How to Guide:

Developing a Business Proposal

CONTENTS

Topic Page

Contents Page 2

Introduction 3

What is a business proposal? 3

Who reads business proposals? 4

Linking your business proposal to the University objectives 5

What to include in your business proposal? 7

Template for writing a business proposal? 11

10 Essential tips for writing a business proposal 13

Further Reading 15

1. Introduction

This ‘how to guide’ outlines how to put together a written proposal when you want to put forward

ideas fro making changes, improvements or for new developments in the work that you do. The

purpose of the proposal is to influence those who can support and resource them. It is not dissimilar

to planning a committee paper but differs slightly in that this guidance is written focusing more on

localised issues for Faculties or Departments whereas a committee paper is usually influencing the

broader work of the University and linked to organisation’s policies or corporate governance 2

responsibilities. As aspects of the work of the University develops and changes to meet its strategic

objectives as well as respond to the external environment we need to look critically at making robust

decisions about how we best to use our squeezed resources. The approaches provided in this

guidance are designed to help you think about what to include in your proposal in order to influence

effectively those who have the authority to provide you with the resources to achieve your ideas.

2. What is a business proposal?

In a University a business proposal will be slightly different in content rather than style to those used

in other industries. A business proposal in a University setting is more likely to be about a new

approach to an activity such as 24 hour opening in the library, making an improvement such as an on

line service, a new degree programme or a new CPD or KE activity rather than typical product based

businesses where it would be common to discuss increasing market share, shareholder value or a

pricing strategy for a product. Although increasingly in the University, as competition for students

admissions increases business language such as market share has become an important feature of the

Universities activity.

The process of using the written word rather than the verbal to propose ideas for change,

developments or improvements is becoming more desirable the more complicated the working

environment has become. The University extensively uses reports as a means to communicate but it is

worth considering the subtle differences between a proposal and a report as follows:

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REPORTS PROPOSALS

1. Contain Information about what has

happened in the past

Examine what might happen in the future

2. Seek primarily to inform the reader Seek primarily to persuade the reader to make a

particular decision

3. Record objective facts Express opinions – albeit supported by facts

More people have a stake in the outcome of change and in terms of influencing others and getting

people to ‘buy in’ to change it can be really helpful to have things written down, reasons can be

explained and assumptions minimised. The purpose of writing a business proposal is:

- for the reader to understand something they didn’t before and minimise assumptions;

- to persuade them to take a particular action;

- to record facts and arguments to support the proposal and to provide a record of the reasons

for a decision that may need to be referred to later;

- to accommodate a wider audience who have a stake, need to approve or will resource the

action.

3. Who reads a business proposal?

The funding of Higher Education institutions from HEFCE and other government funded stakeholders

is due to reduce over the next few years. This will be offset by an increase in tuition fees to be paid by

Home/EU undergraduates, and overseas students however this still places an increasing reliance on

an institutions management of the Universities resources and the need to account for use of them.

The people who approve the use of resources whether funds for capital spend, new staff, or time

have to decide on what they need to invest in or to support. If you have been asked to provide a

business proposal then they are looking for you to provide a coherent argument for your ideas that

include sound reasons and linked to the strategic and business objectives. Decision makers have to

weigh up one project against another and to do that quality information that has been well

researched and thought through is important to help make the decision. It is the role and

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responsibility of University leaders to play devil’s advocate and ensure that a business proposal is

realistic, right for the University, and affordable.

So think about the following…

4. Linking your proposal to the University Objectives

The University has also made it clear that there are certain parameters within which all proposals for

investment whether financial or not should be considered. Competition for resources is fierce across

the University and in these stretched times there is less of it to go round. Your proposal will be asked

to offer evidence that the following have been considered within the proposal:

- alignment to the Universities, Departmental, Faculty stated objectives;

- value for money - in its broader sense, involving a consideration for economy, efficiency and

effectiveness. In particular, the interdependent nature of the three is what constitutes value

for money and one of these measures should not really be delivered at the expense of the

others. Economy – achieving the best value balancing price against quality; Efficiency –

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The reader needs to feel like you understand their position

