Why It Matters
Most workforce agencies grapple with more needs in their communities than their individual budgets can support. Supportive services, such as childcare or affordable housing, are often limited or non-existent, reducing the likelihood that job-seekers will have the support required to successfully persist in a training program or have a smooth transition into the workforce. Additionally, many individuals require services from multiple programs and navigating numerous systems can be confusing. Braiding, blending, or sequencing can strengthen collaboration and create a more seamless experience for the individual. Finally, some agencies may choose to explore braiding, blending, or sequencing strategies to diversify and de-risk program finances rather than depending on a single funder or source for a program. If one source goes away, the program may still be able to continue at a reduced budget or while staff seeks alternative funding to cover the shortfall.
The process of connecting various funding streams can be as simple as using Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) funds in conjunction with a foundation grant to provide additional supportive services workers. It can also be more complex, such as weaving together different federal funding streams that have distinct compliance requirements or leveraging impact investments that require repayment with interest. Myriad options and sources exist, each with their own compliance requirements, level of effort, and efficiency.
Overview
Braiding, blending, and sequencing are three interrelated but slightly different concepts. The difference is usually centered on reporting and compliance. While practitioners might use these terms interchangeably, there is a substantial difference to funders who will expect that their funds be managed in alignment with specific compliance requirements.
Braiding
Braiding uses multiple funding sources to support a project. However, those funds and their uses are tracked individually and their respective compliance requirements, such as eligibility or timeframe, must still be met even though they may differ. Separate tracking is required for most federal funding streams as it allows for greater accountability and transparency. Braiding is mostly commonly used to fill gaps in program delivery, such as paying for stipends from philanthropic funds to complement WIOA-funded training, or paying for additional seats in a training course when demand exceeds the budget.
- Braiding can be determined before a project is launched or incorporated midstream as additional funding sources are identified. Braiding of funding is often highlighted in proposals as a mechanism to extend the impact of the dollars.
- Braiding takes advantage of existing reporting, delivery, and fund management structures but can also be used as a mechanism to advance collaboration amongst partners.
- Over time, programs that regularly braid may align data collection efforts such as enrollment to reduce the burden to participants. They may also share or integrate data to provide more seamless support.
- Often braiding occurs when two services are being provided simultaneously. “For instance, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service (CMS) has clarified that Ticket to Work Outcome and Milestone payments funded through the Social Security Administration may occur simultaneously with payment for Supported Employment services funded through the Medicaid Waiver program to create a more robust support system for individuals seeking sustained CIE.”
- The use of braided funds is often accompanied by co-enrollment requirements to ensure that the individual receiving services meets the compliance requirements of each funding stream. For example, an individual may be co-enrolled in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and WIOA in order to combine supportive services funds with educational support. Alternatively, WIOA and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding may be braided where CDBG provides stipends for youth who meet specific family income thresholds and WIOA provides the career navigation support, for example.
Blending
Blending combines two or more funding sources into a single pot or pool of funds. Subsequent tracking, reporting, or performance analysis is conducted for the pool overall, not for each source. Blending often requires prior approval if public sector dollars will be included in the pot. While blending may require more time up front to navigate compliance considerations, it can serve as a strategic tool which provides dividends such as closer partnership, larger impact, or elimination of overlap or duplication.
- While blending may provide a more seamless experience to both the implementor (e.g. training provider, community-based organization) and the recipient of the services (e.g. out-of-school youth, new american, returning citizen) the administrator of the blended funds often still needs to manage diverse funder inquiries and reporting requests unless data systems have also been integrated.
- Compliance requirements should be carefully reviewed before blending any federal funding streams with other sources. In all cases, it is best to check with the funder about the requirements for blending the funds before doing so.
- There are a variety of workforce organizations that have created pooled funds, such as the National Fund for Workforce Solutions and Chicagoland Workforce Funder Alliance, which may include a mix of employers, philanthropies, and other core stakeholders. There are also philanthropy led funds such as the Families and Workers Fund (FWF), ReWork the Bay, and New York City Workforce Funders, that pool resources to tackle an issue, population need, or geography.
- The term “pooling” may also be used when federal and state dollars are combined to advance work such as that done through State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which is a partnership that provides health insurance coverage to low-income children. In that example, federal funds are combined with state contributions to expand health insurance access.
Sequencing
Sequencing combines different funding sources by deploying the funds in a specific order to best serve the individual. This is often because eligibility is dependent on timing or conditions. An individual might “age out” of one program and into another or be required to have specific documentation to demonstrate eligibility for one program that can be gained through support in another. For example, an undocumented immigrant youth might participate in WIOA Title II to receive training while working to resolve documentation status and then enroll in WIOA Title I once eligible. Alternatively, an individual experiencing homelessness might first receive support to obtain stable housing and then enroll in WIOA to pursue education and employment. With effective sequencing, each intervention can help address a set of barriers, allowing the individual to continue along their path with minimal interruptions to service delivery.
Alternatively, sequencing can be driven by compliance or operational needs rather than programmatic needs such as the expenditure timelines, “use or lose” funding, carryover provisions, and even delays in funding disbursement. For example, an agency might use philanthropic funding first to cover costs while waiting for the second disbursement of WIOA youth funding to ensure there are no interruptions in service due to cash flow.
Partnership Structure for Funding
As agencies make decisions about whether and how to leverage additional sources of funding, they may also consider they type of legal entity fit for purpose for the type of funding being used. This analysis is generally driven by whether the benefits of a model exceed the cost of additional logistics or expenses.
Sample entities include non-profit Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), pooled funds, joint power agreements (JPA), and separate 501(c)(3) entities. For example, NevadaWorks uses a joint powers agreement that weaves together multiple counties to deliver services for the local area. Similarly, New York City established a separate entity called the Workforce Development Corporation (WDC), a collaboration across multiple partners, to implement their new green jobs strategy.
Federal
Engaging with a diversity of partners can expand opportunities to deepen aprogram's impact through braiding or sequencing of funding.