Scientific and Technical Communication: Theory, Practice and Policy

Introduction

The world's commerce is tied to legally binding agreements called contracts, and most contracts begin with proposals -- formal offers to gather information, provide a product or perform work.

The author of a proposal could be an individual, a division or an entire corporation. In some cases authors are also contractors: an amateur ornithologist may propose to teach a night class at a community college with funds from a state education council. More often, though, authors represent larger organizations: the marketing division of a telecommunications firm proposing an advertising campaign for a software package, or an electronics firm proposing to design a navigation system for the Navy.

The work a proposal describes is one of three types: research, sales or service. A research proposal offers to study or to solve a problem. A university's horticultural research team might use a research proposal to request funds from the National Science Foundation. A sales proposal offers a product. A small computer firm might use a sales proposal to sell a computer system to an airline to use in making reservations. A service proposal offers to perform work. An interior design firm might use a service proposal to offer to restructure a workspace for an insurance company.

As an author of a proposal, you attempt to persuade your audience:

1) that a solution to his problem must involve or include goals you define;

2) that you are able to achieve those goals because you have a sound method, necessary facilities, qualified personnel and a realistic schedule;

3) that you are able to achieve those goals at a reasonable cost.

Generally, proposals appear in two formats: informal (relatively brief reports to an audience within an organization) and formal (relatively long reports to an audience outside an organization). This chapter will outline informal and formal formats. It will also show you how to tailor a formal proposal to three audiences: a private corporation, a United States Government Agency, and a foundation.

Informal Proposals

Informal proposals are, in essence, persuasive memos. Most are directed to an audience within an organization. They may follow memo format or alter it slightly, and they may be as brief as two pages. Some are solicited: a manager may ask workers to write a proposal suggesting means to improve a manufacturing process. Many are unsolicited: a worker dissatisfied with company software may write a proposal to his supervisor offering to investigate alternatives. An unsolicited proposal must persuade its audience of the three conditions listed above; it must also persuade him that he has a problem to begin with.

The following is an unsolicited proposal which requests a kind of administrative restructuring. It is composed in an altered memo format, and it is brief -- only two pages. It begins with a standard memo heading and a one-paragraph summary.

Snowboarding Club of Virginia Tech

To: Student Activities Committee
From: Krista Grigg, President of the Snowboarding Club of Virginia Tech
Subject: Proposal for a Virginia Tech Snowboarding Team
Date: April 21, 2003

Summary

On behalf of the Snowboarding Club, I request that Virginia Tech Student Activities Committee grant the club team status. Team status allow our group to seek the resources to compete against other collegiate teams. The legitimacy of team status would attract more members. And the university would benefit: by helping to fund a new and rising sport, Virginia Tech could place itself on the cutting edge of intercollegiate athletics.

The benefits section enumerates and describes advantages for the author and -- especially -- for the audience.

Benefits

The existence of a Virginia Tech Snowboarding Team would enhance Virginia Tech's reputation as a leader in innovative sports. Team status would produce two results which would directly benefit the club, and indirectly benefit the university.

First, the establishment of a Snowboarding Team would enable our group to participate more fully in competition. More members could compete; all members would be relieved of financial concerns, and could concentrate on the sport.

Second, by gaining team status, we will increase campus awareness of the sport. In turn, we will increase the size and influence of our membership. (We hope to teach beginners the basics of snowboarding, and train more advanced snowboarders for competition. We are especially concerned with safety education.)

The background section offers a history of the subject, giving special attention to the perceived problem.

Background

Recently, the sport of snowboarding has made enormous gains in popularity. Two years ago, in response to this increased interest, I formed the Snowboarding Club of Virginia Tech. The Student Budget Board partially funded the Club's equipment expenses during the last snowboarding season (1994-95). Bylaws of the Student Activities Committee prevent greater funding to an organization not recognized as a team.

The Club participated in six competitions regulated by the Collegiate Snowboarding Organization (CSO). We had four wins and two losses -- a respectable record, especially for a group lacking formal funding. An average of six members entered each competition, which resulted in a total charge of $3000.00 in competition costs (entrance fees, travel, food, and lodging). Because members were responsible for the travel and lodging expenses incurred during trips to competition, only a few (six of 23) could afford to enter snowboarding contests.

Several colleges and universities have funded snowboarding teams. Among the more prominent are the University of South Carolina, Virginia Commonwealth University, Rutgers University, Michigan State University and Boston University. During informal conversations at competitions, snowboarders from these schools informed us that funding enabled them to train more effectively and consistently, resulting in higher standings at the CSO competitions.

The budget section is careful to itemize and to justify each expense. This author draws attention to expenses for which the members hold themselves accountable, and shows the audience that her organization is responsible.

Budget

A snowboarder entering a competition incurs many expenses. Still, we would request complete funding only for registration and entry fees, and partial funding for equipment, lodging, and transportation.

