COORDINATING FUNDING ACTIVITIES you will have to think through the set-up and organisation of your resourcing activities.
The aim of the task is to gain a good level of understanding about the main skills and roles involved in the coordination of resourcing and funding activities for project implementation. Depending on the size of your overall plan, the search to find funding for the activities can be complex and requires coordination and some specialist skills.
A Funding Coordination Officer/Team has a number of responsibilities to fulfil, involving soft and hard skills. This includes:
- Maintaining a timeline for project implementation to know when funding is needed.
- Maintaining a high awareness about how much and what type of funding is needed.
- Designing and regularly maintaining a Funders Map to be aware of changes in the funding environment.
- Identifying funding opportunities and new developments.
- Communicating and building relationships with funders.
- Assessing the potential funding mix and options for each project.
- Regularly reviewing and adapting the Funding Strategy in line with developments.
Additional cross-cutting responsibilities include the communication with policy decision-makers, and the collaboration with stakeholders, departments, and stakeholders to keep people up-to-date and informed. This includes the search for project synergies. For example, to identify joint funding opportunities, adapt to new policy priorities and build connections and effective collaborations between departments, organisations and other cities if required to strenghten funding opportunities.
It consists of 2 tools :
Tool 1: This is a checklist of key skills, experiences and responsibilities of a Funding Coordination Officer/Team.
Tool 2: This is a template that helps you to imagine the potential structure of a large Funding Coordination Team and the relevant skills and roles (available in the toolsheet to donload on the right side of your screen).
Who is the tool for? | When should the tool be used? |
Staff responsible for the implementation of the project Potential Human Resources department Senior officers with decision power on new roles & positions | At various stages of the project planning process and whenever it is required. Particularly when alternatives for project implementation are becoming apparent, or major changes have occurred that have an impact on the original project design. |
Click on the stations to navigate through the Strategy line!
Key challenges of the step
- The very broad skills set required can be challenging. A Funding Coordinator needs to have detailed knowledge of the overall project, its policy context, logic model, its projects, and the local context while at the same time being experienced in a wide range of funding sources, funding regimes and funding techniques.
- The ability to think creatively to match funding opportunities effectively and (at times) unconventionally with the projects in need of funding.
- To work in close collaboration with all teams involved in the project to ensure that all relevant groups stay well informed about each others' actions and are sufficiently aware about arising funding opportunities.
- To lobby, influence and build relationships with decision-makers and funders for the benefit of project implementation.
Main risks
- The potential to over- or underestimate the coordination skills that are required in relation to your project.
- The over-complication of the coordination tasks on the one hand or the lack of acknowledgement that coordination is needed on the other hand. As such finding the right balance is key.
Helpful tips
- Do not forget to consider your partner organisations and their staff that might be experienced in coordinating and sourcing of funding or have knowledge in novel funding techniques. Involve them in the coordination process.
- Define the roles and responsibilities of the Funding Coordination Officer/Team clearly. This includes regular monitoring of the Funders Map and reviews of the Funding Strategy.
- At various stages, the Funding Coordination Officer/Team has to make important decisions. When consulting with funders it might become clear that changes to your plan and its projects need to be made. For this reason, a close relationship and frequent contact with senior decision makers should be maintained to ensure relevant political backing and support for their decisions.
- Regularly consider any evolving skills needs or knowledge gaps vis-a-vis new funding techniques, stay informed and up-to-date, utilise training offers and information days organised by funders.
