Grant Wr

Grant Writing & Proposal Management Playbook for Evidence-Based Nonprofits
A comprehensive guide to navigating the complex world of institutional fundraising, proposal development, and donor management for evidence-focused nonprofit organizations.
Overview of Formal Proposal & RFP Processes
1
Initial Engagement
Many donors use a two-stage approach, starting with brief concept notes or letters of inquiry before inviting full proposals if the concept shows promise.
2
Proposal Development
Full proposals undergo competitive review, often scored against specific criteria, leading to selection and award negotiation.
3
Implementation & Reporting
After award, organizations must fulfill rigorous reporting requirements on both results and expenditures.
Nonprofits should prepare for this end-to-end journey, from concept notes through detailed proposal writing, possible revisions requested by funders, formal contracting, and ongoing compliance once funded.
Government Agency Funding
Government agencies like USAID, FCDO, and EU issue formal Requests for Proposals (RFPs) or Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) with strict formats and deadlines. These often read like legal documents with exhaustive requirements.
Cost Share Requirements
Government grants may mandate cost share (grantee co-financing). For instance, EU grants nearly always require a co-funding contribution (often ~10%) from the NGO.
Compliance Rules
U.S. government awards require following detailed policies (e.g., USAID's ADS, FAR regulations), while EU grants enforce their own financial guidelines and monitoring protocols.
M&E Frameworks
These donors typically expect robust Monitoring & Evaluation frameworks (logframes or results frameworks) and might require specific sections on gender, environmental impact, or sustainability.
Multilateral Agency Funding
Multilateral agencies like UN agencies and the Global Fund have RFP processes similar to governments, often with additional layers of coordination. UN agency RFPs mirror UN procurement style with strict templates, eligibility checks, and sometimes e-tender portals.
The Global Fund has a unique country-driven application model, but NGO-led grants must align with national strategies and include extensive data and justification. Common requirements include detailed M&E plans and compliance with specific policies.
Non-Negotiable Deadlines
Late submissions are typically disqualified without exception.
Partnership Requirements
Multilateral grants might require consortium partnerships or endorsements (e.g., Global Fund proposals involve Country Coordinating Mechanisms).
Performance Frameworks
The Global Fund requires adherence to its performance framework and any conditions set by its Board.
Large Foundation Funding
Major foundations like Gates Foundation and Hewlett Foundation often issue calls for proposals or accept proposals by invitation. Their processes can be slightly more flexible on formatting than government RFPs, but still have standardized guidelines and strict deadlines.
Evidence-Based Focus
Foundations prioritize outcomes-focused proposals with clear problem statements, theory of change, strong data, and cost-effective solutions.
Unique Requirements
May include intellectual property clauses, open access policies for research, or specific evaluation plans.
Impact Measurement
High emphasis on measuring impact, requiring detailed monitoring & evaluation frameworks.
Philanthropic Collaboratives Funding
Multi-donor big bet initiatives like Co-Impact and TED's Audacious Project seek transformative impact. Their processes often start with open calls or referrals for bold ideas, typically beginning with a short concept note submitted during a 2-3 month window.
Shortlisted candidates develop extensive proposals through a collaborative due diligence phase. While they share similarities with other funders—hard deadlines, competitive selection, required formats—these donors often place extra focus on systems-change narrative and scalability.
The Audacious Project conducts rigorous due diligence and an ideation process with finalists to ensure each proposal is both achievable and compelling.
These initiatives typically fund only proposals demonstrating evidence-backed solutions with potential to scale to millions, with less bureaucratic day-to-day compliance but an extremely high strategic bar.
Common Threads Across Institutional Donors
Fixed Deadlines
Missing a deadline is usually automatic grounds for rejection, with little flexibility offered.
Standardized Formats
Proposals must address every question or section outlined in the RFP; missing requirements can eliminate a proposal from consideration.
Merit-Based Review
Proposals are scored by review committees against criteria like technical approach, organizational capacity, past performance, and budget value.
High-scoring proposals follow instructions to the letter, align closely with the funder's stated priorities, and articulate clear, measurable outcomes. Effective teams navigate a similar cycle across all donor types—strategic planning, meticulous proposal development, and rigorous compliance—while demonstrating evidence-based, cost-effective impact.
Essential Skills & Knowledge for Proposal Teams
Successful institutional fundraising requires a specialized skill set that combines technical expertise, project management capabilities, and interpersonal effectiveness. Organizations must build development teams equipped to handle complex funding opportunities across various donor types.
Building Competent Proposal Teams
Managing large-scale proposals and RFP responses requires a blend of technical expertise, project management, and soft skills. Organizations like Evidence Action or GiveDirectly build development teams with broad competencies to handle complex institutional funding opportunities.
