Will Grant Writers and Fundraisers Work on Commission, Proportion, Or Contingency?
By: Carey Howard
Submitted: 2010-06-07 02:01:43 | Word Count: 597
This is often one in all the foremost common queries asked of grant writing and fundraising consultants when engaging new ministries or organizations in development services. In fact, most organizations do not raise, they merely assume that this must be how consultants are compensated for their efforts.
But, the solution is no. Grant writing and fundraising consultants that follow the ethics universally accepted by the profession do not and can not work on a commission, proportion, or bonus basis. Grant writing and fundraising consultants typically work on a flat fee for services provided.
There are a variety of reasons for this decision. The first and foremost reason is that the ethics of our profession state that it's not ethical to just accept proportion or commission based mostly compensation. Some like to say this is often still a debated or contested issue however the controversy ended a while ago. This customary is repeatedly stated by the major organizations that set the standards for our field. This includes the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), the Christian Leadership Alliance (CLA), and the Christian Stewardship Association (CSA).
AFP's Standards of Skilled Follow include the following statements: "Members shall not settle for compensation that is primarily based on a percentage of charitable contributions; nor shall they accept finder's fees."
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AFP holds that percentage based mostly compensation will encourage abuses, imperils the integrity of the voluntary sector, and undermines the very philanthropic values on that the voluntary sector is based. AFP stands firm with its Standards of Skilled Observe that prohibits members from operating for proportion-based compensation or accepting finder's fees.
ECFA's Seven Standards state that "Compensation of outdoor fund-raising consultants or an organization's own staff based mostly directly or indirectly on a share of charitable contributions raised isn't allowed."
ECFA summarizes that "paying fund-raising consultants on a share of gift income can be tempting to a company with no funds to pay the fund-raiser. But, percentage-primarily based payments to fund-raisers don't seem to be in the most effective interest of donors, nor are they consistent with the trust that donors place in a very charity. The payment of fixed amounts to atone for fund-raising endeavors is an acceptable manner to balance the charity's analysis of risk and affordability with the fund-raiser's skilled integrity and competence."
CSA's Code of Ethical Pursuit states that every one members shall employ representatives on a predetermined customary fee or salary basis and can insist that the worker manage personal knowledge entrusted to him solely for the benefit of the employer. Commission or proportion reimbursement for services rendered are deemed unethical and unprofessional practices in fundraising.
In addition to the moral problems, paying for services based mostly on a flat fee acknowledges the price and worth of the services provided. As Albert Anderson observes in his book Ethics for Fundraisers, "The set fee concept acknowledges the value of professional counsel independently of the fund-raising outcome, that, after all, cannot be guaranteed."
The services of a grant writing or fundraising consultant not only secure funds for a company, but they conjointly facilitate to develop the funding capability of the organization for many years to come. Commission based mostly fees assume that if no money is secured then nothing happened. This can be way from reality. Organizations are continuously better positi
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