Government Grants—Tame the Red Tape
Before you can manage government grants successfully, you’ve got to untangle a snarl of red tape.
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Who Will Do It?
The ubiquitous use of “we will” in grant proposals paves the way for grant-management nightmares. When the grant proposal does not assign tasks to specific positions, those tasks usually fall by the wayside when the intense work of program start-up gets underway. Here are a few examples of important tasks that often end up unassigned.
The 4 Cs of Grant Management
To manage grant awards effectively, you’ve got to know the rules. With private funders, the regulations and requirements can usually be adequately handled through good business and accounting practices.
But it’s different with government grants, especially federal grants. Uniform Guidance issued by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), along with agency-specific and program-specific requirements, demand that someone within your organization develop an understanding of the rules and regulations.
Good Grant Management—What’s it Take?
After the euphoria of receiving the grant award fades, the hundreds of grant management to-dos jockey for priority attention. Organizations that have the basics of solid grant management in place will be fine, even if they feel stretched. But when the basics aren’t covered, the situation can easily spin out of control.
Good Work Requires Strong Infrastructure
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.