How to Think Like a Funding Source

There’s no greater secret to successfully obtaining grants than to precisely match what you can provide to a funding agency in exchange for their money. From the eyes of the funding source, winning a grant has very little to do with what you need or what you want. With competitions for dwindling funds becoming greater and more challenging, the applicants that make the most compelling cases for using grant money to promote the funding source’s mandates will have the strongest chance for success.

It is critical to remember that the grant process only works when you are able to look at your project from the values, vision, and the agenda of each funding source you consider. This requires learning what each funding source holds to be of importance by conducting some research about their missions, their priorities, and their funding history… in addition to their funding opportunities.

There are many good strategies for learning about funding sources. Here are a few:

Talk with your peers, especially those at other institutions, to learn of their experiences with the funding source. Ask if they, or someone they know, have been successful with obtaining support from the funding source. Oftentimes, people will share their funded proposals with others who seek to replicate their project or do similar work on the same topic, so ask if they might share theirs with you. Reading proposals funded by the funding source is a quick way to understand the proposal style expected by staff readers there.

Talk with the IA staff to learn about their experiences with specific funding sources that interest you. The staff can assist you or put you in touch with resources that you may find helpful.

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Contact the funding source directly. Before picking up the phone, do a little research before making that call. Identify one or more of their programs of interest to you, If you’re not sure which programs, use the CFDA portal (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance - Grants) for federal programs, the MASS.GOV portal (http://www.mass.gov) for state programs, the Foundation Center portal (http://fconline.fdncenter.org) for foundation programs, or the funding source’s website for information. When you’ve gotten a short list of questions to ask, call and ask to speak with a program officer who can assist you with your questions about your idea and their interests. Information about foundations and corporate giving programs are available at their websites. Their Annual Reports and lists of awards made in recent years will give you an idea of how they have given their money on the projects important to them. (Note: most foundations and corporate giving offices have few employees, so be prepared to wait a while before having your call returned.)

Talk with leaders in professional organizations in your field. Most of these people will know others who have been successful with funding sources and can put you in touch with people who have won grants, and share tips, about your list of funding sources. Several funding sources use field readers in their proposal review process; people with such experience are generally well known among the members of professional organizations.

Subscribe to listservs and other discussion groups. Many funding agencies and professional organizations have groups that frequently post information and discussions about their programs and their philosophies. EDInfo, for example, is the listserv of the US Department of Education.

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