5 Steps to Take After You Win a Grant

Most people worry about writing the grant application and submitting it on time. But what happens when you win grant money? How can you make your funders happy? Are there things you should do and not do? What you do after winning the grant is vital and a way to know if you will win more grants proposals. Therefore, after celebrating your grant win with your friends, family, and colleagues. Below are some vital steps to ensure your funder is happy with you. 

1. Thank the funder 

The first thing to do is to show your gratitude to the funder. There are many ways you can thank the funder but giving them a call for starters is better. This is beneficial, for it adds a personal touch to your funder and makes them feel you appreciate them. Plus, you can discuss any changes you need to make to the proposal. And, you can check the funders’ public acknowledgment requirements and preferences as you speak. Some have specific acknowledgment needs, others do not mind sharing it publicly, and others do not want public notice of their award. After talking on the phone, send a thank you card, then thank them on social media, interviews, and newspaper announcements, among other places. 

2. Review your grant proposal 

It is wise to review the grant proposal you submitted. First, focus on the activities on your grant proposal and the timeline to implement them. Since funders can take months to respond to the grant proposal. Some things may have changed. For instance, you may have some new services taking up your employees’ time, or you are understaffed. Some of these changes may make it

impossible for the implementation time to be the same. Also, compare the amount you get to the amount you requested. Compare all these and share the changes with the funder to get a way forward. 

3. Inform your partners 

Did you submit your grant proposal in collaboration with other agencies? If this is the case, inform the partners about the win. It is vital to notify them immediately and not later. As long as the partners gave support, as little as a meeting space or referrals, it is best to share with them. Also, inform any agencies that offered letters of submission of support on your behalf. More importantly, you will work with some of these partners to implement the grant activities. You must finalize the associated and collaboration contracts to finalize the details. 

4. Plan for implementation

You may win a grant that is funding an expanded or new program. If this is the case, start to plan for implementation. There are no techniques for planning. A lot of things depend on how the planning process will go on. It includes the partner relationships, size of your organization, requirements, and size of your grant. But, the vital thing is including everyone who needs visibility on the grant award and the requirements. This includes your service staff, human resources, managers and finance staff, and partner agency staff, among others. 

5. Plan for the grant reporting

Planning for grant reporting should be immediate, as the planning for implementation. The funders want to know the impact money has had as you use it through the grant period. Where you do not receive reporting guidance, ask your funder about the due dates and requirements. Once you know, add the dates to your grant calendar, if the funder does not have any grant reporting requirements. Send an update in the middle of the grant years and another in the end. The updates should include successes, financial information, challenges, lessons learned, and progress on the various activities. If you have pictures, new stories, testimonials, videos, and quotes, add them as well. 

To conclude, the above are things to do when you win the grant. If you have more and are necessary, you can add them to the list as well. More importantly, remember that successful grant management begins once you win the grant. There is a lot more to consider. But with proper organization and planning, you will be successful and win more grant money in the future.