Write from the reader’s point of view

Show you understand the real issues and those of others

Anticipate objections, be

objective, use hard facts

Be fair and illustrate other options even if they are not your preferred one

Avoid value judgements and blaming or criticising others actions

achieving the maximum output for the minimum use of resources; Effectiveness – the

optimum match to the objectives. In simple terms this is about whether we can make a saving

without compromising our quality and output. You are asked to evaluate the potential savings

which might also include freeing up valuable resource for other uses;

- sustainability - across all strategies and operations, including through the curricula, and

research and knowledge exchange activities. A combination of factors such as, funding,

accountability, student demand and expectations have increased the pressures on sustainability

on Higher Education institutions. The University of Liverpool has adopted an approach that its

sustainability is built on achieving academic excellence in a sustainable manner, supported by

other strategies, including student experience.

- risk management -effective risk management will aid the achievement of organisational

objectives. In developing objectives proposals should take into account and identify any risks.

This can also include the risk of not doing something that could jeopardize the department,

faculty or university objectives. As such it can be strong element of influence in your proposal.

- health and safety – considering the health and safety issues should be included in you r

proposal as these may highlight particular expenditure or expertise that is required. Staff and

students need satisfactory conditions. New equipment, for example, may need extra ventilation

(in consultation with Facilities Management) or specialist help in moving and installing it. New

activities need special attention, and the cost of undertaking them safely should be part of the

costs identified in the proposal.

- process improvement - Many processes have been in place for some time and have evolved,

not to meet end user requirements or to minimise waste and inefficiency, but as a result of external

drivers or internal change. To ensure we are continuing to provide the best possible service to end

users and customers (whether they are students, other departments or external organisations) it is

important to understand how work is done and how results are delivered.

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5. What to include in your business proposal?

Senior leaders in Faculties and Departments are the likely people that will first consider your proposal

and it may end up going before other groups such as Senior Management Teams or be taken through

to a committee. It will really depend on the subject of the proposal and which key stakeholders that

will need to endorse you proposal. The purpose of this section of the guide is to go through the things

that are important to include enabling a decision to be made. If you leave things out further

information will be requested and you risk a delayed decision. In a University this can be of

significance particularly if your proposal is going through a committee process cycle, a delay could

mean several weeks for the next cycle to come round. The contents of a business proposal may differ

slightly in different University settings or depending on the nature of the proposal but they all

generally follow a similar pattern.

In putting together this information, you need to be able to convince yourself that you would back the

proposal with your own money, in order to convince others to do so. A good business proposal should

help to reduce the odds, whether you’re looking for external or internal support, and ultimately, to

reduce the possibility of your university being involved in a failed venture. The very process of

developing a business proposal is a useful way of testing the viability of a proposal, through careful

examination of the assumptions behind it- just how robust it is?

The following ideas will help present a robust argument…

1. Describe the options you have to change the current situation using the data you have

gathered appropriately. Present the pros, cons and comparisons of the options as no one

option is always the perfect fit. By exploring the options you get an opportunity to

acknowledge the effect on others and show you are sensitive to the key stakeholder needs.

You are also anticipating any likely opposition to your ideas and will start to inform how you

might implement any change or new offering. A 'SWOT analysis' is a useful way of

summarising the current situation. SWOT simply stands for the Strengths, Weaknesses,

Opportunities and Threats of your proposal and can be a useful way of streamlining your

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thoughts to justify your proposal offer. The example below of a SWOT in relation to expanding

CPD activity in a Faculty.

Strengths

- University brand- Existing relationships with practice

sites- Multi-professional and profession

specific provision- CPD progression to PGT/PGR- Small dedicated team committed

to CPD- Cross faculty partnerships- Evidence based delivery

Weaknesses

- Engagement with some academics (non CPD culture)

- Staff resource – currently small- Consistency of costing across

University- Lack of flexible on-line delivery

infrastructure- Lack of consistent marketing- Communication with customers

Opportunities

- Expand portfolio according to market requirements

- On-line and blended delivery- Use of other technologies to

market, e.g. Webinar, Twitter- Existing alumni network- Enhance CPD progression to PGT- Build up database of potential

customers

Threats

- Economic climate – availability of funding for CPD in practice

- Lack of staff resource capacity to deliver research, teaching and CPD

- HEI and private sector competition- Speed and flexibility of delivery from

a wide range of established competitors

- Limited market knowledge

2. The description of your offer should focus on:

- its distinctiveness and how it will improve activity, attract students, build CPD capacity for

example.

