The Proposal

The Proposal
Proposal is a document that offers a solution to a problem or a course of
action in response to a need.

In business proposal can be divided into two categories

- Solicited Proposals
- Unsolicited Proposals
The solicited proposal responds either to a formal RFP or to a specific
invitation to submit a proposal, while the unsolicited proposal is usually
initiated by the proposer.
The Unsolicited Proposal
Unsolicited proposals are much less formal than the solicited proposal, and
they are often more than a first step leading to more formal
negotiations. An Unsolicited proposal should contain the following
sections.
1. Justification for the submission of the proposal
2. A description of the problem that is to be solved.
3. A description of the proposed solution.
4. A description of the proposer’s organization.
5. A general overview of the cost of proposed solution.
The Unsolicited Proposal
The justification section is vital, as it explains why the customer should read
on. This section may announce, for example, that the proposer has
developed a new and successful technology that would benefit the
customer, and could be adapted to the needs of the customer
organization. The main objective is to provide an answer to the
customer’s question: ‘ why this company approached me, and why is it
to my benefit to read the proposal ?’
The Unsolicited Proposal
This requires the proposer to study the customer’s organization in order to
assure that the proposal provides a real solution to a real problem.
The precise cost of the solution need not be provided at this stage.
An unsolicited proposal is rarely accepted first time around. Its main objective
is to generate interest, If the proposal generates sufficient interest, the
proposer will be invited to discuss the proposal, and will be resubmit to the
customer a more detailed version of the proposal.
Solicited Proposal
A solicited proposal is initiated by the customer as a response to a formal RFP
or to some other form of invitation to submit a proposal. Contrary to the
informal nature of the unsolicited proposal, the solicited proposal is complete
and detailed, and its content is often binding on the proposer.
Together with the request to submit a proposal, the customer may also
specify exactly how the proposal is to be prepared and submitted.
One basic area in which solicited and unsolicited proposals differ is in the
need to be competitive. Solicited proposals must be capable of competing
successfully with other proposals. This means that the preparation of a
solicited proposal must be regarded as mini-project in itself, and as such
requires the formation of a proposal preparation team.
The proposal preparation team
The formation of a proposal board is fundamental to any organization that
expects to respond successfully to an RFP.
This board entitles a person whose job it is to locate suitable RFPs and submit
them for discussion, based on a set of guidelines established by the board.
These guidelines should address RFPs.
 The proposal preparation team…
Is the business in company’s line
What is the size of the project (projects that are not too small and not too
large)
Do not obviously prevent the company (e.g requiring special expertise or
security clearance)
Based on its evaluation of the RFPs submitted, the proposal board decides
which RFPs will be responded to by the company.
The proposal board then selects a team for the preparation of each proposal.
This team may contain a single person, or many team members, depending
on the size of the proposed project.
The proposal preparation team…
The team draws form the experience and expertise of all company
employees, and, if necessary, may engage the services of outside experts to
assist in the preparation of the proposal.
The basic knowledge required within a proposal preparation team includes:
Technical knowledge relating to each separate area addressed by the proposal
Project management, including estimation and planning
Financial knowledge, including budgeting and finance planning for the whole
project.
Familiarity with the customer’s organization
Experience in writing proposals.
The proposal preparation team…
One member of the team will be designated team leader, or coordinator, by
the proposal board. After the team has been assembled, its first two
assignments should be:
An initial review of RFP
The preparation of a schedule for the completion of the proposal, and
assignment of responsibilities.
The preparation of a good proposal costs money, and should be regarded as an
investment, if it is done well, it can produce a profit.
 The proposal format
A good proposal should provide answers to six basic questions: who,
what, why, how, when and how much, responses to these questions
simply refer to :
1. Who is organization submitting the proposal.
2. What is being proposed?
3. Why is proposal being submitted?
4. How will the proposed work be implemented?
5. When will it be developed and delivered?
6. How much it will cost?
COMPONENTS OF A PROPOSAL
Executive Summary: 1 page
umbrella statement of your case and summary of the entire proposal
Statement of Need: 2 pages
why this project is necessary
Project Description: 3 pages
nuts and bolts of how the project will be implemented and evaluated
Budget: 1 page
financial description of the project plus explanatory notes
Organization Information: 1 page
history and governing structure of the nonprofit; its primary
activities, audiences, and services
Conclusion: 2 paragraphs
summary of the proposal's main points
The statement of work (SOW)
The statement of work is the basis of the contract. The SOW contains a
detailed list of all work to be performed by the proposer for the benefit of
customer.
The SOW starts as a general list of required deliverables in the RFP. A more
detailed version of SOW is submitted as part of the proposal, and is still
considered only an initial description of the work to be performed. The
binding version of the SOW is finalized during contract negotiation, or after
the detailed project requirements have been completed.
 The proposal Review and selection
process