Contribution from the university

We estimate that we will attend six competitions over the course of the next snowboarding season; funding will be as follows:

	Per Competition	Per Season
Registration and entry fees	210.00	1260.00
Lodging	120.00	720.00
Transportation	80.00	480.00
Equipment	--	100.00
Total	410.00	2560.00

Total funding requested for the team would be $2560.00. Compared to the funds provided other Tech teams (football, baseball, basketball and soccer), the sum is quite small.

Contribution from team members

The Snowboarding Team will generate its own revenue through fund raisers. We will be responsible for any competition expenses that university funding does not cover. In addition, we will pay for our season passes at the ski slope where we will train -- Massanutten Ski Resort in Elkton, Virginia. We will also pay for our uniforms. Passes will cost $100.00 per person. Uniforms (in our case, parkas) will cost approximately $210.00 per person.

The conclusion restates and summarizes the claimed benefits, retaining the order of presentation from the benefits section. Although all information here will have been discussed in detail earlier, implications of that information may be presented for the first time. If the proposal is unsolicited, this section might stress the immediacy or seriousness of the problem.

Conclusion

Membership in the Virginia Tech Snowboarding Club increased dramatically last year (from five in 1990-91 to twenty-three in 1991-92). The Club snowboarders who participated in intercollegiate competition were outstanding. Still, many talented snowboarders cannot afford the costs of competition. By promoting the club to team status, the Student Activities Committee would allow these athletes to fulfill their promise. It would encourage others to discover the excitement of the sport. And it would help establish Virginia Tech as a leader in an innovative realm.

Formal Proposals

Formal proposals are written to outside organizations, they follow a more complex and specialized format, and they are far longer -- some running to the thousands of pages. Formal proposals are likely to include front matter (sections which appear before the report body) like title page, cover letter, table of contents, and lists of figures. They may also include end matter (sections which appear after the report body) like appendixes. The formal proposal Proposed Artificial Recharge Studies in Northern Qatar, the example used here, is typical. Including appendixes, it is 25 pages.

Front Matter

The title page includes the report title, contracting agent and/or representatives, author or authors, division or subcontractor the author(s) represent, and the date of submission.

UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

PROPOSED ARTIFICIAL RECHARGE STUDIES IN NORTHERN QATAR

By Joel O. Kimrey

OPEN-FILE REPORT 85-343

Prepared in cooperation with the
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURAL AND
WATER RESEARCH, QATAR MINISTRY OF INDUSTRY AND AGRICULTURE

Orlando, Florida
1985

The cover letter is a standard letter of transmittal, the subject of which is the report itself. It abbreviates the entire proposal to about a page. The "artificial recharge" cover letter has two paragraphs. The first orients the reader: "The purpose of this report is to present the author's recommendations for hydrogeologic recharge experiments in northern Qatar." The second describes the report's conclusions and recommendations, and summarizes costs:

Artificial recharge should be by injection to the upper part of the Umm er Radhuma aquifer. A hydrogeologic appraisal should investigate and document the capability of the Umm er Radhuma aquifer to receive and store injected water, and the degree of efficiency with which this water may be recovered for use. Results will indicate the best areas for injection of recharge water; the optimum methodology for injection; and the total volume that it will be practical to inject, store, and recover. Total costs of the hydrogeologic appraisal are estimated to be QR. 5,362,000.

Large contracting agents may require a documentation page. Although it is included primarily to facilitate processing, it also offers managers an accessible overview of the report.

The table of contents lists and numbers each of the report's major sections. Formats for headings and subheadings in the table of contents should match those in the text. If, for instance, section headings are numbered, capitalized and indented five spaces in the text, they should be numbered, capitalized and indented five spaces in the table of contents.

CONTENTS

Abstract	1
Introduction	1
Background	1
Purpose and scope	2
Acknowledgments	2
Geologic setting	2
Damman Formation	3
Rus Formation	3
Umm er Radhuma Formation	4
Hydrogeology	5
Ground-water use	8
Feasibility of artificial recharge	15
Recommended scope of additional studies	18
Hydrogeologic appraisal	18
Management appraisal	22
Conclusions and Recommendations	22
References cited	24
Appendix	25
Work plan for the hydrogeologic appraisal	25

ILLUSTRATIONS

Figures 1-5. Maps showing:

1.Location of Qatar and Delineation of the Northern and Southern Ground Water Provinces	6
2. Ground-water levels, September 1971	9
3. Dissolved solids concentrations in ground water, September 1971	10
4. Ground-water levels, September 1982	11
5. Dissolved solids concentrations in ground water, September 1982	12
Graph showing pattern of withdrawals from the Government well fields, 1964-80	14

Body

The body of proposals vary greatly in length and form. Some agencies require a particular and precise format. The most comprehensive has seven sections: statement of the problem, statement of request, description of proposed work, description of available facilities, qualifications of personnel, budget, and summary. Each may be subdivided according to needs of audience and author. Which sections you include and which sections you subdivide are contingent upon the requirements of your employer, the proposal's context, and/or the demands of the agency which solicited the proposal.

