Streamlining Grantmaking: Perception vs. Reality?

May 20, 2013

TakingStockReportcoverGrants should facilitate the mission-critical work of nonprofits, but sometimes that’s not exactly how it works.

A new report by Grants Managers Network and the Project Streamline collaborative reveals that after five years of promoting effective ways to improve grant requirements, many nonprofits continue to feel burdened.

More than 700 grantmakers and grantseekers participated in a survey that revealed a continuing gap between grantmakers — who say they have streamlined — and grantseekers — who continue to find processes too unwieldy. Here’s a quick summary of the findings from the new report, Practices That Matter.

Project Streamline Principles Widely Recognized
Project Streamline’s principles are widely recognized in the grantmaking community. Almost all grantmakers say they have made or are planning streamlining changes. Here’s what else they said:

  • 93% are familiar with the impact of grantmaking practice on nonprofits,
  • 90% are familiar with the principles of clear and straightforward grantmaking communications,
  • 87% are aware that taking a fresh look at application and reporting requirements is recommended,
  • 86% realize that reducing the burden on grantseekers is important,
  • 81% are familiar with “right-sizing” — where application and reporting requirements are in proportion to the grant size and type.

Unfortunately, it takes a long time for changes in individual practice to become true culture change. So, nonprofits still spend too much time meeting requirements that are poorly designed, redundant, inappropriately scaled or simply mystifying.

Continuing Issues for Grantmakers
The research showed some grantmaker progress and brought to light issues that remain.

1: Take a fresh look at information requirements.

  • More than 80% of grantmakers say they have revised application or reporting requirements to ask for only what they use in decision-making. But grantmakers still don’t like to accept information that’s not specifically developed for them.
  • In fact, 84% of grantseekers say grantmakers rarely or never accept common applications, and 62% rarely or never encounter a funder who accepts standard or no reports.

2: Right-size expectations.

  • Grantmakers say they are paying attention to the relationship between requirements and grant size and type; 55% say they have revised applications and 59% have revised reporting requirements to be appropriate to grant size.
  • But 72% of grantseekers say applications for small grants are rarely or never proportionate to the level of funding. The same number say they have rarely or never encountered a simplified application for repeat grants.

3: Reduce the burden.

  • 91% of grantmakers now use an online system or accept applications via email. With the shift toward electronic submission, 84% no longer require multiple copies of materials.
  • But going online doesn’t equal streamlining. Poorly designed and untested systems remain a big source of grantseeker aggravation. Grantseekers cite  system issues including:
    • forms in which data cannot be cut and pasted but must be input one item at a time,
    • forms with stringent character limits,
    • forms that don’t allow users to review all questions in advance, save work, or go back to previous responses,
    • and myriad other bugs.
  • Furthermore, 50% of grantseekers say paper systems are still prevalent among funders.

4: Provide clear and straightforward communications.

  • 91% of grantmakers say they have revised communication to make it clearer and more straightforward; 84% have made messages consistent across all platforms.
  • But getting clear guidance and reaching a person continue to be barriers for grantseekers, who report confusing, inconsistent and insufficient communication. Grantseekers say online systems too often stand in for direct communication, which builds an unintended barrier to relationship.

Read the entire Practices That Matter report. You can also take an interactive quiz to find out how “streamlining savvy” you are, download ​Making More Time for Mission, an overview of the report, and more.

How do you think grantmakers in Minnesota stack up against these national statistics? Let us know your experience.

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

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Good Data = Better Arts Organizations

April 29, 2013

cdp1The Cultural Data Project (CDP) — now in use by 7 Minnesota-based funders and 200 Minnesota arts and culture organizations — can lead to better arts organizations. In addition, use of the CDP can help foundations and corporate giving programs streamline their grantmaking and help nonprofits better understand their programmatic and financial health.

When the CDP launched in Minnesota on June 1, 2012, MCF members The McKnight Foundation and Target were the first two Minnesota-based funders to require that grantees enter data in the CDP.

Their early and enthusiastic support has resulted in data collection from several hundred arts organizations in less than a year. And, naturally the more funders that require grantseekers to use CDP, the richer the database and its usefulness for grantmakers, grantseekers and arts advocates.

While writing an article for the spring issue of Giving Forum, online now and in your mailbox soon, I was surprised by one example of CDP data use from Michigan.

In 2012, ArtServe Michigan, Michigan’s statewide arts organization, used CDP and other data to demonstrate that for every $1 invested by the state, the arts sector contributed $51 to the state’s economy. That informed efforts to increase arts funding and led to the tripling of the budget appropriation for Michigan’s arts board.

Wow! Think what that might mean for Minnesota in a few short years.

