Across Global Impact Ventures, our mission is to inspire greater giving, connecting funders, nonprofits, and charitable projects to make an impact. But what does that actually mean in practice? Grantmaking, the process through which funders like corporations or foundations distribute financial awards to charitable causes, is the infrastructure underpinning almost all of our work.

Grantmaking can seem deceptively simple: identify a strong partner, send the funding, track the results. However, in reality, many grants have hidden layers of complexity that are not always visible.

Cross-border grants introduce legal, financial, and political variables. Domestically, funders can support fiscally sponsored projects, regranting initiatives, or work in highly regulated environments. In all these cases, risk increases, expectations grow in complexity, and the consequences of missteps can extend far beyond a single grant cycle. Understanding and managing this complexity can separate effective grantmaking from stalled programming.

The need for customized, hands-on grantmaking support has never been greater. That’s why our Grants & Governance Solutions team enhances our existing work, empowering our clients large and small to make a global impact.

Why grantmaking is more complicated than most people realize
Whether international or domestic, there are a few core challenges that complicate modern grantmaking:  

Legal and Compliance: All grantmaking is shaped by legal definitions which vary significantly across countries. International grants often require additional vetting, documentation, and oversight to meet regulatory obligations. Domestically, complexity tends to emerge in different ways, navigating state‑level regulations, donor restrictions, and fiscal sponsorship arrangements. In both contexts, a partner that appears fully compliant may still require added review and structure before a grant can move forward.

Financial and Operational Challenges: International fund transfers bring fluctuating exchange rates, banking delays, and tightly regulated financial systems. Domestically, grants might require multiple intermediaries, regranting structures, or restricted funding streams. In any case, ensuring funds arrive on time and in the correct form requires specialized understanding of the environment and operational expertise in the field.

Reporting Expectations: Funders often want to include unique reporting requirements when issuing complex grants. These expectations might not align with the grantee’s capacity or local norms, and funders must reconcile these differences. International funding runs into these differences most frequently, with cross-cultural barriers creating differing or even competing expectations.

Elevated Risk: Political instability, currency volatility, or operational disruption can affect both global and domestic grants. Grants tied to emerging fields, urgent response efforts, or conflict-affected communities also require heightened risk awareness and security assessments to create mitigation strategies and protect programming.

How Global Impact Ventures helps funders navigate that complexity
Many teams across GIV are part of the grantmaking process, supporting both funders and recipients. We process hundreds of grants a month, supporting everything from everyday small grant donations to coordinating complex grants from large donor collaboratives looking to make an impact.

When funders begin to issue complex grants, the need for specialized expertise becomes immediate and unavoidable. Our Grants & Governance Solutions team sits at the center of this complexity, supporting funders — including more than 200 fiscally sponsored projects — who rely on us to provide expertise in infrastructure, compliance oversight, and operational capacity they don’t have in‑house. Our work spans the full grant lifecycle:

  • Strategy and Planning: Helping donors clarify goals, understand the landscapes they are entering, and design grantmaking approaches that align with both their mission and risk tolerance.
  • Due Diligence and Compliance: Vetting partners, structuring grants, and ensuring regulatory requirements are met across jurisdictions.
  • Operations and Troubleshooting: Managing contracts, disbursements, timelines, and partner communication, especially when something goes off track.
  • Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning: Designing systems that track impact, support adaptation, and turn grants into learning opportunities rather than one-time transactions.

For fiscally sponsored projects, this support is especially valuable. Many fiscally sponsored projects have ambitious global goals but lack the infrastructure to distribute complex grants safely and effectively. Grants & Governance Solutions fills that gap by providing the compliance, risk mitigation, and operational expertise needed to execute any type of giving responsibly.

What sets our approach apart
Many organizations focus on one piece of the grantmaking puzzle, but few offer a truly integrated approach. In contrast, Global Impact Ventures unites strategy, operations, compliance, and impact measurement in one roof, creating a comprehensive, end-to-end grantmaking solution for funders.

This holistic model allows funders to move into unfamiliar or high‑risk environments with confidence, supported by research, context, and hands‑on expertise.

Complex grantmaking demands strategy, operational precision, cultural understanding, rigorous compliance, and extensive experience navigating complex, ambiguous, and often unforeseen challenges across diverse stakeholders and environments.

The Grants & Governance Solutions team exists to make that complexity manageable, so funders can focus on what matters most: creating meaningful, lasting change.

Meet the Grants and Governance Solutions Team:

Samantha Grant, Managing Director

Christina Gentile-Paytas, Senior Manager

Gillian Wagner, Senior Manager

Susana Gomez