When research donors cut down on allocation of research fund to institutions (nonprofit organizations), what are the possible ways such research institutions can cut down cost or mobilize additional fund?
I think one possible way to cut down costs is to check unnecessary administrative costs such as those related to sitting allowances, etc because experience shows that a good amount of money is lost that way. Similarly, such organisations might think of working more on commissioned works/projects that can bring in more funds as opposed to dependence on donor funding which is itself not reliable.
I would agree with Japhace. You just have to check your sources of income versus your expenditure. Cut down on all unnecssary expenditure (be they administrative or operational with a focus on administrative expenses). Check which are your cost drivers. Salaries/wages tend to become one major administrative cost driver. One has to go item by item agsinst all budget lines. Justify each line item on the budget - namely, why must it be there. Raising income is not easy because you are literally saying to an outsider spend money on me. So the external donors must find reasons why they should fund you. You must be able to write bankable project proposals in which the donor will see value addition in whatever you are doing or request you to do.