Linking Program to RFPs/Competitions

• Use the process of responding to the RFP to build knowledge in a field or to strengthen organizations working in a particular area.

“The feedback from the people who received the RFP was that they really thought it provided them an opportunity to plan ahead for the next five or six years. They didn’t get a chance to do that as much as they would like to, because usually they’re planning year to year. It also helped that we asked them to focus their planning around the policy and strategy that they were going to use, and not just about staffing."

• Organize the selection process to ensure the right overall mix of grantees — reflecting whatever variety and balance are important to the program’s goals.

“It would have been easy for us to go out and say, ‘What are the ten most successful efforts under way right now to do community-based forestry? And what can we turn them into?’ Then your selection process is going to give you much more of a bias toward success. It was important to our program to have a cross-section of start-up and experienced groups, of large groups and small groups. We wanted these differences in strategies. And we ended up with a pool that was much richer because of it.”

• Capitalize on the fact that you have a cluster or cohort of grantees to develop a communications strategy that reflects your overarching program goals and values.