To win over grant makers and keep them giving to your organization, it’s vital to show how you’re reaching your goals. But gathering reliable data — and using it to show the results of your work — takes skills and resources many nonprofits lack.
In fact, more than half of American charities say money is an obstacle to assessing results, according to a 2016 survey of more than 1,000 nonprofits.
Spending on evaluation should represent 5 to 10 percent of an organization’s total budget.
It can be tough to secure grant dollars for monitoring and evaluation because donors often prefer to support programs or services, experts say.
On the other hand, says Lissette Rodriguez, chief program officer of the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, some grant makers may not know that nonprofits need such support. “We’ve heard grantees say, ‘Funders don’t provide support for this,’ and we’ve heard funders say, ‘People aren’t asking for support for this,’ ” she says. “So, I think there’s a little bit of a circular conversation going on.”
Foundations typically don’t highlight program evaluation on their websites or in their grant-making guidelines as something they’re interested in paying for, Rodriguez says. But you shouldn’t assume that means they wouldn’t consider it if they understood why you needed it.
“A lot of funders don’t realize what it really takes to do this well,” she says. “So there’s a level of understanding that I think the nonprofit has to help build.”
Here’s how to persuade foundations to provide support:
Show you’re prepared for evaluation. It’s important to demonstrate that your nonprofit is ready to make the most of data collection and analysis. Here are a few things you should have in place.
Get buy-in from your leaders. Provide evidence that critical employees — such as the executive director, head of programs, and data experts on staff — are willing to put in the time and effort required to succeed at measurement. For example, outline steps your organization has taken to improve its assessment, Rodriguez says, such as hiring specialized personnel or buying a new tool. If you’ve already started tracking your work, say so — and share what you’re learning.
A group of grant makers who run the RISE Partnership, a three-year, $3 million program that trains nonprofits in evaluation, asks potential participants to submit a letter from their top leader explaining why measurement is important. “We believe this has to be empowered at the top,” says Joseph Pyle, president of the Scattergood Foundation, which helps finance the program.
Develop and nurture a culture that uses and values data. No matter how you approach data tracking and analysis, says Albert Chung, chief corporate communications officer at the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, those activities should be part of your organization’s core work, not viewed as separate or optional. “It’s actually a cultural shift in an organization that needs to occur to embrace data,” he says, and some groups may not be ready to make this change.
Demonstrate an ability to learn and adapt. When assessing potential grantees, the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation looks at challenges the nonprofits have faced in the past — such as a failed program or a grant that fell through — to see how they respond in such situations. The foundation wants to support groups that demonstrate a willingness to reconsider how they’re approaching their work and make changes when needed, Rodriguez says.
Prioritize financial stability. Grant makers understand that nonprofit budgets have ups and downs, she says. But you shouldn’t have any immediate financial concerns that could take away from your ability to focus on evaluation, which is a long-term effort. “If you’re worried about making payroll, measurement isn’t going to be necessarily at the top of the list of the things that you are going to feel compelled to do,” Rodriguez says.
Show how evaluation will contribute to your organization’s overall success. Some nonprofits shy away from asking for resources to track and analyze activities because they’re afraid of revealing that they haven’t been measuring their work or have not been doing it well. However, you should help donors see evaluation of your programs as an integral — and ongoing — part of advancing your mission, Rodriguez says. If a foundation has paid you for these efforts before, she adds, explain that you need continued support to ensure you stay on track toward reaching your goals. “Even if you’re doing something well, you constantly want to be looking for ways to do it better,” she says.
Also communicate that mastering measurement takes time and practice, she says. “It isn’t something folks just automatically know how to do.” Explain that to make smart decisions, you must collect data over time and learn how to interpret and apply it.
For the Hewlett Foundation, evaluation is primarily a “tool for learning,” says Amy Arbreton, evaluation officer. “And learning is a key part of being an effective nonprofit.” (The Hewlett Foundation is a financial supporter of the Chronicle of Philanthropy.)
Define your goal for the evaluation, she says, and clearly articulate that to donors — both what you hope to learn and how your organization is prepared to use the insights to improve. When asking for money for this work, she recommends framing it as a means to strengthen your organization.
Be realistic about the amount of money you need. A common guideline for spending on evaluation is that it should represent 5 to 10 percent of an organization’s total budget, but most groups spend less than that, according to the Innovation Network’s research. The right sum for your charity will depend on your needs and goals, but 1 to 3 percent of your budget could be a place to start, Rodriguez says.
To figure out how much money to request in a proposal, she says, consider whether you’ll need to hire more staff members or purchase a new tool and maintain it over time. Think about how much time your team will need to spend on these efforts, too. That may depend on how easily your organization can collect relevant data, Rodriguez says. For example, an arts group that wants to track attendance at its events would likely require less time and money to gather statistics than a foster-care agency seeking to find people it served many years ago.
Another way to determine the cost of program evaluation is to find out how much your nonprofit peers are spending and set benchmarks, Arbreton says.
No matter how much money you solicit, Rodriguez says, think of program evaluation as a continuous journey rather than a destination. Convey that to your donors, too, so they understand why they should consider giving you this type of support more than once. “There’s always some new frontier to meet,” she says, such as improving your data-collection process, upgrading your technology, or tracking results over a longer period.
