Reporting on your Grant
Most grantmakers in these tough times insist on clear objectives and regular monitoring, and you need to satisfy their
wishes.
Funders want measurable outcomes. They want to know what you have managed to achieve with their money. They want to know that
your organisation was deserving of support, has run a project that can have benefits beyond your organisation, and also that
should you seek funding again you have a track record of running a successful project.
Even if you don't expect another grant - and if you don't, you're probably giving up way too easily - you want everything to
run smoothly without the possibility of a time-wasting dispute.
You have to remember that from the funder's point of view your organisation is dispensable. They have hundreds - in some cases
it can be thousands - of groups who would happily take the funding you have won and fulfil the reporting obligations as well.
Bonding
The first and probably most important reason for fulfilling (and, if possible, exceeding) all your reporting requirements is
to ensure you are building relationships.
Community groups put a lot of work into making grantmaking bodies aware of their existence and you shouldn't waste this work
by failing to perform after the grant has been awarded. You want to make it easier to get funding next time because you have a
strong record and also because you have a strong relationship. You want to make sure the grantmaker knows you can deliver and
knows you will provide the information that will enable them to deliver to their stakeholders (Department/Minister or
Board/Trustees).
The other thing to remember is that relationship building is not just about official reports. Most of the successful
relationships between grantmakers and grant recipients are those where there has been constant communication throughout the life
of the project and where funders feel they have experienced the project and its highs - and lows. You can do this by making an
occasional phone call, including them on emails or providing updates via your regular newsletter or - where possible - inviting
them to an on-site visit. You could also send copies of letters or responses from people who have benefited from the project so
your funder is aware of not just what you do but how important that work is to your local community.
Good for you too
You should view the measurement of and reporting on your grant as a win-win: you get to assure the grantmaker that the funds
have been used properly and effectively, and you get to assure yourself that your activities are working. If your actions are not
having the desired effect, keeping track of your progress will allow you to adjust your actions accordingly.
The context
The best way to approach the task of reporting on your grant is to craft a report that both gives the information necessary to
fill the boxes on the funder's spreadsheet (the "bean counting" - how many, how often, etc.) and links the project to your goals
and your vision - something that reminds your funder of the work still to be done, and sets the project in a context that enables
them to see clearly how important their support is.
You also want your reports to plant the seed of your next proposal, clarifying the areas of unmet need and the power of the
resources you have put to good use.
Parameters
Different grantmakers have different reporting and accountability requirements (often described by grantmakers as
"acquittals"), and even individual grantmakers may have different requirements depending on the size of the grant; generally
speaking, the bigger the grant and the more risk-averse the grantmaker, the more accountability that will be required.
Most funders ask for reports either after six months or a year. Meet your deadlines. Some funders are very good about late
reports - some even mail out reminders - but the responsibility for preparing and sending in accurate reports on time rests with
you, not the funder.
Even if you think the questions are vague, or unnecessary, or time-wasting, smile and comply - they're paying the piper, and
you agreed to the tune.
If you think you are going to miss a deadline, contact your funder, apologise, explain (very briefly) why, and say when the
late report will be in.
Content
While many funders don't require that you use a particular format for grant reports, some funders do have very specific
reporting requirements. It is important to submit your reports in the proper format. If your funder asks for a three-page letter,
don't send a 20-page document accompanied by videotape. If the funder leaves the format up to you, keep it concise and to the
point, but also make sure your report is engaging and informative, and don't rule out the videotape - they don't have to watch it
if they don't want to, and it may give them a closer bond with your client group.
The criteria and layout of the report may be set by the form they want you to fill out, or it can have free-form elements. The
more rigid the format the harder it is to get in all the information you want to include. Even then, however, you can do a lot
with a little. Even if there isn't space for case studies, include quotes. You want your funder to enter into the spirit of your
work, to understand why you thought this was important, to see that you have improved the quality of human lives.
Evaluation
Reporting requirements will almost always involve properly accounting for the money you have spent - but they usually also go
well beyond the dollars and cents.
Most successful proposals now have some element of evaluation written into them. Even the most basic projects will have some
basic quantitative measure to judge the success of the project. The bigger the project, normally the bigger the element of
evaluation written into it.
Funders are now also placing far more emphasis on the outcomes of a grant, rather than the outputs, so you need to get clear
in your mind what these terms mean. While "outputs" refers to the raw data of a project - the number of people helped, doors
painted, leaflets distributed, hits on a web page, etc. - the "outcomes" refer to the impacts that the project has had - what the
help provided has meant to clients, what effect the painting of doors has had on the neighbourhood, how the leaflets and visits
to a website have increased awareness of an issue, etc.
When undertaking evaluation, be clear about what the problem is, then ask what success in overcoming the problem will look
like. This is your target. Take a measurement before you start to provide a base-line against which to measure your progress.
Keep track of how the project develops and mark your milestones.
Statistics are important but the human element or the wider narrative is what shows whether something has truly worked.
Include the quotes and the case studies that don't just say what you did but HOW what you did made such a difference.
Pass it on
It also doesn't hurt to be generous. Good grantmakers are always looking for ways they can disseminate policies/projects or
information that works so that by funding the few, they can help the many. In your report, be honest about the learning that you
received from the funding and the main points that you experienced that could help others trying to adopt a similar scheme to
their own area.
Problems
Sometimes things change between the time you get the grant money and the time the first report is due. For late reporting you
need an excuse; for changes in the program or changes in the allocation of the funds you need good reasons - and good
communication with the funder. If they are discovering in the final report that your project looks nothing like your proposal,
then you have seriously failed in your responsibilities.
Honesty is the best policy. If you received a grant for a schools activity training program and it took you three months
longer than you budgeted for to find and hire an instructor, just tell your grantmaker. They may have no problem with this kind
of delay, and you'll probably be allowed to roll over the funds into the next fiscal year. If you raised funds for a program that
just doesn't seem to work, however, and needs a total redesign, then you have a harder sell. Some funders may allow you to keep
the unspent grant money because they still want to support your causes; others may cut you off without a penny. Even that,
though, would be better than going double-or-quits and hiding the problem in the hope that it'll work itself through before the
next report.
Make it count
Even if you have encountered significant problems with your project, there is a way you can turn a negative into a positive.
You need to show that you've coped with the problem and learned from it - that viewed in the wider perspective, the grant has not
been wasted and there has been a net gain. Sometimes it is better to take the learning of something going disastrously wrong and
use it to stop others from heading down the same trail, than it is to hide it.
The result
Try to put yourself into the shoes of the funder. Would the report answer your questions about how the money you gave was
spent? Would it reassure you that the grantee is on top of things? Would it make you feel as if your donation was worthwhile?
Would it make you feel more or less inclined to renew your support? Does it flag the issues that still need funding?
If the answer to each of these questions is yes, you have produced a good grant report.
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