Grantee Perception Report
The Grantee Perception Report® (GPR) provides funders with comparative, candid feedback based on grantee perceptions. The GPR is the only grantee survey process that provides comparative data, and is based on extensive research and analysis. More than 170 funders have commissioned the GPR, and more than 50,000 grantees have provided their perspectives through confidential surveys. CEP has surveyed grantees in more than 65 countries and in eight different languages.
The GPR’s quantitative and qualitative data can help foundation leaders evaluate and understand how their organization is perceived, and how that compares to their philanthropic peers. Through the GPR, grantees can anonymously provide reactions to funders—providing funders with information they may not otherwise receive.
The GPR provides comparative feedback in areas such as:
- Quality of interactions
- Application and reporting processes
- Perceptions of impact
More than 30 funders, including The John A. Hartford Foundation, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and The S.H. Cowell Foundation, have made some parts, or all, of their GPRs public. View the full list to see GPRs and to learn more about the report.
The GPR Process
The GPR process takes about five months, starting when surveys are sent to all grantees and concluding when CEP finalizes the report and presents findings. The deadline for expressing interest in the next round of GPR surveys is December 21, 2010.
GPR Data in Action
- The GPR is often repeated for benchmarking against long-term, nuanced changes and goals. The Wallace Foundation has repeated the GPR four times, and has used its comparative data to closely focus improvement efforts. Multiple GPRs have helped the David and Lucile Packard Foundation develop its own Grantee Experience Standards, which aim to ensure quality interactions and clear communications with grantees.
- According to a report from LaFrance Associates, LLC, 92% of foundations that have received a GPR are making changes on the basis of what they learned, from changes in communications with grantees to changes in grant processes.
- The Financial Times highlighted the GPR, and the Philadelphia Foundation’s reaction to their results, in its article about increasing foundation-grantee transparency, “US Foundations Come Clean.”
Some Questions the GPR Can Help You Answer
Is the nonmonetary assistance that you provide helpful to your grantees?
Are you communicating foundation goals and strategies effectively to your grantees?