The following sections outline the essential skills and knowledge areas that make proposal teams effective at securing competitive institutional funding.
Technical Proposal Writing
The ability to craft clear, compelling narratives is fundamental. Proposal specialists must translate complex technical concepts (e.g., epidemiological data, economic analysis) into succinct and persuasive prose accessible to evaluators.
Strong writing skills include structuring documents logically, using evidence and data effectively, and tailoring language to the donor's terminology. Being detail-oriented is crucial – proposals often have strict page limits and specific formats, so every sentence must count.
Even highly technical proposals benefit from a clear "story" of the problem and solution that resonates with funders. Effective storytelling can make complex interventions more accessible to review committees.
Budgeting & Financial Analysis
Cost Principles
Understanding allowable vs. unallowable costs per donor rules (e.g., USAID's cost principles, EU budget categories), indirect cost calculations, and any required cost share.
Budget Accuracy
Ensuring the budget reflects the program design accurately and can withstand reviews or audits while demonstrating strong Value for Money.
Technical Skills
Ability to use spreadsheets or specialized budgeting software and perform scenario analyses (e.g., scaling budget up or down) as needed.
Institutional donors scrutinize budgets for cost-effectiveness and compliance. Development team members need solid skills in preparing detailed budgets and budget narratives that meet donor requirements.
Donor Compliance & Regulations
Every institutional funder has a web of regulations – from procurement rules to monitoring requirements. Proposal teams must internalize the compliance landscape before submission.
For example, a USAID proposal manager should know the basics of 2 CFR 200 (U.S. federal grant rules) and standard provisions. Similarly, understanding EU procurement rules, the Global Fund's grant policies, or a foundation's reporting requirements can inform how you shape the proposal.
Specialized knowledge like USAID's environmental and gender compliance processes often gives a competitive edge – proposals that preemptively address these compliance areas tend to score better.
Project Management & Coordination
Planning
Creating detailed workplans with milestones for drafting, reviews, and approvals.
Coordination
Managing inputs from diverse contributors – program experts, M&E specialists, finance, HR – with clear roles and timelines.
Execution
Using tools like calendars, Gantt charts, or project management software to track progress and keep everyone on schedule.
Developing a large proposal is itself a project. Strong project management skills are needed to handle parallel workstreams and deadlines. Attention to detail is critical; missing a minor required attachment or failing to address a clarification question can derail an otherwise strong proposal.
Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) Frameworks
Given the emphasis on evidence-based impact, proposal teams need competency in designing logical frameworks, theories of change, and M&E plans. They should know how to formulate SMART objectives and relevant indicators, outline data collection methods, and anticipate how results will be measured and reported.
Donors like to see a clear plan for measuring success – many RFPs ask for an M&E or "Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL)" section. Familiarity with tools like logframes and concepts such as baseline surveys or RCTs (if relevant) is important, especially for evidence-focused nonprofits.
Subject Matter Understanding
While proposal managers are not always technical experts, they must have enough domain knowledge to understand program design and communicate it effectively. In global health and development, funders will ask for context analysis, description of the intervention, and evidence backing it.
Proposal team members should stay updated on sector trends (e.g., latest research on malaria prevention if working with AMF, or cash transfer evidence if with GiveDirectly) to position their proposals in line with current best practices. They should also grasp the organization's own programs deeply – what has worked, key metrics, and success stories.
Soft Skills – Collaboration and Communication
Cross-Team Collaboration
Ability to convene program managers, researchers, field staff, finance officers, and sometimes external partners to gather inputs.
Stakeholder Management
Skills in managing up (securing leadership buy-in) and sideways (motivating colleagues to meet deadlines or revise inputs).
Effective Communication
Needed not just for writing the proposal, but for running meetings, resolving conflicts over proposal strategy, and keeping everyone aligned.
Successful proposal development is inherently collaborative. As one resource puts it, "Proposal writing is not a one man's job… it involves several actors, contributing to the soul of the proposal."
Attention to Detail & Quality Assurance
Institutional proposals involve dozens of requirements and documents – from executive summaries to CVs of key personnel. A good proposal specialist has a meticulous eye to ensure everything is in order.
This includes proofreading for errors, verifying that all donor instructions were followed, and checking that the narrative, budget, and logframe are consistent with each other.
Proposal teams often use checklists or compliance matrices to double-check that every required section and attachment is included. This quality control mindset helps avoid common pitfalls like forgetting a required form or mismatching numbers between budget and narrative.
Adaptability and Stress Management
The nature of competitive bids is high-pressure and often involves last-minute changes. Proposal teams should remain calm and effective under tight deadlines, adapt to new information (e.g., a donor answers a Q&A that changes a requirement mid-process), and possibly work non-traditional hours when a deadline looms.
