Grant Writing & Prospect Research Consultant 

Issued by: Community Rowing Inc. (CRI) 

Location: Boston, MA (Hybrid; remote flexibility available) 

Engagement Type: Independent Contractor / Consulting Agreement, Part-Time 

Proposals Due: August 14, 2026 

Anticipated Start Date: August 31, 2026

Full Request for Proposal can be found and downloaded here.

Purpose of This RFP

CRI is soliciting proposals from qualified independent consultants or small consulting firms to provide grant writing and prospect research services in support of CRI’s annual grant revenue goals. This is a writing- and research-focused engagement: the consultant will identify funding opportunities and produce competitive proposals. Ongoing funder relationships, stewardship, and reporting will remain with CRI’s internal Advancement Team.

Scope of Work

The selected consultant will be responsible for:

Prospecting & Institutional Strategy

• Researching and qualifying prospective corporate and foundation donors through mission-mapping and confidence-scoring methodologies.
• Preparing LOIs and full applications for qualified opportunities.
• Supporting the development of CRI’s corporate sponsorship pipeline through desk research and proposal drafting.

Grant Writing & Portfolio Management

• Drafting letters of inquiry (LOIs), proposals, concept papers, and sponsorship decks aligned with funder priorities and CRI’s mission.
• Ensuring strict adherence to grantmaker guidelines and submission deadlines.
• Meet monthly with the Director of Advancement and Executive Director to report progress against goals, KPIs, and review the overall funding landscape.

Handoff to CRI Staff

• Once a grant or sponsorship is awarded, the consultant will transition the funder relationship to the Director of Advancement, who will then delegate stewardship across the internal Advancement Team.

Deliverables

• Monthly pipeline report of prospects researched, qualified, and submitted.
• Completed LOIs, proposals, and applications per the submission calendar agreed with CRI.
• A documented content bank / template library maintained and updated throughout the engagement.

Performance Expectations

The consultant is expected to meet the following targets:

• Submit approximately 18 renewal applications annually to CRI’s established, longstanding funders, drafted to a standard supporting a renewal win rate above 75%.
• Submit 14–17 new grant applications annually to qualified new prospects.
• Maintain a steady, consistent flow of new prospecting opportunities, prioritizing only those identified at 50% confidence or higher through mission-mapping and confidence-scoring.
• Maintain a 100% on-time submission rate for all deliverables.
• Maintain and update the content bank/template library throughout the engagement.

This workplan is designed to support CRI’s annual grant revenue goal of $500,000 minimum (approximately $350,000 from renewals and $150,000 from new funders) sustained by an active pipeline of roughly $1.5M tracked across prospect, LOI, submitted, and pending stages. Awards depend on funder decisions and on stewardship that remains with CRI’s Advancement Team, so these revenue figures are shared organizational goals rather than consultant-guaranteed outcomes. The consultant will be evaluated on the volume, quality, and timeliness of the work above and its contribution toward them.

Budget

CRI has allocated $65,000 for this engagement for a 12-month period. Proposals should reflect a fee structure that includes a 90-day assessment, and estimated monthly hours commitment sufficient to meet the performance expectations within this budget.

Required Qualifications

Respondents must demonstrate:

• 5+ years of grant writing experience in a nonprofit setting.
• Documented success securing five- and six-figure grants from private, corporate, and/or community foundations.
• Demonstrated ability to write engaging, compelling content in support of funding opportunities, accompanied by exceptional editorial skills to build and maintain a cross-functional content bank. 
• Strong independent project management skills and the ability to manage multiple concurrent deadlines.

Preferred:

• Familiarity with the Greater Boston philanthropic and corporate giving landscape.
• Experience with Raiser’s Edge (Blackbaud) or a comparable donor CRM.
• Comfort using AI tools for drafting assistance and content-bank maintenance.
• Genuine interest in athletics, especially a familiarity with the sport of rowing
• Passion for community access, youth/adaptive programming.

Proposal Submission Requirements

Interested consultants should submit the following to the Selection Committee at careers@communityrowing.org with the subject line “CRI Grant Consulting RFP – [Your Name/Firm]”:

1. A current resume or consulting firm profile.
2. A brief cover letter highlighting a notable grant success story relevant to this scope of work.
3. One unredacted (or appropriately anonymized) grant writing sample or LOI.
4. A proposed fee structure (hourly rate or monthly retainer) and estimated monthly hours needed to meet the performance expectations, structured to fit within the $65,000 budget.
5. A brief narrative (1 page maximum) describing your approach to prospect research, confidence-scoring, and proposal development.

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated on:

• Demonstrated track record securing comparable grant awards.
• Quality and clarity of writing sample(s).
• Feasibility of proposed approach relative to CRI’s pipeline, renewal, and revenue targets.
• Cost-effectiveness of proposed fee structure relative to the allocated budget.
• Availability and fit with CRI’s reporting cadence and timeline.

Timeline

Contact

Questions regarding this RFP should be directed to the Selection Committee at careers@communityrowing.org.

Organization

Community Rowing Inc. (CRI) provides access to personal growth through the sport of rowing for anyone in the Greater Boston area. Corporate and foundation grants historically account for one-third of CRI’s annual philanthropic funding, directly underwriting our mission and expanding community access to the river.