A grant application has requested the salary information for leadership a few times this year. Twice, it was part of a funding request for staff salaries, and once, it was a general question.
When a nonprofit organization is grant-ready, it understands this request and is happy to provide the information in the hope that the grant will fund a portion of the salaries.
Every once in a while, I work with a client who feels that this is private information and resists. This always confuses me because, most of the time, if they are properly reporting, this information can be found within the pages of their 990.
Related: What are the 4 main types of grant funding?
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So, how should grant writers handle this resistance?
In the past, I have scheduled a call with the Executive Director to assure her of a few things:
- Many of the salaries are included in the public 990 and are not private.
- The grant funder will not fund an incomplete application.
- As their grant writer, I adhere to professional standards, including privacy and protecting confidential information.
For a grant writer to successfully secure grant funding, we need to know all the things. We need access to accurate outcome reporting, we need to know which salaries need to be funded, we need to know about and be able to explain budget discrepancies, and we need bank account information for direct deposited grants.
If your organization is not transparent, winning grants will be a challenge. Start the necessary conversations to ensure that your Executive Director understands why you need the information and provide privacy assurances.
Until next time,
Write Epic Grants