Why Funding Programs Isn’t Enough
“In an effort to maximize the impact of our support, we are prioritizing ‘tangible program impact ‘over staff improvements, salaries, mental health, office experience, or overall wellbeing.”
If you’ve been in the grants world for long enough, you are probably used to this type of email. While I let my cynicism get the better of me toward the end, it often seems that the funders who claim to prioritize ‘tangible program impact’ don’t want to prioritize the people delivering that impact. There is a laundry list of reasons why this happens.
Their stakeholders want to show their value, which equates to ‘people fed’ or ‘materials delivered’.
They believe nonprofit employees “chose their hard”, and should therefore be accepting of whatever hardship comes their way.
They are simply just uneducated about what (or rather who) is behind the mission impact.
I’m unable to remedy all of these in a humble blog post, but there are plenty of us out there who are all too aware of the long-term impact that staff burnout is having on the sector and its capacity to enact real change. There’s an entire movement over at A Village for Good dedicated to the health and wellness of changemakers in the nonprofit sector. Nonprofit employees– we see you. The work that you are doing deserves to be funded. Not just because you deserve to be cared for, but because by doing so, it will result in tangible program impact.
As a grants consultant, I have spent countless hours raging at the restrictions placed on most funding dollars. Refusal to fund operations, staff salaries, or ongoing program expenses is just the tip of the iceberg. In 2024, the Social Impact Staff Retention survey showed that 67% of respondents were looking for a new job or would be within the year. When asked why, the number one reason for considering leaving was ‘too much work and too little support’.
Nonprofit organizations (and those who work in them) have been through a lot. The global pandemic created a surge of demand for services, and an uncertain economy continues to shake our vulnerable neighbors. They rely on local food pantries, community action agencies, and homeless shelters. On the financial side, federal funding cuts have impacted program output and staffing capacity. This reinforces funder sentiments that staff-directed expenses are superfluous, and as every bucket is drained, so do the staff’s capacity to effectively do their jobs.
In 2023, a study showed that child welfare, homeless services, disability services, and behavioral health routinely produce 20-40% annual staff turnover (Casey Family Programs). Over roughly the same period, HUD Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) reported that homelessness saw an 17% rise from 2023-2024. GAO estimated that 14.6 million adults experienced serious mental illness in 2023 (GAO 2025).
Yes, there are people who need help and are facing overwhelming circumstances. But that help only goes so far when the people providing it can no longer sustain the work.
The SISR survey found that among those who planned to stay in their position, the top reasons were a ‘supportive work environment’ (71%) and ‘adequate pay and benefits’ (63%). When employees leave, the ripple effect is catastrophic to the mission, extending beyond the loss of institutional knowledge to the administrative burden of hiring and onboarding. Additionally, high turnover directly erodes organizational coherence, slows projects, lengthens decision-making, and weakens community trust, particularly in direct service organizations.
Nonprofit employees also work closely with underserved populations, building rapport and gaining the trust of people who have been burned again and again by systems that keep them down. The loss of these trusted partners can contribute to relapse, regression, or recidivism, potentially negating progress or causing further harm.. The relationship between program staff and clients is deeply meaningful, but it should not be at the expense of the employee.
Funders– you have the power to create the most tangible impact. Not by funding equipment or only supporting new and innovative programs. But by investing in the people doing the work.
Let’s talk return on investment:
Replacing an employee typically costs 33-200% of that person’s annual salary (Mission Edge, 2023), draining nonprofit dollars that could otherwise keep programs running and produce impact..
Cross-sector research indicates that ‘organizations with a highly engaged workforce have been shown to be 30 percent more innovative and 200 percent more effective than ones without an engaged workforce’ (Smith, 2025), increasing the impact of your contribution to the mission..
Large-scale studies suggest that communities with a denser nonprofit presence tend to exhibit higher subjective wellbeing—less public expression of negative emotion and strained relationships, and more signs of engagement in local life (Ressler et al., 2021), meaning your investment in a few becomes an investment in the whole community.
Policy and practice literature report that nonprofits function as civic infrastructure—improving health, safety, and economic stability, and serving as a public-policy lever to strengthen community wellbeing (National Council of Nonprofits, 2024; Antioch University, 2024), inndicating that the entire community benefits when nonprofit staff are deliberately supported.”.
Funding programs isn’t enough.
Funders must invest in the people who are the mission.
All in all, we know that nonprofit missions are inherently human-driven. Positive outcomes for the community rely on a strong foundation of respect, care and protection for nonprofit workers.
So funders: if you want your dollar to do the most good it can do, consider helping nonprofits to develop long-term, stable workforce that can provide the community with trust, continuity, and the knowledge that can only come from years of experience.
For every three RFPs that I see declaring that they do not fund staff-facing initiatives, there is one that is intentionally investing in staff and their wellbeing. The wheels of change are turning. Will your foundation be a part of it?
Creatively,
The Grants Above Team