To learn more, don’t miss “Good Data Can Create Better Arts Organizations” in the spring issue of Giving Forum.

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

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Employee Volunteers — Using Brains and Brawn

April 26, 2013

brainsThis week is National Volunteer Week, something many of you are already aware of. If you read my colleague’s post yesterday, you know Minnesota ranks #4 among the 50 states for volunteerism and the Twin Cities ranks #1 among the 51 largest metropolitan areas in the country.

As a past coordinator of large special events, I tend to think of volunteering in terms of brawn.

But during the last year, I’ve learned more about skills-based or pro-bono volunteering, which is primarily about brain. I’ve heard about some interesting ways that companies are encouraging their employees to share their time and their talents with nonprofits in the communities where they work. Here are just a few:

  • Employees from General Mills, Cargill and Supervalu packaged and distributed 600,000 lbs. of sweet corn to food shelves in 2012. This is produce that otherwise would’ve rotted in farm fields.
  • General Mills employees share expertise and technology with African farmers and food producers. Projects in Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia link employees from research and development, nutrition, engineering, marketing, finance and beyond.
  • United Health Group uses online micro-volunteering to enable employees (22% of whom are telecommuters) to complete short volunteer assignments without leaving home. Nonprofits have entered 500 projects in an online database which employees can peruse and commit to completing. For example, an employee might offer to set up a spreadsheet or proof a brochure.
  • Employees at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota created a garden (PDF) where they grew and donated 1,350 lbs. of produce in 2012.
  • Xcel Energy’s employees provide energy-saving audits and programs for nonprofits, helping organizations stretch their budgets and be good stewards of resources.
  • U.S. Bank donated the time of one of its iPhone app designers to create an app for The Salvation Army to recruit bell ringers for one-hour slots at 400 kettles across the Twin Cities.

I know this is a short list of large companies located in the Twin Cities. I’d love to hear more about unique things your company — small or large, urban or rural — is doing to encourage employees to better the communities where we live and work.

The summer issue of Giving Forum will focus on corporate philanthropy, so please send story ideas and pictures!

Thanks! I look forward to hearing from many you!

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

Image cc Hey Paul Studios

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Foundation Program Officers Talk Evaluation

April 19, 2013

gfbannerDon’t miss the spring issue of MCF’s Giving Forum, where our brand new lead article represents a complete conversation we had with program officers: “Gauging Impact and Using Feedback.” In addition we’ve re-posted the video segment that you may have seen on the Philanthropy Potluck Blog, Pollen or MinnPost.

But Giving Forum online is the only place to both read the article and watch the video.

In the pieces, program officers from MCF-member foundations answer questions about:

  • how they evaluate grants and grantees,
  • how they obtain and use grant results,
  • what they’ve changed based on grantee feedback,
  • how they share the results,
  • why they think it is important for nonprofits to build evaluation into their work and more.

The insights of program officers from the following foundations are included:

How do you use evaluation at your foundation or nonprofit? Let us know.

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

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Member Post: Expanding the Way We Look at Health

April 8, 2013
Carolyn Link of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation

Carolyn Link of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation

Grantmakers often must look beyond a narrow reading of their missions and collaborate across sectors to maximize their impact. Carolyn Link, executive director of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation, shares here what that means for the Blue Cross Foundation as it seeks to improve health in Minnesota.

In 2006, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation introduced Growing Up Healthy: Kids and Communities, a statewide grantmaking initiative to improve the health of Minnesota’s children in low-income communities through a focus on social and environmental determinants of health. At times, we were met with puzzled looks when we explained that there’s a community component to good health beyond the responsibility of the individual — that housing, indeed, has something to do with health. And that early care and learning experiences affect health for life. Even the idea of collaborating across these sectors — creating partnerships and working together on a community condition toward a common goal — was new to some.

The goal of the initiative is to build strong and connected communities where children can thrive and grow up healthy by working at the intersection of health and two or more of the following key health determinants:

  • Early childhood development
  • Stable, affordable housing
  • The environment

To date, the foundation has invested $4.4 million across 30 grantees and spent $1.1 million on evaluation, convenings and other consulting. Commitments to current grantees extend through 2014 and total $1 million.

The initiative uses a two-pronged approach to the grantmaking, through planning grants followed by implementation grants. While working in collaboration sounds like a great idea, we all know that it isn’t always easy. Because it takes time to develop relationships, we offer a $25,000, one-year planning grant to one organization to lead community partners in developing place-based projects that address health and at least two of the three determinants: early childhood education, housing and the environment.

At the end of the planning period, grantees develop a community supported by a written implementation plan for three additional years of funding of up to $150,000.

