Project will provide Osage lawmakers and the Executive Branch with a complete and accurate picture of Nation’s grant funding

The Strategic Planning & Grants Management office (SPGM) is embarking on an exciting and innovative project that will provide Osage lawmakers and the Executive Branch with a complete and accurate picture of the Nation’s grant funding. In September of last year SPGM requested an appropriation for eCivis Grants Network after more than a year of searching and evaluating solutions to help manage the Nation’s grants. This is the first of several articles covering this project.

Over the past three years SPGM had been using MS Excel to track the nation’s grants but not very successfully. MS Excel wasn’t a good fit; the spreadsheet was basically a list of numbers separated by divisions. The Nation needed something relational; if we know what our entire grant funding picture looks like this helps determine what kinds of grants to plan for, and provides decision makers with accurate and timely information.

The search ended in 2010 after SPGM attended the National Grants Management Conference and found eCivis. Grants Network is not software that we have to install and maintain on our internal servers, it’s a web-based subscription. The technology behind it is what is known as software-as-a-service (saas). Grant data is accessed through the Cloud over a secure connection using a web browser. There is no costly desktop software or network infrastructure that we had to purchase and we don’t have to travel for training, it’s been accomplished so far online via WebEx.

Another reason Grants Network was chosen is its strong tracking and reporting components. From a funder’s point of view, it’s imperative to show that our programs are meeting their stated grant objectives, having positive outcomes and submitting progress reports on time. Grants Network allows us to electronically file all grant documentation in one place, but more importantly financial and programmatic reports will be tied to a grant. There will be a complete grant history along with its reporting cycle. Grants Network will automatically generate e-mail reminders to management when report deadlines are approaching. Bells go off sooner and we can proactively address reporting issues before they turn into a crisis.

Project work started in December and grants staff has been gathering data and working through issues. Grant information has been added for Cultural Resources and Education divisions, and capturing our 638 Self Governance funding amounts. At the same time we are reviewing internal processes and finalizing our grants policies and procedures, all of which will need to be integrated and communicated through the branch. Although the implementation can get tedious, our goal is to bring a much needed management tool to help inform decisions and improve the Nation’s daily operations.

Grant Seeking and Writing Skills for Community Projects

This interactive workshop is designed to give all levels of grant writers a detailed overview of how to research and write successful grant funding requests. The tips and skills presented are applicable to federal, state, foundation, and corporate proposals and applications. Previous workshop attendees have seen their grant win rates increase after spending a day with Dr. Bev Browning.

Exercises and discussions will include researching regional and national grantmakers, matching funder priorities to organizations’ needs, writing award-winning narrative sections for the Common Grant Application format, and understanding the grant proposal selection process of private- and public-sector grantmakers.

 Takeaways include increased ability to:

• Research grant funding opportunities via the Internet
• Determine a go or no-go grant funding opportunity
• Make initial contact with potential funders to determine interest
• Find relevant and current demographics to support the statement of need
• Write in a storytelling format
• Identify what funders expect to see in award-winning grant requests

About the Founder and Trainer

Dr. Beverly A. Browning has been consulting in the areas of grant writing, contract bid responses, and organizational development for nearly four decades. Her clients have included chambers of commerce, faith-based organizations, units of local and county municipal government, state and federal government agencies, school districts and colleges, social and human service agencies, hospitals, fire departments, service associations, and Fortune 500 corporations. Dr. Browning has assisted clients and workshop participants throughout the United States in receiving awards of more than $350 million.

Dr. Browning is the author of over 39 grants-related publications, including Grant Writing For Dummies™ (4 editions), Grant Writing for Educators, How to Become a Grant Writing Consultant, Faith-Based Grants: Aligning Your Church to Receive Abundance, Perfect Phrases for Writing Grant Proposals and Prefect Phrases for Fundraising (new in 2012). She holds degrees in Organizational Development, Public Administration, and Business Administration. Dr. Browning is a grant writing course developer and online facilitator for Ed2Go.com, a former faculty member at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organization Management, and a current member of the American Association of Grant Professionals. She is CEO of Bev Browning & Associates (BBA, Inc.), Founder and Director of the Grant Writing Training, and most recently, the new Vice President for Grants Professional Services at eCivis Inc.

Click here to register for Dr. Beverly Browning's workshop. Space is limited, sign up today!

The Port of LA uses eCivis Grants Network to manage millions of dollars in project funding.

Alachua County, FL uses eCivis to help nonprofits find grant money

City of McPherson, KS partners with eCivis to find and win grants

eCivis announces the recent appointment of Dr. Bev Browning as Vice President of Grants Professional Services (GPS)

Jackson County partners with eCivis to find and manage more grants

eCivis announces new partnerships with the City of Corcoran, CA, the County of Jeffersonville, IN, and the Oasis of Hope Foundation, WA to improve grant funding

You spoke. We listened. An even better Grants Network is here!

Visit eCivis at the RILCT 11th Annual Convention