The proposal selection Board

A proposal selection board is a group of people appointed to review and
evaluate proposals, and to recommend one of the proposals according to
predetermined set of criteria.
This may be a set of general guidelines, or an extremely formal set of
evaluation procedure. This usually includes three separate channels for
technical, management and cost evaluation, and a combination of the
individual grades produces the final grade for the proposal.
Proposal evaluation method
Most proposal evaluation methods are based on some variation of the
weighted technique, where a number of factors score points that are then
weighted and combined to provide an overall grade for the proposal.
The rating technique given below is then applied to each major component of
the proposal, and a weighted average is then calculated. As an example, the
four major components of the proposal may be weighted as follows
Proposal evaluation method…

Technical 35%
Management 25%
Cost 30%
Company background 10%
Proposal evaluation method…
This means that more importance is attached to the technical component of
the proposal than to any other component.
The weighted average can be further refined. An additional acceptance
criterion may state that any proposal that rates less than 5 out of 10 in any
one major component will be rejected, irrespective of its final weighted score.
This means, for example, that no matter how good the technical,
management and cost proposals are, if the company background is weak, the
overall proposal will be rejected.
Some additional proposal
considerations

Software development is much less deterministic than other areas of high

technology. It is usually much easier to estimate the factors of a hardware or
electronics development project than the factors of a software project.
This means that software proposals require special attention in specific areas,
such as scheduling, risk analysis, personnel management and costing. These
areas are important in any area of technology development, but much more
so in the development of software.
Issues relating to the customer
When preparing an RFP, one of the customer’s most common dilemma is just
how much details to provide, too much detail may discourage proposers from
offering their own solutions. While too less detail generate unsuitable
solutions due to lack of information.
The customer usually has some idea of how the problem should be solved.
The following is a summary of these and
other that should be addressed before the
RFP is released

The degree of detail

specific problems usually require specific solutions. If the problem is well
defined, or if the customer has a specific solution in mind, then considerable
detail should be provided in the RFP.
Evaluating the proposal
Objective evaluation of the proposals is not easy to achieve. At least two
people should evaluate and score. Each item in the proposals, and an average
should be calculated.
Changes to the requirements

The formal project agreement between the developer and the customer
should allow for a reasonable number of changes. This requirement can be
included as part of the RFP.
Issues relating to the proposer

The appearance of the proposal

The outside appearance of the proposal is almost as important as its content.
Significant attention should be devoted by the proposer to the cosmetics of
the text, graphics, binding and slides.
Optional requirements
An RFP may also include optional requirements. These are additional features
or capabilities that are not absolutely necessary for the completion of the
project, but are what is often referred to as nice to have. A proposal that
includes the optional features may gain points with the proposal review
board.
Alternate solution

A proposal may include more than one proposed solution. However,

alternative solutions must be submitted separately, so that they can be
addressed and evaluated separately.
 The Proposal
A proposal is a statement of purpose that is presented for
someone's or for a company’s acceptance. It intends to persuade
that person or a company to fund your project.
It states the problem, or analyzes the situation.
It offers a plan, with clearly stated goals, objectives, and
strategies for solving the problem.
It makes a request for the resources needed to accomplish the
plan.
It demonstrates probable success; that is, it shows that you are
capable of doing what you say you will. It offers a assure that you
will show by certain specified measures that you have
accomplished what you said you would.
 Elements of a Typical Proposal

The proposer should provide information about what should go

into the proposal.

Title (Cover, Application) Page

Table of Contents
Abstract (Summary)
Introduction
Problem Statement (Needs Statement)
Literature Review
Goals (General Objectives)
Objectives (Hypotheses)
 Elements of a Typical Proposal…

Research Design and Prcedures (Methodology)

Evaluation (Assessment)
Future Funding (Institutionalization, Continuation)
Dissemination of Results
The Timeline
Personnel
Facilities and Resources
Budget (Projection of Costs, Itemized Costs)
Appendices (Attachments)
Thank You