Managing grants: from pipeline to closeout
Winning the grant is the midpoint. Renewals come from on-time reports, clean books, and program officers who trust you.
- How to build a grant calendar that keeps every deadline on trackBuild a grant calendar that tracks deadlines, reports, and renewals. Includes pipeline stages, backward-planning timelines, and a sample weekly workflow.
- Grant reporting: narrative and financial reports funders trustHow to write grant reports funders trust: narrative structure, financial reports, outcome data, honest shortfall reporting, and federal deadlines.
- Funder relationships: program officers, stewardship, and site visitsHow to build funder relationships: contacting program officers, first calls, stewardship between grants, site visits, and sharing bad news early.
- Post-award grant compliance: restricted funds, changes, and closeoutManage grants after the award: restricted funds, cost tracking, budget changes, record retention, federal closeout, terminations, and audits.
- The board's role in grants: oversight, strategy, and real helpWhat nonprofit boards should and should not do in grant seeking: strategy, approvals, compliance oversight, funder introductions, and board giving.
- Hiring a grant writer: staff, freelance, or agency, and how to payHow to hire a grant writer: staff vs freelance vs agency, hourly, project, and retainer fees, why commission pay is unethical, contracts, red flags.