Next Steps

The initiative was designed to roll out in three phases. The first phase is complete, with a summary report available including lessons learned. In the second phase of the initiative, we added a collaborative leadership training program to assist grantees with skills and tools to develop and implement action plans that are grounded in the needs of the community, have broad-based support and can lead to sustainable change for children. This included grantee site visits, three two-day residential retreats and individual technical assistance through face-to-face visits at grantee sites and by telephone and email.

Currently, we are reviewing the lessons learned during the first two phases. We’ve been encouraged by the progress of these projects and are planning for 2014 and beyond.

Interested in seeing more of the Blue Cross Foundation’s work in Minnesota? Check out Twin Cities Public Television’s program on Growing Up Healthy here.

A longer version of this post originally was published in the Health and Environmental Funders Network blog, Giving InSight.

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Companies Remain Committed to Employee Giving

February 25, 2013

AmericasCharities-400wEvery year, the nation’s largest employers invite their employees to participate in a fall tradition: the Employee Charitable Giving Campaign. The campaigns funnel $3 billion annually (most of it unrestricted) to nonprofits across the nation.

In recognition of today’s International Corporate Philanthropy Day, America’s Charities released Trends and Strategies to Engage Employees in Greater Giving, a new report.

Among its findings:

  • Companies remain committed and recognize the benefits of a strong employee-giving program.
  • Employers are creating new giving models to involve and engage employees, particularly younger employees.
  • Technology and digital culture are transforming the employee-giving experience.
  • A new model that empowers employees to participate in giving inside and outside the walls of the workplace is emerging.

Good news:

  • More than two-thirds of companies surveyed offer matching payroll contributions, a 58% increase since 2006.
  • More than 80% of survey respondents agree or strongly agree that their company is committed to a strong program and that employee giving is a priority.

Warning signs:

  • Giving has increased at a majority of companies, but employee participation rates are down at nearly half. Average participation in 2006 was 41%; in 2012, it dropped to 33%. Experts say this is a sign that those who are already involved feel very comfortable, but that more must be done to engage additional workers at that level.
  • About 85% of respondents said administering the annual campaign is one of their top challenges. Time-crunched administrators find it difficult to devise engaging new ways to encourage participation. They want solutions that are easy to use, easy to administer and offer a platform to engage employees.
  • More than 92% of employers face challenges connecting younger employees to existing employee-giving programs. About 80% agree that the current model needs to be made more attractive for younger employees. More than 50% of employers surveyed plan to implement more social media tools into their employee-giving programs to attract younger employees and enable all employees to connect with peers and the causes they care about in real-time.
  • About 85% of respondents said that keeping the campaign fresh and vibrant is a challenge. Today, many employers are looking to integrate their efforts — the annual campaign, employee volunteering, pro bono work and more — into a one-stop shop, and new technologies may support this integration. Companies are developing strategies and ideas to address challenges and enhance engagement, and the number of year-round giving programs is growing.

You can find many more insights in the full report (PDF).

This is America’s Charities third report in the last 13 years about the $3 billion dollars employees donate on the job each year to worthy nonprofits. Participating companies employ more than 1.4 million people, represent more than 20 industry groups and are geographically diverse. Collectively, they raise more than $230 million through traditional employee-giving campaigns.

- Susan Stehling, MCF communications associate

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Great Lakes Launches College Success Grants

January 24, 2013

great lakes higher education logoMore students are entering college than ever before, but many of these students—particularly those from traditionally underserved backgrounds—face unique obstacles that prevent them from completing their studies. As a result, college completion rates have not increased at the same rate as college enrollment.

To help more students access the support they need to graduate, MCF member Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation is offering College Success grants of up to $300,000 each.

“With the College Success grants, we build on our commitment to support programs that are helping more students succeed in higher education,” said Richard D. George, Great Lakes’ president and CEO. “While our earlier College Ready grants focused on preparing students for academic success in college, we know that arriving on campus academically prepared is often not enough. Many students need additional support to stay in college and graduate—particularly students from low-income backgrounds, students of color, and those who are the first in their family to attend college. Our College Success grants will recognize and reward programs delivering that extra support, for the students who need it most.”

College students who develop connections with peers, faculty and staff are more likely to stay in college until they graduate. Great Lakes’ College Success grants are intended to support programs that connect students of similar backgrounds who are attending two-year, four-year, or technical colleges—and are working toward the common goal of college completion. These grants will help students develop those connections through specialized services such as mentoring, proactive advising, development of learning communities and academic tutoring.

Colleges and community-based organizations located in Iowa, Minnesota or Wisconsin are eligible to apply for individual grants of up to $300,000 each for the 2013-2014 academic year. Applications are due March 14, 2013.

To learn more and download an application for this new grant opportunity, visit the Great Lakes website.

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