The key elements that every project proposal must have to move the project forward
Do you have a project idea that you want to get approved by senior management or even your client?
What you need to know is how to write not just any project proposal, but a WINNING project proposal.
What is a project proposal?
A project proposal is a document that lays out key concepts and ideas that you present to a decision-maker to see if those concepts and ideas are going to proceed into a project.
I write tons of project proposals for my clients all the time, and there really is a very particular and succinct way of doing it successfully.
Here are some elements that I include in every project proposal that always lead to the project moving forward.
Project Information
This is important because it sets up the needed information so that the decision-maker can really understand WHY this project is being requested.
The first thing to put down is the project name. This doesn’t necessarily have to be the final name, but putting the project name in there will just ensure that everyone is on the same page about what you’re calling the project.
Second piece of information that you need is the idea background information, which you can think of as the justification for why you’re even putting together this project proposal. Here are some questions you’ll want to think through for this part:
- Why is this idea coming to the table?
- Is the idea linked to strategy or a problem that has to be fixed?
- Is it an opportunity?
You’ll also want to talk about the objectives. In other words, what are you looking to accomplish? What are you hoping to achieve with this project once it’s completed?
Another important bit of information in this section is the scope of the project. It’s important to outline what’s going to be in and out of scope because there are a lot of assumptions when it comes to projects and this is a great opportunity to really get everyone on the same page from day one.
There are a couple other key pieces of information that you need to add to this section, as well as a few other sections of your project proposal that are super important. I want to make sure you have all the information necessary to make your project proposal a WINNING proposal.
So, I’ve created a YouTube video to dive a little deeper into all of this. Head on over to YouTube with me and let’s finish talking it out!
I really hope that you found this helpful – and if you did, it would mean so much to me if you would share it on your social media.
Meanwhile, if you really are committed to mastering your next project, do consider taking my SLAY Project Management online course where I show you step-by-step how to successfully manage a project, plus you get access to every template you will need, along with detailed video instructions on how to fill them out.
-Adriana
