Have you ever gotten a contract from a client with outlandish provisions?
As nonprofit consultants, we have a surprising number of options when it comes to consulting contracts.
We can use each client’s individual contract template (and take the time to read them all through carefully). We can create our own standard contract template. We can include a scope of work in the contract or as an addendum. We can add rush fees, restart fees, and other provisions—including the activities our clients must complete so that we can deliver the agreed-upon scope.
In other words, when you’re first getting started, navigating contracts can feel utterly overwhelming. So we’ve gathered up our top tips for navigating contracts when you land a new or renewal client.
Why You Should Create Your Own Consulting Contract Template
Whenever possible, it’s best to use your OWN consulting contract template rather than signing what your client provides. Many nonprofits unintentionally create contract templates with burdensome provisions. Some may even put the consultant at a steep disadvantage if anything goes wrong in the consulting relationship.
Instead of reading and negotiating every client’s contract template line-by-line (and yes, we’ve seen consultants do this), we recommend creating your own contract template in advance. This protects you and your business and enables you to build in other key features—like rush fees, restart fees, timelines, scopes of work, and other elements that will make your work easier.
Plus, you can continue revising and standardizing your consulting contracts and scopes of work as you gain more experience and learn lessons from consulting projects that don’t go as expected (or that go better than expected).
At Funding for Good, we have several contract templates that we’ve developed for various services like Strategic Planning, One-Year Strategic Planning Reviews, Development Consulting, Grant Writing, Template Creation, etc. While we don’t offer contract templates for sale at this time, we do share them with the consultants in our 60-Day Consulting Boot Camp.
Basic Elements of Consulting Contracts
There are several baseline elements that should be included in every consulting contract. Whether you’re using your own template or accepting a client’s contract template, every contract should:
- Identify who is entering into the contract (name of companies/organizations).
- Identify who you/your company will be working with specifically. This is your “point person” at the client organization. You can use the title of the position in case there is turnover, but leaving this out will leave you open to working with anyone and everyone with little clarity and much frustration.
- Detail clear payment schedules. Every contract should spell out the fees, how billing will occur, and when payments are expected. If payment method matters to you—for example, if you only accept electronic payment and you expect invoices to be paid within 15 days—be sure this is spelled out in the contract.
- Include clauses for how each party can end the contract.
- Provide a clear scope of work. This will vary based on the type of services you are providing and how billing will be structured (hourly, project-based, or retainer agreement).
- Specify how work that exceeds the deliverables in the scope of work will be handled. For example, if a grant writing client needs additional grants written, will those be charged on a per-grant basis, at an hourly rate, or with a fee to be determined with a new contract?
How to Use Consulting Contracts to Set Expectations
While some consultants are comfortable with contracts that only include the key elements above, you may find that you need to add additional provisions to protect yourself, your time, and even your reputation!
Here are some additional contract elements we’ve found useful to add over the years:
- Write your services in a way that limits your commitment to specific time frames or work. Example: The [insert position title] will conduct bi-weekly coaching calls for up to 1-hour as needed. When you say “up to 1 hour,” it could be 30 minutes. It also says “as needed.” This means it is not required.
- Outline any work items that your company does NOT provide. This is especially important when the work may often be “assumed” to be included. For example, if you’re a grant writer, you can specify that the client is responsible for all grant proposal submissions.
- Outline any additional services that may be “assumed” in the contract but are not, and state how they can be added at a later date. For example, in a year-long grant writing retainer, you might specify that federal grant writing services are not included in the contract but can be added at an additional cost and with a new contract.
- Depending on the nature of the work, an “Expected Timeline” can be a great addition. This should include the benchmarks of the work and expected completion dates. This allows for realistic expectations of workload and availability.
- Include the parameters that signal the completion of the work product. Without specific parameters, the contract can keep going on and on. This can be a simple statement like: Consultant shall have fulfilled its obligations when any one of the following occurs: a) Consultant accomplishes the activities described in the above scope of work, including delivery of [insert product] listed in the section entitled “Standard Services” or b) Client accepts submitted work products without unreasonable objections. No response from the Client within 5 business days of receipt of deliverables by the Consultant is deemed acceptance.
To learn how to implement these and other contract elements, like rush or restart fees, into your consulting contracts, grab a one-on-one coaching call with our team.
