Proposal Writing 101

Must Dos

• Have a Title Page

• Know purpose of proposal and structure content around it

---Make sure written material supports the main aim/goal of the proposal; Avoid going off on a tangent about irrelevant issues/things not central to the proposal

Example: Problem-Solution Structure

• Identify the problem; this is the most critical aspect of a proposal with this structure.

• Identifying the problem enables you to generate well thought out, relevant, practical solutions.

• Some components of prob. Identification:(Overview of problem, critical analysis as

relevant to the company)

Problem-Solution structure

• First paragraph must have overview of problem, and a summary of solutions

• Subsequent paragraphs deal with each of the solutions in greater detail

• Use paragraphs to introduce new ideas/ separate one idea/ solution from the other

• Strong Introduction & Strong Conclusion

Sub Category:*Problem-Solution/Elimination Method*

Method Suggests # solutions & selects a few

• Make recommendation in 1st 2 paragraphs

• Establish Criteria for the best solution

• Use criteria to eliminate other solutions

• Reiterate why solution you recommended was the best- based on criteria +

Proposal Formats: 101

• Be clear, & concise

• Keep sentences simple I.e avoid using big words unless you know how to use them; don’t make sentences too long

• Again: Use paragraphs to introduce new ideas

• Use Bullets to highlight key points

Concision

• Concision= Leanness of words

• Adds Grace to written work

• Less is More.

• If you can say it in few words- do so: avoid being pompous

Compare: Original Vs Revised

• To ensure that the new system being developed, or the existing system being modified, will provide users with the timely, accurate & complete information they require to properly perform their functions & responsibilities, it is necessary to assure that the new/ modified system will cover all necessary aspects of the present automated/manual systems being replaced. To gain this assurance, it is essential that documentation be made of the entities of the present systems which will be modified or eliminated.

• Make sure to document all planned changes so any mistakes you make will can be corrected.

(15 words= 80% reduction in words)

Concision- example

• The film & Video industry category can specifically be broken down into subsequent industries of motion picture & videotape production, motion picture & videotape distribution, movie houses & cable and other pay television services.

• The film and video industry category consists of production, movie houses & cable and other pay- TV services.

Concision Example

• Some of AOL Time Warner’s major media competitors include News Corporation Ltd, which is a global media and entertainment media power located in Australia, and Viacom Inc, which is based in the United States & is one of the world’s leading media companies

• AOL Time Warner’s major global media competitors include Australian-based News Corporation Ltd and US.- based Viacom Inc.

CLARITY

• Good Writers see their words from the perspective of the reader.

• Key to good writing: know your audience.

• Example:

CLARITY…

Questions Good Writers ask:• Does my reader understand the words I’m

using, the way I’m using them?• Have I explained clearly enough for them to

know what I’m talking about?• Is my evidence persuasive?• Have I thought out all possible objections?• Are my arguments based on logic?

HOW TO ACHIEVE CLARITY

• Clarity = Honesty

• Basic Pattern: who/what does what

• Choose Active Voice over Passive Voice

• Use Verbs over nominalizations

• Choose Active Verbs over Linking verbs

Achieving Clarity.-Active Voice

• Who did What

• Stronger & more assertive. (in passive voice the subject does nothing, it is acted upon.)

• Passive Voice to be used when you care more about the action than the agent e.g. Hamlet was written by Shakespeare around 1600.

Corrective use of Passive Voice

• The Particle’s rate of decay was measured.

• Hamlet was written around 1600.

• The document was found in the governor’s personal library.

• ** correct use but also depends on the context- ie. The context decides what is important- agent or object.

Active Voice Continued.

Passive• The fire was started by a cow.• Microsoft was founded in

1975.• Mistakes were made.• The Taft-Hartley act was also

used to support the court’s decision.

• While reading Mill’s ‘On Liberty’, the concept of personal freedom was discussed.

• Active• A cow started the fire.• Bill Gates founded

Microsoft in 1975.• The president made

mistakes.• The court also cited the

Taft-Hartley act.• In ‘On Liberty’, Mill

discusses the concept of personal freedom.

Clarity: Verbs Vs. Nominalization

• Nominalization is an action expressed as a noun rather than a verb

• Words that end in –ation or –ion.• For the most part, changing actions to nouns

makes it unclear who does what. E.g.A full complement of actions was undertaken vs. I

did all I could.A systematic analysis of the data is underway vs. We

are carefully analyzing the data.

Nominalization Vs Verbs

• Analysis• Assessment• Argument• Examination• Explanation• Performance• Revelation

• Analyze• Assess• Argue• Examine• Explain• Perform• Reveal

Noms in sentences

Original Version

• Assessment of his test performance showed satisfactory achievement.

• The play is an examination of the conflict the conspirators face after the assassination of Julius Caesar.

Revised Version• He passed the test.• The play examines the

conflict the conspirators face after they assassinate Julius Caesar.

Clarity: Active Vs. Linking Verbs

• Active Verbs convey action. E.g. he spoke

• Linking Verbs convey states of being. E.g.He appears dull, it will be impossible, etc.

• ** It’s perfectly okay to use linking verbs to describe or define things.**

Linking Verb Abuse Examples:

• There was a failure on the part of the accounting firm to engage in a thorough examination of the transactions of the company.

• Motion toward a light source is a behavior of Euglena, a single-celled organism.

Formatting, cont’d…

• Make sure that of all the points to be discussed in a proposal, the main ones are tackled first.

KEY POINTS TO REMEMBER:

• Always provide a conceptual framework for the reader

• The triad: issue---Link (skills/expertise)--- solution. Always find the link to the problem and the solution and sell it!