Grantwriting for Growth: 10 Successful Strategies. EW & Associates, Inc. 1

Transcription

1 Grantwriting for Growth: 10 Successful Strategies 1

2 FACILITATORS Karen Dabson Owner, OrgMent Columbia, Missouri Elizabeth Wilson CEO and President, EW & Associates Atlanta, GA Karen Dabson owns and operates OrgMent, a for-profit consulting firm that provides organizational mentoring. Ms. Dabson has over 10 years of microenterprise experience as Executive Director of the Enterprise Development Corporation, a rural CDFI in Ohio. She has held senior positions with the CDFI Fund of the US Treasury, the Ohio Department of Development, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (FRB). She has written several articles on entrepreneurship and microenterprise, and her community involvement efforts have resulted in the founding of a community development credit union, and the development of a social enterprise, both in rural Ohio. She is the lead author of Microenterprise Lending: a Cookbook for Mutual Success. Ms. Dabson is a current board member and cofounder of the Credit Builders Alliance, a nonprofit designed to build low income borrowers credit histories as assets. Elizabeth is a true expert in low and moderate community economic development initiatives and policy. Her management portfolio exceeds over ten million dollars to develop small businesses and includes initiatives funded by the ebay Foundation, Hewlett Packard Philanthropy and the Prudential Foundation. M. Wilson has a strong knowledge of urban, economic, and small business development. Since 1996, she has provided professional leadership and training in the development of nonprofit services and management including program design, project planning, development budgeting, staff recruitment, marketing and fundraising in her various positions. She is the author of business training curriculum and several books, including When Life Gives You Lemons, Open a Lemonade Stand and Young, Gifted & Entrepreneurs 2

3 Sources of Funding Federal Government 36% Other sources 3% Program Income 12% Private Sources 27% State Government 16% Local Government 6% Annually $ Billion Given Source: Giving USA 2009, Giving USA Foundation, researched and written by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University 3

4 Strategiesfor Successful Proposals Careless Preparation Competence of Applicant not shown Nature of Project Reasons for NOT receiving a grant* *Based on an analysis of more than 700 proposals rejected by theus Public health Services. Roy Meadot, Guidelines for Preparing Proposals, Chelsea: Lewis Publishers, Inc. 4

5 Follow the Directions Organize, Clarify and Structure 5

6 Directions Matter! 35 50% of ALL federal and foundation proposals are rejected because they are poorly organized or don t conform to the RFP guidelines. Read and analyze the RFP Research Read winning proposals Follow the outline laid out in the RFP 6

7 Remember: Every year, proposals are disqualified because the writer failed to follow general format directions regarding the number of pages, appendices, fonts, spacing etc. Reviewers rank proposals lower when writers fail to follow instructions regarding what content goes in which section of the proposal. 7

8 Independent eyes see better Organize, independent eyes and collaborate 8

9 Types of Reviewers Mechanical Lockheed Martin (50% rejection) Human External Intermediary organizations, paid reviewers Human Internal Foundation or Corporate Staff, volunteer stakeholders 9

10 Mechanical Review Team Funder Team 10

11 The Writer Review Team Content Reviewer 11

12 Duties of Your Review Team Review checklist Spelling, grammar Timelines Research RFP Outline TTTT s & iiiiiii Review strategy & selling points Cohesiveness & jargon review Goals clearly stated Strategies are feasible, realistic, logical Competencies 12

13 Finish Early Timelines, checks and balances 13

14 Submitting a proposal on the due date is late to a Reviewer. Early proposals receive favorable consideration. Late proposals, even if received, receive negative consideration from reviewers. 14

15 File 13 Proposals Faxed Handwritten Too many attachments, pages to read Obviously patched together from a variety of sources Templates 15

16 Remember Proposal submission rules must apply to everyone. It is not up to the discretion of the program officer to grant you dispensation on deadlines. Equipment failures, power outages, hurricanes and tornadoes, and even internal problems at your institution are not valid excuses. Get your proposal EW in & Associates, two Inc. or three days before the deadline. 16

17 Remember Don t Bore the Reviewer 17

18 Prove It Back up your facts, edit, and tie in to other data 18

19 Remember Format and brevity are important: Do not feel that your proposal is rated based on its wordiness. Proposals are meant as convincing documents, not reports or research. State your case, make your main points early and stay organized. 19

20 Remember Reviewers hate being challenged to read densely prepared text or to read obtusely prepared materials. Take pity on the reviewers. Make your proposal a pleasant reading experience that puts important concepts up front and makes them clear. Use figures appropriately to make and clarify points, but not as filler. 20

21 Tell A Story Beginning, Middle & End 21

22 Remember Address the big picture. As you are writing, convey your passion and enthusiasm for the project, so that reviewers become excited as they read your proposal. Describe why your project is exciting and distinct from others. 22

23 Develop a writing process Detail your facts, edit, and tie in to other data 23

24 Step 1-Prewriting Step 2-Drafting Step 3-Revising Step 4-Editing Step 5 -Final 24

25 Where's the Beef? Present a clear path from data to interpretation to theory to result. 25

26 What sets your Proposal Apart? What s New and Different? 26

27 InnovateBest Practices Create, Expand, Go Beyond 27

28 What s Better? What s New? What s Hot? What s New? What s New? New Markets? Problem Solved? What s Innovative? New Services? What s Different? New Use of Technology? Efficient? What s New? Who s New? What s New? What s New? What s New? What s New? 28

29 3 C s Capacity, Competence & Capabilities Tell Your Story, Why Your Team, Meet The Need 29

30 Remember Make sure the proposal shows that your team has both the background and expertise to carry out the project. Know your organizations areas of expertise, what are your strengths and what are your weaknesses. Play to your strengths, not to your weaknesses. Establish your credentials and expertise in a subject area. Your track record does count. 30

31 Focuson the Funders Needs Know Their Story, Relate to the RFP, Meet Their Need 31

32 Ask "what can WE do for the corporation/funder/organization rather than what the corporation/funder/organization can do for US". 32

33 Remember Know the funding source from which you seek support. Never submit a proposal to a funder if you are not certain that it is the correct source to support your work. Don t waste your time writing a proposal that has no chance of success from the get-go. 33

34 10Relationships Matter! Know Who, What and Why Before You Ask! 34

35 Build Relationships Make contacts through your networks Memberships in organizations that facilitate networking Know what the Funder is doing in your community/their footprint Develop the Capacity to quickly publicize your organizations activities 35

36 Build Relationships Facebook, LinkedIn, Social Media Online Newsletters Blogs, webinars, trainings Client testimonials Media opportunities Provide opportunities to collaborate on Board of Directors, Loan Committees, Advisor Boards, Volunteers, Memberships, community organizations Fraternal organizations 36

37 10 Strategies Checklist 1.Follow Directions 2.Independent Eyes 3.Finish Early 4.Prove It 5.Tell A Story 6.Writing Process 7.Innovate 8.The 3 C's 9.Focus on Funders 10.Build Relationships 37

38 Case Study: We Help One and All Exercise Here are the instructions that an imaginary foundation put out in a Request for Proposals. Following it is a sample of one of the proposals submitted from the nonprofit, We Help One-and-All (WHO). What mistakes did WHO make in submitting this proposal? 38

39 Resources and Tools Strategies for Successful Grantwriting PowerPoint WHO Case Study Foundation Center Corporate Giving Resource List PDF Writing Winning Proposal by Shipley Nordic 39

40 QUESTIONS? 40

41 Follow up Contact Information: Karen Dabson Elizabeth Wilson 41