The Grant Project Life Cycle: A Grant Subcontract Management Guide

With the support of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP), the Technical Assistance and Services Center (TASC), a program of the National Rural Health Resource Center (The Center), has developed this guide to provide practical advice on contract management to State Office of Rural Health (SORH) Directors and state Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program Coordinators. The guide supports Flex grantees by assisting them with improving contract management skills and helping them to meet core competencies. The goal is to further support the Flex grantees in demonstrating measurable program outcomes.

This guide is designed to target common opportunities within the Flex grant to improve the scope of work (SOW) requirements for subcontracted vendors and consultants. It will assist state programs in building greater accountability with their subcontractors to deliver more meaningful information, which ideally, should further improve program deliverables, reporting and outcomes. SORH Directors and Flex Program Coordinators should use this guide to strategize the steps necessary to ensure that their grants are successfully developed, coordinated and implemented within their states.

This guide will help SORH Directors and Flex Program Coordinators with:

• Developing and defining clear contract expectations within the SOW
• Outlining expected timeline for deliverables and planning for consequences in the event that deliverables are not met
• Establishing reporting requirements that demonstrate impact of services
• This content is aimed at assisting SORH Directors and Flex Program Coordinators to navigate the project life cycle of grant administration and provide helpful tips on achieving the greatest value from the Flex grant activities. This guide walks step-by-step through the Project Life Cycle to assist state Flex Programs to deliver successful projects from start to finish