"Why do I have to give you the same document over and over?" said many times by many people applying for grants. Well, the behavior of nonprofits has not always proven to be honest, ethical, or legal. You may get frustrated thinking a few bad apples ruined it for the whole bunch. But, conversely, you should think positively since you have all the documents you need for each funder. Your documents are current, active, and audited. As long as they are organized in your electronic filing system and easily retrieved, you should find this exercise a breeze.
If they are late, expired, disorganized, not uploaded, or completely missing, you are going to be frustrated. Remove this frustration by creating a centralized filing system with easy access. Additionally, create a document tracker to know when to expect updated documents such as: Financial Audit Report, IRS 990 Form, the State Solicitation License, Certificate of Liability Insurance, and more. Add a reminder to your calendar to check once a month for outstanding documents and keep the documents easily updated throughout the year.
