Dianne Aigaki, and her team of experts all come to the workshop arena with exemplary credentials from the business and non-profit world. Their experience working with hundreds of businesses and non-profit organizations worldwide allows them to guide the workshop participants to quickly cut through confusion and get to the point, building strong project plans that insure effective project implementation.
The Funding Forum has created a custom manual based on 40 years of experience in the field. Insight and Clear Thinking: The Way to Effective Project Development and Grant Writing references over 100 successfully funded projects from all over the world. Each attendee receives a copy of the manual, which:
- Demystifies the funding world—discussing how and why donors fund projects and how to take your place at the table of funding opportunities.
- Lifts the reader out of the “non-profit poverty mentality” and gives them solid reasons for being hopeful about their chances of securing funding for their project.
- Takes participants step-by-step through the process of writing a solid, compelling project plan, which can be modified to become a winning grant proposal.
- Incorporates thousands of key points, ideas and strategies gleaned from the Funding Forum team of professional grant writers and non-profit consultants.
- Uses specific examples of all proposal components from successful proposals (e.g., objectives, evaluation plans, line item budgets).
Chapters include: Abstract, Statement of Purpose; Introduction to the Organization; Introduction to the Project; Statement of Need; Target Population; Goals; Specific Objectives; Implementation Plan; Evaluation Plan; Future Funding Strategies; Dissemination Plan; Line Item Budget; Support Materials.
Professional editors work side-by-side with the participants, helping them translate their organization’s story into a solid project plan and winning funding proposal. The editors ask and answer questions, strategize methodology, keep participants focused and moving ahead, hour by hour. At night, a second team of online editors receives the proposals and adds their valuable questions and insights. When participants return to the workshop in the morning, they are met with a fresh copy of their growing project plan and funding proposal—ready to take the next steps to completion.
When the participants go out the door after five days of powerful training, they leave with a completed project plan/funding proposal and a commitment to:
- Inservice their Boards of Directors, management and operational staff on what they have learned and what the project plan/proposal document includes.
- Contact funders and start the process of looking for true partnerships.
- Create a strategy and timeline for proposal submission and follow-through.
Bi-monthly tracking and monitoring after the workshop determines the number of proposals written, submitted and funded. This one-on-one contact with participants also serves as a platform to answer any questions about the applications process, which may have arisen since the workshop. A six-month report is submitted to donors so they can see the impact of their donation on the community.
