Grants represent the most effort for the least predictable return. The question, therefore, is to first determine what resources will be needed before an organization contemplates launching a grants program!! Researching grant sources, planning projects, preparing proposals and budgets and managing funded programs all require a lot someone’s time/labor – all of those comprise the …
Finance/
Financing & Loans
The biggest mistake that many non-profits make is their belief that grants from corporations, foundations and government will continue, or (even) increase, over the long term. Historically, those sources of funding for specific programs either remain the same or decrease – especially during rough economic times (Remember !! … It wasn’t that long ago). While …
There used to be hard-and-fast rules as to what was, or wasn’t, a special event. Today, everything gets that label, from a small cocktail reception, to a board lunch, to a Gala Auction for 1,000. Nonprofits think special events are cool and a great way to raise money, but they’re only partially right. Events are …
That’s an important distinction. The defining characteristic of a gift is that control over its use passes to the recipient the minute the transfer is made. While some donors may restrict a gift to a general purpose — scholarships for example — decisions over the deployment of the funds within that restriction rest entirely with …
(Adapted from an Article on “Founders Syndrome) Written in 2004) In his blog, “Consulting Skills,” dated April 23, Carter McNamara asked, “What is a Mature Organization.” I’d like to try and answer that question from the perspective of a fundraising consultant. I have to base my “answer” on a couple of basic concepts — that …
In case you haven’t yet been there and done that, applying for and accepting a grant is the equivalent of signing a contract – in some cases, there really is a contract. The process is that grantors publish parameters for projects/programs they will fund, and you request funding for a project/program that is within their …
Every day, thousands of non-profit organizations, believing that their financial problems are soon to be over, generate/send proposals that receive, at best, a brief reading. Contrary to popular belief and unlike the grants Mr. Question-Mark touts in the TV ads, grants to non-profit organizations are not free money. Grants come with a variety of obligations. …