Logic models – charts that illustrate connections between program activities and outcomes – are great tools for planning programs to address community needs, but many nonprofits use them only to help explain a program they’ve already planned. That’s a backwards approach. You’re much more likely to have real impact on the problem your organization wants to address if you use a logic model to guide the planning process.
Most people define sustainability as “obtaining funding to keep the program running.” That’s not quite right. It’s primarily about perpetuating the results that are being achieved. Sometimes sustaining outcomes requires that you continue the program or some part of it — but not always.
We all know what a grant proposal is. It’s a document we write and submit to private or government funders requesting money to support our organization’s work. Right? While grant proposals do indeed request funding, I think this standard definition falls short and points us in the wrong direction. Grant funding is a tool for making something better, and since the real goal is impact instead of money, I propose an expanded definition.
We often hear that grantseekers aren’t sure whether their organization is eligible for federal grants. The federal government makes thousands of grant awards annually to many types of organizations, and even to some individuals. Don’t write off this important funding source until you’ve examined the possibilities. Here are a few thoughts to consider.
We get enquiries almost every day asking when the updated version of Program Planning & Proposal Writing will be available. Even though this classic guide for the nonprofit field was written in 1972, it's still in demand. With more than a million copies used and treasured by organizations all over the globe, we are delighted to tell you that the updated version will be ready this October!
In the meantime, here's a sneak peek, just a small slice—the first part of a 2-part excerpt from the addendum of Grantsmanship: Program Planning & Proposal Writing. The topic is the difference between a planning and an implementation (or program) grant proposal. Enjoy!
Several times each year, people ask The Grantsmanship Center how to evaluate the performance of grant development professionals. Here's what we tell them:
One of our alumni recently asked about submitting a grant proposal to a specific funder. She wanted to know what percentage of the organization’s annual budget she should request in her proposal for general operating funds. And if the organization decided to seek program funds instead, she wondered what percentage of the program budget she should request. Here's what I told her:
The energetic and imaginative changemakers who staff nonprofits are full of great ideas. They’re constantly coming up with ways to make things better and looking for grants to support their vision.
Since reading a 2010 paper by Howard Husock published by the Philanthropy Roundtable, I’ve had this question on my mind. Ruth McCambridge of the Nonprofit Quarterly raised it again not too long ago in a LinkedIn group (Readers of the Nonprofit Quarterly), and I was compelled to peck out a quick reply on my iPhone while waiting for a 6 am flight home from McAllen, TX, where I’d been teaching (yes, there were typos).
In the field of fund development, grants aren’t all that well respected. Once, after I was well known for bringing in millions of grant dollars, a local fund development director recognized me as “the woman who raises all the junk money.” Junk money?
Fund development professionals focus on individual giving because it’s the largest piece of the philanthropic pie. Individual giving represented about 73% of all giving in 2011, and 81% if you throw in bequests–the dollars total about $242.20 billion. Fund development professionals also focus here because the dollars are generally flexible, renewable, and growable. Individual giving done right can be the beanstalk to the golden eggs that just keep coming. I get that.
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A follow-up study of 385 of our graduates found documented that they won grants totaling over $21 million within just six months of completing the 5-day Grantsmanship Training Program®. Our training produces results!
