I love grant writing Facebook groups. They are a great way to connect with fellow grant professionals and learn new things about the industry.
Join my Facebook Group here.
I mostly enjoy the time I spend in these groups, with one exception. It infuriates me when “grant writers” offer their services for commission or when nonprofits solicit grant writers for commission.
Grant writing is a skilled profession. Like other skilled professions, there are associations that exist to guide and protect the industry.
Every one of the grant writing associations is clear about one thing- writing grants for a commission is unethical.
Why? So many reasons…
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Simply put, writing on commission means that a grant writer completes the research, compiles documents, writes, and submits and only gets paid if the grant is awarded.
Related: 5 reasons why I only write grants on a monthly retainer
This is wrong on many levels.
- Grant writers are paid to research and write grants, not win grants. There are so many reasons why a grant won’t be funded and very few of those reasons have anything to do with the actual grant writer.
- Writing grants on commission has been deemed unethical by the two biggest grant writing associations (GPA and AFP).
- Grant funders prohibit this practice. It is extremely unlikely that you will ever find a grant that allows for a commission to be paid from the grant award.
- The math doesn’t math. If a grant writer were to receive 5% commission on a grant award, they would receive $12,500 for a $250,000 and $250 for a $5000 grant. The two grants could take the same time to write and submit. And this doesn’t account for the labor invested in grants that were not awarded.
As professionals, we deserve to be paid for our skill and expertise. Even if you are desperate for a client, do not agree to work on commission.
Until next time,
Write Epic Grants
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