How a top-20 research university put federal sub-awards on its first cloud app

A top-20 research university had no system of record for federal grant sub-awards: budgets, cost-share, FFATA reporting and contracts lived in silos. ArchitectNow designed a .NET and Angular platform containerized on Azure Kubernetes Service with Azure SQL Database, a documented central API, single sign-on through the university's identity provider and full accessibility. It was the university's first cloud application and became the pattern for those that followed.

• Client. A top-20 research university.
• Industry. Higher education, research administration.
• Services. Custom platform design and delivery, containerization on Azure Kubernetes Service, identity integration, accessibility, CI/CD.
• Microsoft stack. Azure Kubernetes Service, Azure SQL Database, .NET and Angular, a central API with OpenAPI documentation, Azure DevOps with a move to GitHub Actions for CI/CD.
• Results. The university's first cloud-native application, still in production years later and now supported by the university's own team. The reference architecture for the enterprise applications that followed. Fully accessible UI and single sign-on through the university's identity provider.

What problem did the university need to solve?

Research universities pass federal grant money to partner institutions through sub-awards, and every sub-award carries budgets, cost-share, notices of award, FFATA reporting obligations, amendments and renewals. At this university there was no real system of record for any of it. Budgets and compliance lived in silos. Contracts were generated by hand. Approvals were hard to audit.

The harder part was that this would be the university's first cloud application. Identity, accessibility and cloud operations were all new ground at once.

How did ArchitectNow approach it?

A first cloud app sets the pattern for every app after it, whether anyone intends that or not. So ArchitectNow designed this one as if it would be copied, which it was.

That meant a central API with proper OpenAPI documentation rather than logic scattered through screens. Containers on Azure Kubernetes Service rather than a VM, so the deployment model would hold up as the portfolio grew. Integration with the university's own identity provider rather than a separate login. And full accessibility, because a public-facing research university cannot ship an internal system that some of its staff cannot use.

What did ArchitectNow deliver?

The sub-award platform. A custom .NET and Angular application covering sub-award setup, budgets and cost-share, notices of award, FFATA compliance reporting, approval workflows, amendments and renewals, and contract generation and distribution.

Cloud-native from the start. Containerized on Azure Kubernetes Service with Azure SQL Database as the system of record and a central API documented with Swagger and OpenAPI.

Identity and access. Single sign-on through the university's identity provider, with a fully accessible interface.

Delivery pipeline. CI/CD on Azure DevOps, since moved to GitHub Actions.

What changed for the university?

Designed and delivered in 2018 and 2019, the platform is still in production and is now supported by the university's own team. It became the reference architecture for the university's next application, a rebuild of a decades-old tuition program, and for the enterprise applications that came after.

Sub-award administration now has a system of record with auditable approvals and generated contracts, where it had spreadsheets and silos before.

Before. Sub-award budgets, cost-share and FFATA compliance in silos, contracts generated by hand, approvals that were hard to audit, and no cloud application anywhere at the university.

After. A single system of record on Azure Kubernetes Service and Azure SQL Database with auditable approvals and generated contracts, delivered in 2018 and 2019 and still in production, supported by the university's own team, and the reference architecture for its later enterprise applications.

Questions buyers ask

How do you build a grant sub-award management system?

Model the sub-award lifecycle end to end (setup, budgets, cost-share, notices of award, FFATA reporting, approvals, amendments, renewals, contracts) and put it behind a central API so every workflow shares one source of truth. This university's platform runs as a .NET and Angular application on Azure Kubernetes Service with Azure SQL Database.

What should a university's first cloud application look like?

Like a template. Containers on Azure Kubernetes Service, a documented central API, integration with the university's identity provider, accessibility built in, and CI/CD from day one. This university's first cloud app became the pattern for every enterprise application that followed.

Can a university's internal team take over an application a partner delivered?

Yes, and that's the goal. This platform has been supported by the university's own team for years. ArchitectNow designs applications the client can run, and documented APIs, standard containers and a clean pipeline are what make the handoff hold.

Does the platform meet accessibility requirements?

Yes. The interface was delivered fully accessible, which was a requirement of the engagement rather than an afterthought.

Next step

If a critical process at your institution still lives in spreadsheets and hand-built contracts, the first cloud application is the one to get right. ArchitectNow designs and delivers AI and cloud solutions on the Microsoft stack, and we design first apps to be copied. See our custom technology work, or get in touch. Related: How a top-20 research university rebuilt a decades-old tuition program on AKS. ArchitectNow is a Microsoft Solutions Partner with four designations and the AI Apps on Microsoft Azure Specialization.