Colorado State University Case Study

Problem: Returning to Research Post COVID-19

After shutting down due to COVID-19 in April 2020, the Colorado State University (CSU) research department needed a way to safely return to research activities. The research department needed a solution that could help them with the following:

• Accept requests to return to research
• Fairly prioritize requests
• Approve requests
• Notify those who’ve been approved or otherwise
  

The timeline for delivery? As soon as possible. 

Leadership turned the request over to the research department’s IT, expecting to see a process proposal weeks later.

Solution: A Forms Automation Solution

The research department’s IT turned to Kuali Build, a forms automation platform.

In 30 minutes, the IT group delivered a form and workflow that could be used to facilitate a safe return to research activities. Leaders and researchers alike were thrilled to see a solution in production so quickly!

Results: Fast and Scalable Automated Forms

Using Kuali Build, CSU’s research department had a solution to return to research that met all the criteria set by leadership and could be delivered faster than expected.  

Not only did Kuali Build facilitate a quick solution, but it also passed the scalability test. When CSU used it to allow for opting out of COVID-19 testing, the form received thousands of submissions within minutes.  

Ease of Use

CSU also benefits from Kuali Build’s usability. Departments across the institution, from accounting to marketing to research administration, can easily learn how to navigate it. Though CSU has enterprise licenses with other form automation vendors, none are as widely adopted as Kuali Build.

“Kuali Build is so ridiculously easy to use. I would even call it playful. People are drawn to it.” - Cory Hudson, Database Reporting, Research Services, Colorado State University

The Future of Kuali Build at CSU

Hudson and the IT team are looking forward to continued use of Kuali Build. Most notably, Hudson anticipates widespread adoption of Kuali Build across the institution in the coming years. Because CSU is engaged with other products in the Kuali suite, such as Kuali Financials and Kuali Research, Kuali Build can eventually scale to serve the whole institution with deeply intertwined integrations.

Interested in learning more about how to automate paper and PDF processes at your institution? Take a closer look at what you can build with our form builder and workflow automation software.