In the targeting of grants awarded, we naturally want the money to be spent well.
But, how do you do that in a complex world, where your fund may receive hundreds of grant applications a year and many stakeholders are involved?
Working together on the same page
When we started g-company eight years ago to help non-profit organisations increase their impact through the deployment of new technology, we soon came to the point of collaboration. Collaborate on the same page is a phrase we like to use to describe the power of a cloud platform like Google or Salesforce. Indeed, in a Google Doc, you can collaborate seamlessly on the same page, as well as in the Salesforce environment.
Fundraising and target spending in the same platform
Many of our relations raise funds for specific projects. They want to give donors insight into project spending and make the actual impact visible. We have set this up, for example, at Mama Cash, Wilde Ganzen, SeeYou Foundation (formerly Light for the World) and Dorcas. The transparency thus created has great impact through insight into target spending.
Grant management
Funding grants can be a labour-intensive process. Sometimes it involves hundreds or even thousands of applications a year, all of which have to be assessed, as in the case of the vfonds, whether the Hersenstichting. Streamlining administrative processes, objectifying assessment criteria, automating processes and engaging stakeholders online by providing them with the right information brings many benefits.
What is the impact?
There is a lot of talk about making impact. But it turns out that is not good Dutch: you cannot make impact, only influence it.
It is not easy to measure the real impact of a project or intervention. However, objectives are formulated. By including those objectives from the outset and keeping them in mind throughout the process, we increase the chances of impactful cooperation. All noses are in the same direction, everyone knows what the goal is that is being worked on. "Start with the end in mind" said Stephen Covey in his famous Seven Habits.
Challenge Fund for Youth Employment (CFYE)
A good example of targeted Grant Management is the Challenge Fund. This fund is to spend €60,000,000 of Dutch development money to create 200,000 jobs for young people in countries in the Middle East and the horn of Africa. We were able to set up the Salesforce platform so that the whole process is transparent to the goal: to select, grant and track projects that create jobs among young people.
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The example of CFYE
In our 15 June 2021 webinar, the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment explains how Grant Management works for them. This is a good example of "working together on the same page", by some 60 staff around the Grant Management process.
Obviously, we want that granted subsidies are well spent.
But, how do you do that in a complex world, where your foundation may receive hundreds of grant applications per year and many stakeholders are involved?
Collaboration on the same page
Eight years ago, g-company started to help non-profit organisations increase their impact through the use of new technology, and we quickly got to the point of working together. Collaborating on the same page is an expression we like to use to indicate the power of a cloud platform like Google or Salesforce. In a Google Doc you can collaborate seamlessly on the same page, as well as in the Salesforce environment.
Fundraising and grant management in the same platform
Many of our relations raise funds for specific projects. They want to give donors insight into project spending and make the actual impact visible. We have set this up, for example, at Mama Cash, Wilde Ganzen, See You Foundation (formerly Light for the World) and Dorcas. The resulting transparency has a major impact due to the insight into grant management.
Reduce labour intensity
Providing grants by funds can be a labour-intensive process. Sometimes there are hundreds or even thousands of applications per year that all have to be assessed, such as at vfonds or the Brain Foundation. Streamlining the administrative processes, objectifying assessment criteria, automating processes and involving the stakeholders online by providing them with the right information brings many benefits.
What is the impact?
Making an impact is a much-discussed topic. But that turns out not to be proper language: you can't make an impact, you can only influence.
It is not easy to measure the real impact of a project or intervention. However, objectives are set. By including those objectives from the start and keeping them in mind throughout the process, we increase the chance of impactful collaboration. All noses are in the same direction, everyone knows the goal that is being worked on. "Start with the end in mind", said Stephen Covey in his famous Seven Habits.
Challenge Fund for Youth Employment (CFYE)
A good example of targeted Grant Management is the Challenge Fund. This fund must spend €60,000,000 in Dutch development money to create 200,000 jobs for young people in countries in the Middle East and the Horn of Africa. We have been able to set up the Salesforce platform in such a way that the entire process is transparent for the purpose of selecting, subsidizing and monitoring projects that create jobs among young people.
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CFYE's use case
In our webinar of June 15, 2021, the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment explains how they use and benefit from Grant Management. This is a good example of 'collaborating on the same page' , by approximately 60 co-workers in the Grant Management process.
