Innovative Approaches for Grantmakers to Address Grantee Well-Being

Economic fluctuations, policy changes, climate events, and rapid advances in technology are just a few of the factors fundamentally reshaping how the nonprofit sector fulfills its mission. These challenges present an opportunity for grantees and funders to partner in creating a more sustainable future for those dedicating their lives to make the world a better place. Doing so requires recognizing and addressing the essential role of organizational and individual well-being in advancing the mission of nonprofits.  

Making this shift includes moving beyond traditional metrics of success that prioritize short-term results over long-term sustainability and embracing approaches that are relational, equitable, and human-centered. 

And many funders are stepping up to address the well-being of those doing mission-driven work. But there are still a lot of opportunities to support grantee well-being to create long-term impact. 

Challenges and Trends in Funding Grantee Well-Being 

Ultimately, creating a culture of well-being in the nonprofit sector requires a collective commitment from funders to leverage their resources and influence to champion this shift. By doing so, they can help the organizations they support to not only survive but thrive, leading to more effective and sustainable social impact for generations to come. 

But many traditional approaches to philanthropy can be unnecessarily time-consuming, burdensome, and inflexible. The cumulative impact of these practices can do more harm than good when it comes to enhancing grantee well-being and creating sustainable social impact. 

While challenges remain for funding grantee well-being, some funders are rising to meet them head on. Funders like the John Rex Endowment are shifting from directly funding programs and short-term outcomes to focusing on systemic change with more long-term impact. Some funders are reimagining grantmaking by introducing ultra-streamlined applications, such as five-minute screening forms (in lieu of Letters of Intent), and by allowing brief video reports in place of traditional written ones. And more human and grantee-centered approaches to the funder-grantee relationship—like deferential philanthropy and trust-based philanthropy—continue to grow in popularity. 

Finally, in recent years, rest as a form of justice has become a resonant topic, especially in social justice circles. Organizations like Tricia Hersey’s The Nap Ministry have helped bring the conversation about how to rest in a culture that glorifies the grind into the mainstream and give voice to what many nonprofit leaders have been saying for years. 

Executive Coach Monica Marie Jones guides fellows from The McGregor Fund’s Eugene A. Miller Fellowship program, which funds sabbaticals for staff to take extended time away from work to rest and recharge.  

“[Many nonprofit leaders] are not oriented to rest,” Monica said. “I’ve heard people say they’re ‘terrified’ or ‘I don’t want to leave my staff’ or ‘my staff deserve this, too.’ Over time, what I’ve learned is that it’s really challenging for leaders who have not had any type of rest or break or self-care in years. Even to sit down and reflect with them on what they like and what they’re interested in, some of them have blocks around that. So I found some value in taking time for on-ramping or on-boarding them to rest. To say it’s okay, let’s remember what were the things you used to love to do before you had all this responsibility.” 

Opportunities for Supporting Grantee Well-Being 

As grantees and funders adapt to changing community needs, there are many opportunities to build upon successes and learn from shortcomings. 

Being Responsive to the Current Moment 

Funders have the opportunity to respond quickly to the challenges of the current moment. Funders don’t have to wait for conditions to be perfect or roll out a convoluted application process to help current grantees who are struggling now. 
 
For Sabrina Slade, Vice President of The John Rex Endowment, the COVID-19 pandemic was a great example of this responsive approach. The endowment saw a need and responded by proactively stepping up and distributing $100K in unrestricted funds to support current grantees. They didn’t require an application, and grantees didn’t know the additional funds were coming. Sabrina shared that “sometimes we had to figure out how to shore up organizations where we gave an initial grant and they needed a little bit more to support their wellness needs. Many used the funds so that staff could outfit their homes to be able to keep the work going. We are flexible enough to do that because we’re private philanthropy. As philanthropy, we need to take some accountability for what we are asking nonprofits to do and be proactive about filling in the gaps when the need is obvious.”  

There’s also the example of the Freedom Together Foundation in response to the pause in federal funds for many nonprofits. The foundation notes: “Our board decided to spend 10% or more of our endowment — double what the law requires and what most foundations typically spend. We’re moving to provide rapid response grants to communities and organizations under attack. We’re backing groups that are defending democratic norms, as well as supporting safety and security initiatives for organizations under threat. And we’re doubling down on long-term strategies to get at the roots of the democracy crisis.” 

