Using our awards management system (CAMS)
Information and support for the CFI Awards Management System (CAMS)
The CFI Awards Management System (CAMS) is a secure online portal that allows universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions to apply for CFI funding and manage pre-award and post-award activities. CAMS is used by researchers, institutional administrators and reviewers assigned to assess the proposals.
Log in to CAMS. You can also log in by clicking the CAMS link found at the top of every page.
News, updates and planned outages
Keeping information safe is important to the CFI. To enhance the security of our CFI Awards Management System (CAMS), we have put in place two-step verification (also known as multifactor authentication). Users who have not already done so will be required to set up two-step verification on their next login. Users can use their username, alternate email address or phone number to facilitate the two-step verification process. In April 2025, we will add using an authenticator app as another option. This industry-standard security measure will ensure that information in CAMS is accessible only to appropriate users. For details please see Getting started with the CFI Awards Management System: An overview document for researchers.
CAMS access and guides by type of CAMS user
Researcher (project leader or team member)
Project leaders are those responsible for managing CFI projects on behalf of their institution.
Team members are those who will participate in a research project. They will contribute information to the proposal application.
Project leaders are individuals responsible for pre-award and post-award activities, which are conducted using CAMS. The access levels for project leaders related to post-award modules can be modified in CAMS by the liaison and account administrator of that institution.
Project leaders and team members who wish to create a CAMS account can do so from the CAMS link found at the top of every page of this website.
For more information on how to use CAMS, please consult the guides below. For assistance in using Canadian Common CV (CCV) for CAMS applications, please read the relevant guide below.
Guide for researchers:
Getting started with CAMS: An overview document for researchers
Assistance in using Canadian Common CV (CCV):
A guide to submitting your Canadian Common CV to the CFI
Reviewers
Reviewers are those who participate in the review process of proposals submitted to the CFI. They will use CAMS to access all the necessary review materials, and to submit their feedback and ratings.
The CFI staff will create a CAMS account for reviewers once they have accepted to participate in the review process. We manage the access privileges for reviewers to ensure they have the necessary information and documentation to assess the proposals assigned to them. Reviewers who already have a CAMS account, for example as a project leader, will have access to the review materials using their existing CAMS account.
Guide for reviewers:
Getting started with CAMS: An overview document for reviewers
Institutional administrators
Institutional administrators are those responsible for managing CFI projects on behalf of their institution. They are responsible for pre-award and post-award activities, which are conducted using CAMS.
Institutional administrators with an institutional agreement role
CAMS system privileges for an institution’s president, authorized signatories, liaisons and account administrators are assigned according to their responsibilities as indicated in the CFI institutional agreement. Upon receiving a signed institutional agreement, the CFI will update or create these administrator accounts in CAMS. Please note that some minimum privileges are automatically assigned to the account administrator, liaison and authorized signatories based on their role. These minimum privileges cannot be modified by the institution. However, the institution can assign additional privileges to these individuals, which can later be modified by the institution if required. When assigning privileges, institutions are encouraged to consider backup resources to ensure business continuity (i.e. when a given individual is away).
The institution must inform the CFI as soon as possible of any changes to the president, designated authorized signatories, account administrator and/or liaison by submitting a revised institutional agreement with appropriate signatures. The CFI will remove or update privileges for any individual who has been replaced or removed from the institutional agreement. For more details see the video below.
Institutional administrators without an institutional agreement role
The liaison and account administrator are responsible for setting appropriate privileges in CAMS for all institutional administrators in accordance with institutional control frameworks and practices. The institution thus accepts full responsibility for privilege delegation and its impact on data access and integrity.
Guide for institutional administrators:
Getting started with CAMS: An overview for institutional administrators
Managing CAMS user access at your institution
As the liaison and account administrator for your institution, you are responsible for setting up the appropriate access privileges in CAMS. You must do so in accordance with institutional control frameworks and practices. Only you can access the module to manage institutional agreements and access privileges for your institution.
CAMS users fall into three groups; administrators that have an institutional agreement role, administrators that don't have an institutional agreement role, and project leaders.
Let's start with the first group.
When we receive a signed institutional agreement, we update access privileges in CAMS based on your request, for the individuals listed in the agreement. If any of the listed individuals don't have a CAMS account, we create one for them. You can view your institutional agreements here and manage the privileges of each user that has an institutional agreement role. Please remember that some privileges cannot be revoked.
Now, to the second group of users. Your institution has full autonomy in managing the accounts and accesses of these users. You are responsible for setting their access privileges. You can assign a new privilege to the selected user or revoke a privilege they already have. If a user doesn't have a CAMS account, you can create one for them. You can also export a list of all users with privileges at your institution. Remember to review this list regularly, to ensure that user access remains appropriate.
Now, let's move on to the final group. Project leaders must create their own CAMS accounts online. When creating an account, the project leader will automatically be able to create an application and view CFI funding decisions in CAMS. As the CFI liaison and account administrator, you are responsible for managing the post-award access levels for project leaders. Here, you can determine the access for each post-award module. You can also decide whether or not project leaders can delegate the entry of project progress report data to another individual.
Remember that these access levels are applied to all project leaders at your institution, and cannot be customized further. In short, managing access privileges in CAMS is simple. It provides your institution with a high level of autonomy and flexibility. We trust that these features will enhance your experience in CAMS.
Getting help from the CFI
Technical help with the CFI Awards Management System (CAMS)
help.aide [at] innovation.ca
If you have questions or require technical help, please contact the CFI help desk. The CFI responds to all queries as quickly as possible (typically within one business day).
Provide feedback
feedback.commentaires [at] innovation.ca
The CFI welcomes input from CAMS users to help us improve the system. Provide feedback and ideas on how CAMS can better assist you.