Are We Ready for Grants?
Last week I attended a meeting, and when I introduced myself as a grant writer, immediately got the question “so, how do I start with grants?” from the eager director of a small nonprofit. I get similar questions a lot, as organizations try to navigate the complexities of foundations. It can be hard to know what the crucial pieces are – outcomes? Killer board connections? A strong elevator pitch? All of the above? The Minnesota Common Grant Application includes a page-long checklist of requirements. It’s no wonder grants can start to feel overwhelming fast. Personally, I like to start from the best-case scenario when deciding whether you’re ready to apply for a grant: are you ready to implement a grant if you win it?
1. Is your program being implemented or ready to be implemented? If this is a new program or an expansion of a program, do you have a solid plan in place to get started, including the logistics of growing? My first year working in grants, I submitted an application to expand a successful program from Bosnia to Albania, using existing staff to replicate our model. My pride and exhilaration at being awarded the grant lasted until I reviewed the approved budget and realized I had forgotten to include the cost of translating the nine different trainings included in the program model from Bosnian to Albanian – a $25,000 cost we now had no plan to cover! Don’t channel the program associate panicking in the restroom – have a concrete plan for your program.
2. Do you have financial systems in place to be able to monitor and report on specific grant dollars? Even if you’re applying for general operating funds, a foundation will ask how much of their money you spent, and what you spent it on. You have to be able to answer that question. Triply so if you’re applying for a government grant.
3. Do you have staff with the capacity to maintain a relationship with a new foundation donor? That means providing regular grant reports and other updates, taking meetings as needed, and making the donor feel engaged in your programming. Reports aren’t just a box to check, they’re a crucial tool for building trust, marketing the strength of your programs, and winning the next grant award.
4. Do you have staff and systems in place to track the outcomes you promise in your application? If you are going to train 50 people, will you be able to count those 50 people and capture what they learned? Like financial reporting, funders want to know what you accomplished with their money. Not only that you delivered on the activities you said you were going to do, but that these activities made the difference you said they would make. Even if you know that the grant funded good work, if you can’t capture that for your donor, that knowledge doesn’t help you.
5. Do you know what you are going to do at the end of this grant? Will the program continue using other funding? Is this a planned short-term project that will have a phased close out or wrap up?
If you have these core things ready to implement a grant-funded program, you have the resources you need to apply for a grant – staff who are ready to implement programs and maintain relationships are staff who can cultivate relationships and develop program language. Financial systems that are developed enough to track specific dollars and report on them should be able to provide input data on program costs that inform a solid application budget. If you have identified systems and staff to track outcomes, you must have thought through what outcomes are important and why. If you have some idea about the long-term plan for your program, you can answer questions about sustainability. A killer elevator pitch and a board connected to every major family foundation in your area is now just gravy.
If you can’t articulate what your program does, what impact it makes, and how much it costs, you’re not ready for grants. All the board connections in the world can’t smooth over those gaps.
Smaller resource gaps can be bridged with outside help. Your board is a resource to help cultivate relationships or lend an expert eye to a rough budget. Limited staff time to write a proposal narrative can be supplemented with short-term help from committed volunteers, or consultants like me. Start with your end goal in mind and it will quickly become clear if you’re ready, and if you’re not 100% there, where you can look for help.
Still have questions about whether you’re ready for grants? Attend one of our free monthly Q&A webinars!
