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Seven Ways to Improve Grant Management-Part I

Seven Ways to Improve Grant Management-Part II admit it! When it comes to grant management, I’m kind of “geeky.”

I love knowing what’s working with federal grant management and what goes wrong when good grants go bad.

If you want to see how things can go wrong with grant management…I mean, REALLY wrong; one of the places I love to learn more is the written reports from the various Office of the Inspectors General (OIG).

Similarly, when I want to know ways to avoid mistakes and improve the grant management process, I look to the OIG reports for “real world” advice.

After all, the OIG is in the trenches, following up on issues and cleaning up messes when things go horribly wrong.

In this series, I’m going to share seven of my favorite suggestions from the OIG to improve federal grant management:

#1 Program Development Is More Than a Good Grant Writer

I’ve discovered that the increased focus on meeting program objectives from the beginning to the end of the period of performance has blurred the lines between grant writing and grant management.

If you are a good grant writer or know a good grant writer, you can become an even better grant writer by understanding the requirements that will sustain the program after the funding is awarded.

Likewise, your chances for successful program outcomes increase when grant managers and grant writers communicate and collaborate before, during, and after the application process for federal grants.

Communication and collaboration are often overlooked steps that help you clarify expectations and create more measurable and obtainable performance measurements to meet legislative intent and program objectives.

#2 An Ounce of Red-Flag Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure

You’ve probably heard me say this as I go out and speak about grant management: The Uniform Guidance, also known as 2 CFR Part 200, is a game changer for federal grant recipients.

In the past, federal funders followed a “pay and chase” strategy for federal government funding.

But now, federal funders want to ensure you are the “best bet” to complete the planned work.

And the way that federal agencies are doing that is with the implementation of the pre-award risk assessment process.

And even non-federal funders and corporate sponsors are getting on board with this shift to assessing risk BEFORE giving out the money.

Consider these questions:

  • How will the funds received be tracked?
  • Do you have written accounting and procurement procedures in place?
  • How will you track property, inventory, and supplies purchased with grant funds?
  • Do you have an accounting system capable of tracking all drawdowns and grant expenditures separately by the specific funding source?
  • Are performance objectives communicated clearly so program staff and others understand the measurement criteria?
  • What data elements must you collect and track to measure your progress in meeting performance measurements?
  • What is your record retention policy?

All of these areas are of increasing importance to federal funders.

#3 The Risky Business of Risk Assessment

So, you may have heard about the new pre-award risk assessment requirement for Federal agencies to review the “worthiness” of applicants, and perhaps you are even aware of the dire consequences when your organization is dubbed “not ready” for prime time.

But the whole concept of risk management goes beyond just this pre-award time period.

If you are a pass-through entity, have you reviewed the entire list of funding requirements that follow you into the post-award grant management period?

Are you completing a similar review of the risk posed by sub-awardees?

Sound business practices and broadened internal control requirements on the federal side beg for a broader perspective and assessment of the risks associated with taking grant funds of any type!

  • Do you have the infrastructure to manage the grant you’ve been given successfully?
  • Is your organization in good financial standing, or is the grant your “last-ditch” way to keep the doors open?
  • Have you successfully managed grants in the past, or do you have a string of corrective action plans a mile long?
  • What is the “tone at the top”? In other words, does senior management support the highest integrity and ethical behavior levels?
  • Can you demonstrate transparency in the spending of grant funds to the various stakeholders?

You will find that risk and integrity are inextricably intertwined.

Both are designed to reduce the risk of waste, fraud, or abuse of grant funds.

Therefore, organizations wanting to receive or increase grant funding must be out in front of the funding agency’s questions with a solid risk mitigation strategy and plan.

More to come….              

Next week, I’ll share Part II of Seven Ways to Improve Grant Management with more OIG recommendations for improving grant management.

Stay tuned as we dig deeper into monitoring, performance measurements, and more…

Ready to Deepen Your Understanding of Federal Funding?

Would you like to be a better grant writer or manager?

Deepen your understanding of procurement and the single audit for federal grants?

We have another grant training seminar coming soon.

Click here to get all the details!

Hope to see you there!

Rachel Werner

 

 

 

 

Rachel Werner, MPA, GPC, PMP

MyFedTrainer Principal, Compliance Champion

 

Federal grant management templates