Organizational Management

The strain of inadequate, insecure funding is exhausting and often sends nonprofits tilting at every windmill that might throw out a grant dollar. Every organization has its own pressure points and problems, but there are some commonalities throughout the sector. 

Put yourself in the funder’s shoes—who would you choose to fund? These tough decisions are complex and include assessing an organization’s ability to deliver on the promises made in the grant proposal.

For many nonprofits, the term “grants management” conjures up visions of navigating an ever-changing labyrinth of rules and regulations. While there is a learning curve when managing regulation-heavy grants from various levels of government, it’s nothing diligence and determination can’t conquer.

Nonprofits are dedicated to their missions, pouring every ounce of time, energy, and money they can muster into their fight to make positive change.

With a rock-star proposal writer on staff, why spend precious dollars priming the pump? The grant awards are rolling in and all is right with the world. But getting too comfortable with the successful status quo is risky.

It’s a well-accepted best practice that the development of grant proposals should be well coordinated with the administrative, financial, human resources, and programmatic functions of the organization.

Is your organization’s grants specialist constantly frazzled, working nights and weekends and juggling a schedule bulging with proposal deadlines, program development meetings, and report due dates? Do other staff members tip-toe around the specialist’s desk, forgiving occasional expletives, ignoring the candy wrappers and dirty coffee cups, and excusing missed calls and meetings. If so, that’s a big red flag.

Almost every nonprofit wants grant funding. And why not? Grants are a great resource for powering your organization’s work forward, but the infrastructure to support grant acquisition and management is commonly neglected. Large nonprofits, hospitals and educational institutions, typically invest in infrastructure to support the grants process, but in small and mid-sized nonprofits, grants work is commonly catch-as-catch-can, with various staff members taking on roles that can be matched with their skills and squeezed into their workload.

When you win a major grant award, a tsunami of demands roars in with the money and all too often your buoyant “we won” high sinks beneath the stress. Project start-up is tough, and careful management is critical. The first step in avoiding mistakes is to fully grasp the importance of this stage in the life of the grant. Experienced administrators know start-up is a make-it or break-it time. Here are a few tips for a full-throttle blast off to a successful grant-funded program.

A general operating grant is the most prized type of funding award. In the best circumstances, it’s a significant chunk of money handed to your organization with the magnificent instructions to do what needs to be done. Funding to run the agency. Private grantmakers increasingly recognize that general operating funds provide flexible support that enables nonprofits to be most effective.