The ability to pivot and iterate quickly is valuable – for example, if initial feedback on a draft is poor, the team may need to overhaul sections rapidly. Resilience and a solutions-oriented attitude go a long way in proposal management roles.
The Multi-Disciplinary Proposal Professional
Grant Writer
Crafting compelling narratives that persuade funders
Financial Analyst
Developing detailed, compliant budgets
Compliance Officer
Ensuring adherence to donor regulations
Project Manager
Coordinating complex proposal development
Team Leader
Fostering collaboration across departments
Proposal teams at leading nonprofits are multi-disciplinary professionals. A Development Manager or Director needs multiple skill sets while maintaining a strategic vision of how each proposal contributes to the organization's mission.
Onboarding & Training Modules for Proposal Management
Bringing new team members up to speed quickly is vital in a fast-moving fundraising environment. A structured onboarding and training program ensures that Development staff (managers, associates, proposal writers) gain the necessary knowledge, skills, and institutional context to excel.
The following sections outline a modular training curriculum, along with best practices for the proposal process.
Modular Training Structure
It's effective to organize training for new hires into clear modules that cover both the "big picture" and the technical nuts-and-bolts. A comprehensive training program should include modules on RFP processes, budgeting, workplans, monitoring and evaluation, donor compliance, and internal systems.
This approach ensures new team members develop both breadth and depth in the skills needed for successful proposal management.
Module 1: RFP Process Basics
1
Lifecycle Understanding
Cover the end-to-end lifecycle of proposals and key terminology. New staff learn about different donor types and how to read and interpret an RFP/NOFO.
2
Internal Processes
Review the organization's internal process for responding to funding opportunities and examine successful past proposals as case examples.
3
Practical Application
Have new staff read actual RFP documents from USAID or a foundation to become familiar with their structure and requirements.
By the end of this module, the new hire should grasp how a concept note evolves into a funded project and the common requirements along the way.
Module 2: Budgeting & Cost Principles
This module provides a deep dive on developing budgets for proposals. It covers donor cost principles (e.g., allowable costs under USG grants, typical expense categories like personnel, travel, admin, overhead).
Trainees practice building a simple project budget and linking it to a narrative. The module explains the organization's indirect cost rate, how to calculate cost share if needed, and tools like budget templates or calculators.
Emphasis is placed on aligning the budget with the program plan (no orphan line-items, and no activities unfunded). The module also touches on compliance aspects like procurement policies for budgeted items.
Module 3: Workplan & Risk Mitigation
1
Workplan Development
Training on translating a project design into a detailed implementation plan, creating Gantt charts that map activities by timeline and responsibilities.
2
Risk Identification
Learning to identify project risks (operational, security, financial) that could impact implementation.
3
Mitigation Strategies
Developing realistic mitigation measures like diversification of suppliers, community engagement to address political risk, and contingency planning.
This module is key for proposals to donors like USAID or the EU that often have sections on sustainability and risk management. New hires learn to articulate assumptions and risks, and how to propose practical solutions.
Module 4: Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL)
This module focuses on designing results frameworks and MEL plans. Trainees learn to develop logical frameworks (logframes), set indicators (distinguishing outputs vs. outcomes vs. impact), and outline data collection and reporting processes.
They practice writing narratives describing how projects will track progress and evaluate success, and are introduced to any internal tools or templates the organization uses for MEL in proposals.
The module also covers incorporating lessons from past projects – referencing prior evaluation findings to justify approaches (showing a feedback loop, which donors appreciate). Given evidence-based nonprofits put MEL at the forefront, this module is crucial for quality proposals.
Module 5: Donor Compliance 101
Government Regulations
Overview of USAID rules (environmental compliance, branding/marking requirements, 2 CFR 200), EU grant compliance (co-financing rules, reporting obligations), and other key donor requirements.
Practical Tools
Providing checklists – e.g., a proposal compliance checklist template where staff can tick off each requirement as they build a proposal.
Preventative Approach
Emphasizing that "compliance starts at proposal" – getting it right at submission prevents headaches later in the project lifecycle.
The aim isn't to make new staff experts overnight, but to sensitize them to compliance areas to watch. For instance, they should always check if a donor has specific formatting or submission portal instructions.
Module 6: Internal Processes & Tools
Every organization has its way of managing proposal workflows. This module trains new hires on how the nonprofit handles proposal development internally, including the use of any CRM or pipeline tracking system to log opportunities.
It covers how to fill in internal go/no-go forms and the schedule of internal meetings (like pipeline meetings or proposal review sessions). The module also introduces document management systems, templates, and approval processes specific to the organization.