GRANTS MANAGEMENT
STRUCTURES IN LOCAL
GOVERNMENT THAT
INCREASE TRANSPARENCY
AND PERFORMANCE
A REVIEW OF GRANTS MANAGEMENT STRUCTURES AND THE GRANT PROCESS MATURITY MODEL
JAMES HA, CEO, CGMS
Introduction
As local governments work to implement systems, policies, and initiatives to improve the delivery of grant-funded services to our communities, it is critical to understand the basic grant management structures that increase the effectiveness of grant management. This paper is based on a review of over 413 local governments over the past two years. By sharing this information, eCivis hopes to provide local governments with a resource to help identify their grant management approach and improve their process to drive better performance.
The 3 Types of Grants Structures in Local Government
There are three general structures that are represented in local governments. These structures are a result of a variety of factors, including resource availability, system capabilities, administrative policies and even the number of grant awards being managed. The size of the local government is rarely a proxy for the type of structure you can expect to see. Here are the three types of structures.
Decentralized
In this structure, departments work independently and each department is focused on their own
respective goals. There is no dedicated grants team or staff. Department staff may be full-time,
part-time, contractors, or all the above. The advantage of this structure is that each department’s available resources and needs are taken into account when pursuing or managing grants. The disadvantage is that there will be duplication of efforts, process inefficiency, inconsistent communication, and lack of transparency across the organization. In particular, finance departments struggle with this model because liabilities related to grant contracts, such as matching funds, are not clear when accepting an award.
Dept 1 Dept 2 Dept 3
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