- Is it available elsewhere? If so, why would your offer be more appealing, what are the

benefits?

- What is the lifetime of it, is it a short term gain or a slow but long term issue?

- Is it a current trend or is it dealing with a problem likely to be around for some time, what is

its lifespan;

- Is the time right now and why?

- How will it add value?

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- Are there any drawbacks/risks?

- How can you demonstrate the anticipated results will justify the investment?

- University activities are often specialist and high quality which can also mean that they tend to

be high cost, and their operating or markets arenas are select ones. So can the

project/activity/service be provided cheaply enough to attract sufficient numbers or

engagement?

- Are there opportunities for future developments, costs, benefits and timescales?

3. It is people and their ability to deliver and implement change who ultimately inspire

confidence in those making the decision. They need to be convinced of the people and

organisations capability to deliver the proposal. It will important to get over in your proposal

that you have people with the right skills, knowledge as well as desire come along with you.

This is a particularly difficult area when you can demonstrate that you understand that there

may be resistance to your proposal giving ideas of how you might overcome this.

The following checklist is aimed to help think through this aspect and what you could include:

- Summary of people expertise and experience;

- Emphasis on the particular commitment of individuals to this project;

- Staffing projections (if growth is proposed);

- Involvement of others within the University;

- Identification of any weak links in the chain (be honest!) and how you propose to rectify

these;

- Any training that might be required;

- Your communication and engagement plans.

4. If your proposal is about providing a new service or new curriculum offering for example then

it might be useful to include in your proposal how you intend to promote this through

marketing and whether are costs or implications of doing this. A more detailed guide to

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Marketing in a University can be found at https://www.liv.ac.uk/intranet/hr/people-

development/how-toguides/.

5. The financial section of the business proposal serves to quantify the narrative assertions of the

earlier sections. It also imposes a strict discipline by requiring you to show that the proposal

makes financial sense- that is, that it can be economically viable as well as efficient. The major

elements of the financial section should consider:

- Outlining the activity costs so that these can be built into the Universities Annual Planning and

Performance Cycle. See further reading section for link;

- If the proposal will generate income;

- What the costs associated with setting up, running and maintaining it including staffing it;

- Produce relevant statistics that support your argument as well as those that could challenge it

and meet these head on in the risk factors of your proposal;

- The statistics you gather during your research need to be relevant to the options you are

proposing;

- Place your financial information and statistics in the appendices and only use the elements

that support your arguments within the main body of the proposal.

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6. TEMPLATE FOR WRITING A BUSINESS PROPOSAL

The following is a basic template of the main sections of the proposal.

Contents Page – This section numbers the pages and sections of the proposal and are important as

people will quickly want to see what is contained in the proposal.

Glossary of Terms – If the proposal contains technical terms or needs to use business or names of

organisations several times it would be more helpful to the reader to abbreviate them and these

would be contained in a glossary of terms.

Summary – high level summary which provides the overview of the proposal including the University

level operating context for the reason to put forward your ideas. Provide some evidence that this is a

viable proposal and of benefit to the University or your particular area and in particular how it will

support the strategic objectives. Highlight the distinctive contribution you expect your proposal to

bring, how much it will cost, any risks. It is likely that most people will read this section and the

recommendations before any discussion so these sections need to have impact and raise the key

issues. Some people might only read these sections, not because they are not interested but because

they are busy! It is more likely that the people who have reservations to your proposal are the ones

that will read the information in more detail so that they are in a better position to challenge. Most

challenges come as a result of competing demands for investment.

Terms of Reference - outlining what you are trying to achieve in the proposal using clear statements

of expected outcomes.

Introduction and Background - this is providing the background information giving the reader the

information on the critical issues. This section should also include a brief profile of the origins of the

activity, the expertise available to you and past successes on which you intend to build. Describe

briefly the proposed activity and how this links to other activity within and outside your area as well

as how it fits onto the broader University strategic agenda.

