Good grants management requires grantees to use their federal funds in the best interests of their federal grants and not have a conflict of interest.
But when the people put their personal best interests before the best interests of the federal program, the result can shatter trust-both with the funding agency and within the organization.
And trust, once broken, is expensive and time-consuming to repair.
The stories of conflicts of interest are perpetually in the news.
Let’s build your grant confidence by looking at how conflicts of interest can damage your organization’s reputation and grant readiness.
Conflicts of Interest-Watch for Two Types with Federal Funds
Conflicts of interest can cause harm to a program both in appearance and in fact.
Here are some examples of these two types of conflicts of interest.
Conflict of Interest-in appearance:
A conflict of interest in appearance is when something looks bad.
Based on the facts and circumstances, there may or may NOT be a conflict of interest in fact.
- For example, when the spouse of a program director is hired as a consultant, and it has not yet been determined if the hiring followed a fair selection process with market pay rates and a specific verifiable work product, there is a conflict of interest in appearance.
Based on the review of how the decision was made to hire the consultant, a conflict of interest determination should be made whether or not the conflict of interest is, in fact.
Conflict of Interest-in fact:
When you have a conflict of interest, in fact, it means something IS bad.
In other words, a conflict of interest has or is occurring.
- An example is when goods or services are purchased from a family member, paying a higher price than the market value.
When it is determined that a conflict of interest, in fact, has happened, the Uniform Guidance requires grant recipients to disclose this event to their funding agency.
Organizations need to have a process to identify BOTH conflicts of interest in appearance and in fact.
This process should also include deterring and detecting when conflicts of interest occur.
6 Questions: Are Your Grants Free From Conflicts of Interest?
Ask yourself these six questions about your grant related to conflicts of interest.
Grant Question #1: Related Party Purchases
Were the goods and services purchased from a related party, such as an employee or board member’s family, or business associates?
Question #2: Related Party Employment
Did the organization hire a person in a business or personal relationship with someone else in the organization?
Question #3: Outside Influence
Was there undue influence by anyone within or outside the organization concerning the choice of a vendor or a sub-grant award decision?
Question #4: Inadequate Competition
Was the procurement made without full and open competition?
Question #5: Questionable Consultants
Was a consultant hired without a fair selection process, including determining a reasonable pay rate for the specific verifiable type of work to be done?
Question #6: Circumventing Controls
Can managers or others override or circumvent established procurement controls and policies?
How Do You Rank in Preventing Grant Fraud?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you may be at greater risk of a conflict of interest existing at your organization. You may also be putting yourself at greater risk of grant fraud.