Naming key personnel feels like a formality: paste in the usual bios, add a percentage and move on. But the names you put in an application can become commitments. If a named person leaves in the second year, you may need the funder's written approval to replace them. And a bio that reads like a general résumé does nothing to show the reviewer that this person is right for this project.
This article explains what "key personnel" means, how to decide who gets named, how to write a bio that earns its space and how to state effort you can actually deliver.
Know what "key personnel" means for your funder
There isn't one universal definition. The award terms set it. For federal awards under the revision of 2 CFR 200 that took effect October 1, 2024, 2 CFR 200.308(f)(2) requires a recipient to request prior written approval from the federal agency or pass-through entity for a "change in key personnel (including employees and contractors) that are identified by name or position in the Federal award."
Three points follow from that wording:
- Key personnel can be employees or contractors. A consultant named in the award counts.
- Position counts as well as name. If the award identifies "Project Director" as a key position, replacing the person in that position can trigger the approval requirement.
- The award decides. Your notice or terms and conditions may list which roles are key, and some funders define the term more narrowly or more broadly.
Foundations and state agencies write their own terms. Whatever type of funder you're applying to, find the sentence in the notice or the grant agreement that says who counts as key and what you must do if one of them changes.
Decide who to name
The notice may require certain roles. Beyond those, your choice is a trade-off:
- Name a person when their experience is part of why you should win, and when you're confident they'll stay.
- Describe a role when the work matters more than the individual, or when staff turnover is a real risk in that position.
A reviewer wants to see credibility. Naming three people who do most of the work is stronger than naming eight who each contribute a few hours. Listing fewer people also means fewer possible approval requests later.
For federal awards, 2 CFR 200.308(f)(3) adds a related rule. It requires prior written approval for the disengagement of the approved project director or principal investigator from a project for more than three months, or a 25 percent reduction in the time and effort they devote to the award over the period of performance. If you name a director, make sure they can hold their commitment.
Write a bio that is tailored to the project
A key personnel bio isn't a biography. Its job is to answer one question: why is this person the right one for this work? A reviewer scanning ten applications wants evidence, not a career summary.
A good project bio usually does these things:
- Opens with the match. Lead with the experience closest to the project, not the earliest job.
- Shows results. Say what the person has done: the program they ran, the population served, the outcome reached.
- Names credentials only if they matter. Include degrees, licenses and certifications the project needs or the notice asks for.
- States the role. One sentence on what this person will do on this project.
- Fits the length. Check the page limit or character limit in the notice. If there is no limit, aim for a short paragraph.
A before-and-after example
Say a small youth organization is applying for a mentoring grant. Here is a generic bio, which is hypothetical:
Jordan Lee has worked in the nonprofit sector for 15 years and has a master's degree in social work. Jordan is passionate about helping young people succeed.
Here is the same person, tailored to the project:
Jordan Lee has directed the organization's after-school mentoring program since 2019, matching and supporting volunteer mentors for youth in grades 6 through 8. Jordan holds a master's degree in social work and will lead mentor recruitment, training and match supervision for this project.
The second version is not longer. It simply points every detail at the work the grant will fund. Keep a master version of each bio and rewrite the opening lines for every application, using the activities in the notice as a guide. A boilerplate library is a good place to store the master versions.
State effort you can keep
Effort is the share of a person's working time the project uses. Reviewers often compare effort with the work plan: a project with ambitious deliverables and a director committed for five percent invites questions.
Keep these rules in mind:
- Be realistic. Choose a percentage that matches the real workload, and check it with the person and their supervisor.
- Make it add up. Under 2 CFR 200.430(g), records supporting salary charges must reasonably reflect the total activity for which the employee is compensated, not exceeding 100 percent. If someone is 30 percent on this project, their other duties have to fit in the remaining 70.
- Match the budget. The effort in the staffing section, the budget and the budget justification should agree. A mismatch is easy for a reviewer to spot. The budget justification walk-through shows how the personnel lines should read.
- Remember documentation. Under 2 CFR 200.430(g)(1)(vii), budget estimates alone don't support charges to a federal award. Talk to your finance lead about how time will be recorded.
Plan for changes before they happen
People leave, take leave or change roles. You don't need to prevent that, but you should be ready for it:
- Note in your files which award terms apply to key personnel changes, and the contact who handles approval.
- If a named person gives notice, contact the program officer or the pass-through entity early, before the change takes effect, with a proposed replacement and their qualifications.
- Keep up-to-date bios for the people who could step in.
Under 2 CFR 200.308(d), the federal agency or pass-through entity should notify you whether it approves a request within 30 days of receipt, so build that time into your plans.
Your next step
Pull the bios for your three most likely key personnel and rewrite the first two sentences of each for your next project, using the notice's language about activities and population. Then ask each person to confirm the percentage of time you plan to commit.
SoliContraX keeps a knowledge base of your organization's materials, including bios, and can draft a staffing section from them once you've uploaded a funding notice. You review the draft, adjust it and finish it. Start your next application.