Information resources and technologies provider ProQuest, US, has announced that its innovative Pivot service, a web-based resource that identifies active sources of funding and matches them with researchers in one step, has enhanced its "recommender service" to make it easier for users to zero in on the best opportunities and collaborators. Users can now apply facets such as funding type, requirements, and others that filter and sort the results list with greater precision.
The enhancement is one of a variety of new features that boost the ability to win grants and awards for university-based research. Other enhancements include broadened accessibility, making Pivot 508 compliant, and a ‘Curate’ feature that enables Pivot administrators to build custom lists of opportunities.
Introduced in late 2011, Pivot combines COS Funding Opportunities - a comprehensive, global source of funding - and the acclaimed profiles in COS Scholar Universe to create a unique source for matching financial support to researchers and partners. Used by more than 350 universities worldwide, Pivot provides a single online location for faculty, research administrators, managers and research development professionals to use for all funding opportunity searches, even those that rely on institution-specific data.
At the heart of Pivot's usefulness is its recommender service, which matches funding and potential collaborators. With the addition of new facets for filtering and sorting, the results list can now be more precisely matched to the university’s faculty. Likewise, potential collaborators can be honed to better fit the opportunity. Further, Pivot administrators can create lists based on custom topics that are easy to share with researchers through a permalink URL. Because they are customised by users, these "curated" lists are more targeted and complete than saved searches. Though a curated list may expand or contract, there is no need to update the link as it will take users to the most current version of the list.
Pivot is now also accessible to a broader range of users. The service has been reviewed and revised to meet the accessibility standards: Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act and Level A and AA of the WAI Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. Organisations that require this level of accessibility support will find information on the new Accessibility page, which can be accessed from a link in the footer of all Pivot pages.