Similarly, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation says “it is time to tap our reserves to get more money flowing…We will immediately commit to increase our charitable payout to at least 6%…and where possible, use flexible, trust-based models for our charitable gifts. We will set it at six—as a floor, not a ceiling, for the next two years. Many of our peers, we appreciate, have done and will do even more, which we applaud.” 

Finally, the Tull Charitable Foundation responded by unrestricting previously restricted dollars, allowing all their grantees to use funds to respond the current moment based on their most urgent needs. 

Funding Bold vs. Incremental Change 

Just because a nonprofit is small doesn’t mean that they aren’t able to make transformative change if given the resources. And studies analyzing the organizations that received major gifts from MacKenzie Scott show that “…many organizations are also able to demonstrate meaningful change created for the communities they serve, and nonprofit leaders report increased confidence, reduced burnout, and greater capacity for innovation.” 

Now is the time to fund bold changes. 

James Kass, executive director of National Public Radio’s KALW, notes it’s time for funders to “stop treating small organizations as pilot projects or afterthoughts. Give them transformational funding—unrestricted, multi-year grants that let them build infrastructure, expand their work, and sustain their impact. Let them scale what works, not what fits into pre-existing frameworks of success…Innovation doesn’t happen without risk. The most transformative ideas often come from smaller organizations willing to try new things and fail forward. Yet foundations often penalize failure instead of treating it as part of the process. Fund experimentation, knowing that not every project will succeed—but the ones that do could change everything.” 

Adopting New Metrics for Success 

Some funders and grantees struggle with demonstrating traditional return-on-investment metrics for well-being initiatives to stakeholders. There’s an opportunity to expand upon what funders consider to be the best measures of success. Qualitative data in the form of interviews, focus groups, and anecdotes from grantees and their communities are similarly valuable for measuring the success of advancing funder activities, including well-being initiatives. 

James Kass also makes a plea for funders to “start measuring community-defined outcomes: trust, civic engagement, resilience, and well-being. Ask the people being served what success looks like and let that guide your funding decisions.” 

Directly Funding Well-Being 

Funders like the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation provide flexible one-time $10K well-being grants for organizations to use as they see fit. The foundation encourages grantees to define their own priorities based on their staff’s needs. These approaches don’t solve the problem at once, but they are a starting place to meet organizations and people where they are. In the case of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation, there was a desire to provide even more funding, but that wasn’t possible. So, they asked: what can we do right now with the resources and influence we do have and build from there? By adopting a learning mindset, they were able to create incremental change that is having a direct benefit to nonprofit staff now. 

Supporting Peer Networks 

For funders and grantees alike, there’s an opportunity to learn and support one another by building and convening peer networks. Joining or establishing communities of practice with others to exchange support, resources, and ideas for sustaining well-being within your team, peers, and grant partners can be a low-resource high-impact activity. In cases where there isn’t the internal expertise or capacity to facilitate this type of community, external experts like Executive Coach Monica Marie Jones who coaches fellows from The McGregor Fund are a resource. 

Advocating for the Funder and Nonprofit Communities 

Beyond financial contributions, many funders are leveraging their influence to organize and advocate for well-being-focused funding practices among peer funders. They can also encourage and facilitate conversations about the systemic issues contributing to burnout and collaborate on sector-wide solutions. Funders are often well-placed to support field-wide research and policy efforts. These efforts aim to make the nonprofit sector more sustainable for its workforce and institutionalize practices that encourage rest, recognizing that a rested team is more effective in delivering long-term impact. 

Making Well-Being Part of the Infrastructure of Social Impact 

Funders have a unique opportunity to leverage their resources and voice to support a culture shift away from business as usual to a culture of well-being that fuels sustained social impacts for generations to come. This shift includes leveraging their funding power and voice to create new approaches to philanthropy that center grantees and recognize their value beyond advancing top-down philanthropic priorities. And to prioritize their well-being and thriving as part of the infrastructure for sustained social impact. 

The need for the funders and the work of nonprofits has never been greater. The question is: will we rise to the moment, or will we continue with business as usual—or perhaps risk going backward? 

Want to learn more about how your organization can better support your grantees’ well-being? Check out the webinar, Beyond the Check: Enhancing Grantee Well-Being for Lasting Social Impact.