Nonprofit Grants: "If you buy today, we can keep the lights on."

All winning grant proposals have something in common: They prove the proposed activity is needed and demonstrate how the activity aligns well with the giving priorities and interests of the grantmaker.

A nonprofit can submit a very well-written proposal but if it doesn't align well with the grantmaker's interests, it won't get funded.

Most nonprofits have two need categories to consider -- operating (capacity) needs and beneficiary (client) needs. When it comes to generating support for their operating needs, nonprofits must be more like for-profits. For both nonprofits and for-profits, there are costs to do business, but you've never gone into a for-profit business and had the salesperson use their costs to do business to persuade you to make a purchase.

For example, would you  purchase new furniture because the salesman said, "If you buy today, we can keep our lights on"? Of course not. So why would a grantmaker to do so in response to a similar statement from a nonprofit?They wouldn't. 

In a furniture store, you'd want to hear something that would convince to buy their furniture instead of going somewhere else. You'd be interested in hearing about quality, comfort, warranties, stain resistance, etc. You'd want to hear how purchasing the furniture there would help you to achieve your goal to get new furniture while also providing your peace of mind that it would be a good investment. That's what would compel you to write a check, not hearing how their lights could be turned off at any minute.

A nonprofit must know when to submit a proposal to support their operating needs and when to submit a proposal to support their beneficiaries' needs. This is usually clearly explained in a grantmaker's funding guidelines. But in either case, a nonprofit must demonstrate how their beneficiaries will ultimately benefit because no grantmaker's giving priorities include utility bills, staff compensation or Internet service.


Michelle Nusum-Smith, Founder and Principal Consultant at The Word Woman LLC

Is your nonprofit seeking new funding? Do you need board development guidance? Are you thinking of starting a nonprofit? Do you have questions or need some general advice? If you answered yes to any of these questions, schedule a FREE 30 minute consultation by clicking this link and completing the form at the bottom of our Contact Us page.

3 Tips for an Effective Nonprofit Board

In working with existing and planned nonprofit organizations, I am often asked about board member recruitment and how to get existing board members to be more effective.

It's simple...
You get out of boards what you put into them.

Board recruitment is not to be taken lightly. Investing time and energy into identifying and securing commitments from highly skilled and passionate people is only half of it.

Every board needs a strong foundation. There must be detailed and well-understood policies and procedures that outline how the board is to function. These policies and procedures should be followed at all times.

During the recruitment process, board prospects should receive written, detailed position descriptions that outline what is expected of them -- time commitment, skills commitment, and financial commitment.

Board development must be intentional. If it is not, even board members with the best intentions will eventually become unproductive and ineffective.


Here are 3 tips for an effective nonprofit board:

• Ensure that the organization's bylaws are current, followed and continue to be effective in meeting the needs of the organization. Bylaws define how a nonprofit organization will be managed and how it will run. When followed, the policies and procedures outlined in bylaws help boards to govern effectively. 

• Each prospective board member should meet with the Executive Director and/or a board representative for a thorough discussion about what will be expected of him/her before any offer or acceptance of board membership. The prospect should also review the position description for the specific role they would occupy (i.e., Secretary, Vice-Chair, Member-at-Large) and have any and all of their questions or concerns addressed. This is also an ideal time for the Executive Director or the board representative to review the conflict of interest policy.

• Remove unproductive board members sooner than later. Like the old adage says, One bad apple spoils the whole bunch. Any board member who continuously fails to fulfill his/her responsibilities as outlined in their position description or doesn't fully comply with the policies and procedures outlined in the bylaws, should be asked to resign. If you allow a board member to regularly miss meetings, to not make a contribution equitable to that of the rest of the board, or to serve in "name only", the board members who are giving 100% will eventually feel resentful and become less productive.

There is a direct correlation between a nonprofit's success and how well its board functions. 

Michelle Nusum-Smith, Founder and Principal Consultant at The Word Woman LLC

Do you need board development guidance? Are you thinking of starting a nonprofit? Is your nonprofit seeking new funding? Do you have questions or need some general advice? If you answered yes to any of these questions, schedule a FREE 30 minute consultation by clicking this link and completing the form at the bottom of our Contact Us page.