In 2015, Open Road Alliance conducted a 400-respondent survey designed to look at the frequency of need for contingency funding as reported by Funders and Grantees. The survey was designed to explore questions about risk and contingency funding.

The survey data lead to five key findings:

  1. Disruptions requiring additional funds (i.e., contingency funds) are common and expected. Both grantees and Funders report that 1 in 5 projects require contingency funding to bring projects in on time and with full impact.
  2. It is not a common practice for Funders or Grantees to address these risks before they happen.
  3. When contingency funds are needed, most Funders do have the operational and financial capacity to respond. When asked, the majority of Funders do approve additional requests.
  4. Grantees are hesitant to communicate with Funders about potential obstacles.
  5. Funders’ and Grantee’s perceptions regarding the effects of their actions on each other are often misaligned.

Take a look at the survey’s annotated data:
NGO Data
Funder Data

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