Current Position – What are the circumstances and situation now in more detail providing what are

the strengths, what are the current problems and issues. Here you will present the risks and stating

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why they can’t be left as they are. You would include in this section relevant facts and data, evidence

including market or sector research which is relevant and influences your proposal for change,

improvement or development. This section will need to include your research and outline the options

and issues.

Recommendations – The purpose of this section is to interpret the facts and evidence from the

previous section and present your recommendations without introducing any new information.

Recommendations are best put forward in a positive style, stating the benefits, including the

implications of implementing each one.

Appendices – These are reserved for material which supports the summarised information in the

main body of the proposal. It will include all data information such as costs, comparison data, charts,

graphs etc.

References – Some business proposals draw on theoretical text or business data so if these have been

referred to within the proposal these should be listed here.

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7. 10 ESSENTIAL TIPS FOR WRITING A BUSINESS PROPOSAL

1. Write your plan for the reader

What does the reader need to know to make a decision? You could ask them before you start the

research. Be clear about the purpose of the proposal, is it to obtain resources, or to rework how

things are done now. Is it a new venture, what will be the implications of the change on others? Who

stands to gain or lose?

2. Terms of Reference

Make the terms of reference as specific as possible. If you have been asked to write it by someone

else, show them it before you start work, to make sure there is no misunderstanding about its precise

subject and emphasis.

3. Preparing the proposal

If your business proposal is to be a success it is important that the writing of it should be carefully

planned.

The main steps in preparing the proposal are:

- Decide on the section headings for your proposal;

- Agree who is to co-ordinate the provision of the necessary information from; internal

management and external advisers;

- Decide who is to write the proposal;

- Gather information for each topic and jot down ideas;

- Challenge the assumptions;

- Expect revisions.

4. Timings - The timing of your proposal is also worth considering as it may need to hit the

University planning cycle so that resources can be allocated for when you need them. Other delays

can also affect things such as the frequency of meetings. So for example you may want to embark on

implementing your change at the start of a new semester, think about how long it may take for the

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decision to be made and then who you need to influence to implement your ideas. All these things

usually mean you wish you had started sooner!

5. How long is the proposal? – about 10 – 12 sides not including appendices. Lists can make it

easier to read complex information or using bullet points.

Paragraphs – Every time you have a new thought begin a fresh paragraph and they should be

between 2 and 4 sentences.

Sentences - Use short sentences – 25 words - 35 words in length is about right. A business

proposal is different to an assignment or piece of prose. It is meant to be short, clear and to the point.

6. Avoid jargon - Your proposed reader may know very little about your area your business

proposal, therefore wherever possible write in lay terms, avoiding the use of jargon. Provide a

glossary where this is unavoidable.

7. Who should write the business proposal? - It should be the proposer that should write it. There

are, however, many areas where colleagues or external consultants can help, but only the

management of the operation can put across their enthusiasm and determination. A colleague

from the finance office might be part of the management team for these purposes.

8. Make sure it is readable - Think about the layout and the visual appearance. Sometimes there is a

house style and it is important to make sure you should follow it. Think about spacing, margins,

headings, sections, numbering and paragraphs.

9. Be Objective - Your own credibility is vital. No one is going to allow you to lead them round to

your way of thinking if they don’t trust your judgement. Don’t use value judgements use facts.

Sometimes researching a business proposal actually changes your mind and if that is the case, be

honest, your first thoughts were not perhaps that well thought out but more of a hunch. Where

you have made claims in your business proposal, or have made assumptions which may not

readily be accepted by your proposed reader, include copies of any third party confirmations you

may have as ell as those who have agreed to part fund the project.

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10. Get a second opinion - It is important to have your proposal objectively reviewed before

submitting it. Use at least two people not directly involved with your proposal and ask them to put

themselves in the place of the decision maker, to ensure that the business proposal is credible,

logical and highlight if there are any gaps. The reviewer should be asked to suggest improvements

to the contents of the business proposal.

Relevant Reading:

University Planning and Performance Cycle:

https://www.liv.ac.uk/intranet/pad/PPC_Documents/Overview_of_PPC.pdf

Marketing in a University: http://www.liv.ac.uk/media/livacuk/hr-migrated/organisational-development/

documents/Marketing,How,to,Guide_2012.docx

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