January 02, 2017
Writing a proposal involves many people, regardless of the proposal topic, the targeted funder, or whether you have a lead writer.
Even for a "simple" proposal, multiple people will contribute to different components, with some working on the budget, others writing the more technical sections, and still others managing the supporting materials. If you are lucky, you'll also have an editor on your team who can copyedit the proposal at the final stage.
It's also not unusual to have more than one person working on the proposal. When you have multiple writers, the advantage is that you have the benefit of the knowledge of multiple people. The challenge is that the contributions from each writer need to be coordinated so at the end of the process, you end up with a proposal that is comprehensive, cohesive, and has a unified voice.
Below are four things you can do to make the proposal process easier when there are several writers involved:
Decide on a Strategy to Coordinate Contributions: If you are working with multiple writers, you'll need to decide how you want to collect their contributions to the proposal. Will a proposal outline be sent to everyone, and will each person enter their section directly into the outline? Will each writer be given a writing assignment to complete and submit to a lead writer who will combine the pieces into a single document? Will the writers be given open-ended assignments or very specific, "answer these questions" assignments? There are different ways to coordinate the input from multiple writers, none of which is the single "best" way. You'll need to consider the options, decide on your approach in advance, and communicate it clearly to all team members.
Choose One Person to Be the Lead: Even when there are multiple writers, it is preferable to have one person (not a committee) responsible for deciding how best to integrate the various sections into a working draft. Ideally, this person will be a strong writer and conversant in the proposal's subject matter, so she can evaluate the writing on substantive content and style. It can quickly get complicated when several people weigh in on how to pull together the proposal content. Choosing one person to lead the writing streamlines the process and reduces confusion.
Have a Central Place to Communicate Information: When working with large proposal teams and multiple writers, it's essential to have a system for sharing updates about the proposal, such as revisions to the proposal calendar. While some updates may need to be communicated via email, a central Web-based storage site is one of the best ways to share information. Depending on your organization and team configuration, options for central storage include Microsoft SharePoint, Dropbox, or Google Docs (before using online storage, ensure your organization allows third-party storage sites). In addition to reducing the number of email messages, a key advantage of using a central online storage site is that it serves as a 24-hour information hub for all team members. After the proposal has been submitted, the site can also serve as an archive for the proposal materials.
Communicate the Plan Early and Often: Lastly, plan to communicate with team members regularly. The frequency of communication will vary by team. The updates could range anywhere from daily check-ins to weekly calls. The main thing is to keep everyone informed about the proposal's status and any changes to deadlines, responsibilities, or strategy. It's okay to over-communicate updates to the proposal team initially. You can always scale back your communications later if it feels like too much.
A fifth point could be "know your organization and your partners," because the best strategies for coordinating multiple proposal contributors account for the values and structures of all the organizations involved. For example, if you are coordinating a proposal and you know your organization, or one of the partner organizations, has a culture where employees typically do not work on the weekends, you'll want to factor that into your plan. Respecting weekend boundaries might mean not expecting weekend replies or assigning due dates that depend on weekend work.
The familiar saying "if you fail to plan, plan to fail" applies very much to writing proposals. Planning ahead and continually communicating updates helps proposal teams function at their best.