilitates the daily work of the Pre-Award Research Office by offering a complete and intuitive interface."

"Within a short time I had identified three new possible sources of funding. The input of relevant information for a search is very well streamlined and it's also very useful that the system saves searches and you can restore your previous search with one click on the next visit. Overall, the system is very easy to use and clearly a useful resource."

"I found ResearchConnect very helpful. It's extremely user friendly with lots of avenues to source help. Once the search templates or groups were set up there was very little else work involved. In addition, I was constantly updated with relevant grant and conference opportunities based on the information I had provided at the start."

"I wanted to see if such an all-in-one system existed and if it would save time and be user friendly. This system did both. It's an all-in-one tool, excellent resource."

"The ResearchConnect interface is user friendly for the Research Support Office. The possibility to save searches in PDF documents and share them with colleagues or external beneficiaries is also extremely useful for our day-to-day research work."

"Very satisfied with ResearchConnect – I think that the added value of this product, besides saving time, is the additional information about specific calls that you cannot find elsewhere."

"As a previous Times Higher Education Outstanding Research Management Team of the Year we recognise the value of up-to-the minute and accurate funding information. When evaluating all available services, we chose GrantFinder 4 Education and ResearchConnect for its breadth of grants across both research and development and wider university projects. Access to all the funding opportunities we need in one place."

"After using PIVOT for a number of years our contract was coming up for renewal. We decided to look at the current market provision as we did not feel the service we had was meeting the needs of our researchers. We requested a trial of *Research (formerly known as ResearchResearch), a system we had previously used, as well as a demonstration of GrantFinder 4 Education, being particularly drawn to the new ResearchConnect model. After both a trial and a meeting with the team we were convinced that this was the system for us – the 3-module package demonstrated not only met our needs in terms of purely academic funding (ResearchConnect), but also the opportunities in terms of collaboration and joined-up working provided by GrantFinder.

We have recently taken the decision to renew our GrantFinder 4 Education licence for a third successive year as we remain impressed by the breadth of content found across the funding database, and find the tools available for sharing and acting on opportunities intuitive and easily navigable. The number of academic staff actively engaged with the platform continues to grow, with analytics of use identifying identification of large scheme opportunities alongside more localised smaller pots of funding through the system. Centrally we are using the service to horizon scan and produce briefings for future funding opportunities and disseminate opportunities in a much more targeted manner. Feedback is highly positive as we continue to roll the system out across our academic community."

"We found the coverage of research funding calls and opportunities on ResearchConnect to be excellent, and this was a key factor in our decision to take a subscription.

We have found ResearchConnect to be easy and intuitive to use, combining a user-friendly interface with useful features and functionality for reports, searches and individual/group email alerts.

We now use ResearchConnect to disseminate a weekly bulletin of new funding calls across our university, and to run tailored funding searches for our academics and research groups."

"Our decision to subscribe to GrantFinder 4 Education and ResearchConnect was influenced by the wide range of content available through the system, its ease of use, presentation of information and the ability to share information quickly and easily. Users are benefitting in a variety of ways from the system's functionality and flexibility of use, as well as the range of opportunities contained within it, from local to EU level and beyond."

"GrantFinder and ResearchConnect provide me with an efficient and effective way to identify funding opportunities. They cover the full scope of the Charity's work whether that's looking for research funding or funding for a wide range of projects. This keeps us updated with the latest thinking – invaluable at all levels of the organisation.

I would like to mention in particular the benefits of ResearchConnect and sharing information with colleagues. I work closely with the Research and Innovation Directorate and have a particular focus on innovative research – which doesn't attract any statutory funding and, therefore, needs to identify other sources of funding. Having this tool has helped me to build relationships with clinicians, research leads and others, and will mean more colleagues will have the opportunity to source funding.

The Research Help Desk – just one of the many supports available to us – has been great and really helpful. It has given me the assurance that timely answers are only a phone call or email away."

"Finding funding sources was efficient and eased by a high-quality interface."