Interview with a Grants Manager

I recently interviewed Glen A. de Castro, a Grants Manager on Philippine-American fund. We talked about how his work is like, what's a typical day for him and so many more. The following is a summary of the conversation and interview with the manager:

What is a typical workday for you?

According to Glen, a typical workday for him includes holding meetings to discuss proposals submitted to him for funding or to plan some program activities. He also added, "the other side of my work is when I get to travel to different places in the country to check the projects that some organizations want us to support. I meet the members of the organization and I ask questions about their proposals, what problems they want to address, what are their activities, who will do the activities and how much will it cost to do the activities. If the answers are good, then I recommend them for funding. If not, I try to help the organization improve their proposal." 

What do you find most enjoyable in your job? 

Glen said "There are many enjoyable things in my job but I guess the most noteworthy is that I get to meet a lot of people and I get to travel to so many places in the Philippines."

Are there any negatives to your job? 

He said that maybe it is not really negative, there are just times when work is overwhelming and it is just a part of the cycle and we all just have to live with it. 

What's the toughest part of your job?

He said that the toughest part of his job is when he's preparing the document that will invite proposals for submission to their office. He also added "I really have to be careful in putting in the priorities. Every word is carefully thought of to ensure that the guidelines for submission of proposals are clear."

How did you get your job?

"When this project where I am currently employed was conceptualized and developed, I was invited to be a member of the proposal writing team." Glen said. He also said that when the proposal finally got approved, they naturally invited him to fill in the post of Grants Manager for the project.

If you’d be given a chance to change your job, would you?

"No." Glen said. "There are lessons to be learned here anyway." He also added.

How do most people enter this profession?

Glen said that most of the people he knows in their industry started by working for non-government organizations - especially the international ones. He also said "You really just have to be good at project development and management and in grant-making to be able to land this type of job. Once you get to know who are the donors in the country, how they do grant-making and how do they manage it, then you are already in the position to apply for the job. Of course, you have to wait for the opening."

What educational preparation would you recommend for someone who wants to advance in this field?

He recommends everyone who wants to be like him to take social sciences courses. He also said "Depending on your passion, you can take advance degree to be more competitive locally and globally."

How long does it take for managers to rise to the top?

Glen stated "There is no one clear career path. I became a manager 12 years after starting work."

Any "words of advice"?

"Keep on learning. Things are changing fast and it is important that you have the skills, knowledge, and capacity to ride the change. And when the going gets tough, try harder. Do not ever give up." Glen said.

I asked him a follow-up question "What would you say to anyone who wants to be like you if they grow up?" and he said that if anyone wants to be like him when they grow up, he would tell them to study hard, never give up on anything and if anything goes wrong, don't worry, its a part of a life, learn from it and you'll be successful. End of quote.