Grant reporting… you’ve been hearing a thing or two about grant reporting lately. If you are a regular reader of PEAK Grantmaking’s PEAK Insight Journal, you may have seen the Revisit Reporting edition of the journal. You might have caught a conference session in March or a webinar in April focused on this topic. And if you’re like me, you just can’t get enough of this topic!
What if every donor, trustee, and employee could keep in mind at all times that the money they steward and help give away is held in public trust, for the public good? What if their daily practices made it evident to their grantees that this public good was at the heart of their decision-making? If they put this heart at the center of their work, here are some things we think might be different.
Well-intended character limits are supposed to let applicants know that they don’t need to write a chapter when a few paragraphs will do. Unfortunately, for all but haiku writers, writing less is usually more (work). One writes, counts, and rewrites. And rewrites.
What is rightsizing? Think of it this way: If your feet are a size seven and extra wide, you probably buy size seven, extra wide shoe. Your shoes neither pinch your toes nor trip you by flopping around as you walk. Rightsizing, not unlike buying shoes, is the idea of sensible fit.
Here’s one small way that grantmakers can satisfy the goal of a common application to allow nonprofits to minimize the original content they must create.
This series of blogs will remind you of Project Streamline’s diagnosis of our field’s application and reporting challenges, streamlining’s core principles, and practical recommendations for good practice.
What do you know about streamlining your grantmaking?
When funders are empathetic, take time to communicate clearly and often, and demonstrate flexibility, other issues in the grantmaking process don’t seem like such a big deal.
I need some help convincing my colleagues that a more streamlined grantmaking process would be a good idea.
PEAK Grantmaking’s Project Streamline is tackling reporting head on, and we need your help!