Overview
Proposals are persuasive documents that are fundamental tools in organizational funding and output. This course will look at sources of funding, types of proposals and how to write proposals that will meet funding agencies requirements. This will include a number of tips and techniques to increase the potential success of your proposals. An important but often overlooked aspect of proposal writing will also be covered- Building and Maintaining Relationships. Relationships are built on honesty. Potential projects must be a good fit for your organization and your organization must be ready to do the work contained in the proposal. The most successful proposals are going to be those that fulfill the mission and values of your organization and that of the funding agencies as well!
Learning Outcomes
After you complete this course, you will be able to:
- Locate potential funders for your organizations on the Internet and use evaluative skills to identify the appropriateness of funding related to their own organization
- Explain the necessity of matching funders interests with organizational needs and use this knowledge in decisions about the validity of submitting a funding proposal
- Describe and understand the basic elements of proposal writing for not-for-profit organizations
- Describe and understand the basic process for successful proposal writing
- Analyze effective relationship-building strategies to engage with funders and use this knowledge in writing a funding proposal
- Describe at least five reasons why funding proposals can be rejected
- Plan, write and submit a proposal in response to funders guidelines
Course Outline
- 2.1: Trends in the Funding Environment
- 2.2: Types of Funders
- 2.3: Potential Funders
- 3.1: Personal Proposal Funder Selection
- 4.1: Proposal Forms
- 4.2: Letter Proposal
- 4.3: Partnership Proposals
- 5.1: Building the Relationship
- 5.2: Going Steady
- 6.1: RFPs/RFQs (Requests for Proposals or Request for Quote)
- 6.2: RFP Case Study
- 10.1: Desired Results
- 11.1: Resources and Activities
- 12.1: Sustainability
- 12.2: Budget
- 13.1: Conclusion, Introduction and Executive Summary
