Back to Basics: Don't Forget to Start with the Project Innovator Form

The grant innovator form is a simple document I use to organize an agency as it seeks grants. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with this surprisingly by following this link.

http://grantwriters.ning.com/profiles/blogs/first-things-first-launch-your

By asking your colleagues to fill it out, you will subtly motivate them to help you get grant funding. The form also subtly calls upon you and your associates to think through why a program is needed by your clients in the first place. It reminds you that the clients are the reason why the Foundation feels comfortable in giving money to your non-profit organization.

This form is also a useful way for helping your colleagues determine how much they know about a particular project, where funding for that project might come from, and even some of the details about how the project would be organized.

As a grant writer, use of this form can spare you from many difficulties. It will allow the agency to really think through whether or not it really wants a project completed well before a particular funding source becomes surprisingly available to you. It will also encourage the agency staff and leadership to have their political struggle now, and not later when you are in the midst of trying to complete the last minute grant application.

Over the years, I have found that there is surprising wisdom in this form. (I am always sorry if I neglected taking the time needed to persuade others to fill it out.)

If you are the Executive Director of an agency, I think you will also find that this is a convenient tool for helping your subordinates identify and prioritize the most important projects before them. Having a set of these forms filled out for your agency will give you an excellent overview of the most important projects which need to be accomplished by your staff. It will also give you the opportunity to prioritize the projects and to shape the agenda for your agency’s future.