1. Statement of the Problem

1.1 definition of problem

A corporation defines (and advertises) its problem in a Request for Proposals -- commonly called an RFP. A government agency may use an RFP or a set of guidelines. A foundation publishes and makes available a description of its interests and a list of successful proposals from recent years.

Unsuccessful proposals may fail because they simply do not answer the request. At some point between reading the organization's RFP or announcement and writing the proposal itself, the authors lose sight of their audience. Do all you can to maintain focus. Study the problem as the agency defined it, refer to it throughout the writing process, and if necessary (and if allowed), contact the agency which solicited the proposal to be certain you understand it. Many proposals summarize the problem exactly as the agency soliciting the proposal defined it. This practice assures the organization which solicited the proposal that you perceive its problem correctly; it also helps you to focus on that problem.

The "artificial recharge" proposal recounts a formal request from the government of Qatar.

Fresh ground water is a very limited resource in Qatar, an arid peninsula in the southwest part of the Arabian Gulf. However, expanding agricultural activities, particularly in northern Qatar, are highly dependent upon this limited resource for irrigation.

In 1971 the Government of Qatar with technical assistance of the FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations), began joint investigations of water resources and agricultural development. In 1984, the Government of Qatar again requested services of a hydrogeologist for advice in the area of artificial recharge.

. . . .

Both the 1976 and 1984 requests for technical advice were related to artificial recharge of aquifers in northern Qatar by injection of desalinated seawater. Specifically, the 1984 request was for assistance in developing plans for an investigation of (a) methodology for injection of the desalinated water, and (b) the optimal amounts of water that might be recharged in this manner.

1.2 evaluation of state-of-the-art equipment or techniques for solving the problem

The reader will look here for evidence of your expertise. Research relevant literature, and make the research evident. The author of the "artificial recharge" proposal investigated four areas -- geologic setting, hydrogeology, current ground-water use, and feasibility -- and devotes a subsection to each. Under the subsection "geologic setting" he writes:

Some extensive investigations have been made of injection, storage, and recovery of surplus freshwater in central and south Florida, southeastern United States. The hydrologic characteristics of the Umm er Radhuma aquifer are similar to those of the carbonate aquifers in Florida; therefore some useful conclusions can be drawn from previous studies (Merritt and others, 1983) (Merritt, 1983).

Further, the author describes his research program.

[T]he author spent November 18 to December 16, 1984, at Doha, Qatar, gathering and assimilating information and assisting in preparation of long-range plans for augmentation of ground-water resources by means of artificial recharge. Most of this time was spent in review of existing technical reports and data related to hydrogeologic conditions, and in discussion and field reconnaissance with personnel of the Department of Agricultural and Water Research, Ministry of Industry and Agriculture, State of Qatar.

2. Statement of Request

This section, also called the "executive summary," outlines the project and summarizes its strengths. It is likely to be brief -- at most two or three pages. It is the first part many readers will read and it is the only part others will read; accordingly, you should be especially careful here to use a professional tone and to make certain your information is correct and complete. You should also make certain your statement is persuasive. One effective means is through a unique selling point -- that is, a single, specific and supportable reason your proposal is superior to the others.

This section may also offer an overview of the project budget. As with reporting all figures, you should double-check their accuracy with superiors. In short proposals this section may be a paragraph; in longer proposals it may run to one or two pages.

3. Description of Proposed Work

The contracting agent will read your proposal asking whether you can perform the work you promise to perform. He is more likely to be persuaded if you can provide detail.

3.1 objectives of project

This section expands upon objectives mentioned above in "outline of plan." Again, be certain to maintain your focus on the audience's problem.

The purposes of this hydrogeologic appraisal are:

1. To investigate and document the capability of the Umm er Radhuma aquifer to receive and store injected water, and the degree of efficiency with which it may be recovered for use, and

2. to interpret these results of investigation in terms of best areas for injection of recharge; the optimum methodology (rates, length of cycles, etc.) for injection and recovery; and the total volumes that it is practical to inject, store, and retrieve.

3.2 methods to be used in achieving those objectives

Although the author of the "artificial recharge" proposal faces a unique combination of problems in topography, water tables and climate, his proposed methods are standard in his field, and he does not think it necessary to explain them. Authors writing other proposals may have limited knowledge in certain areas, and so can discuss methods only in general terms. Still other projects have no precedent whatsoever, in which case the author must make educated guesses. Firms bidding for the contract to manufacture pressure suits for NASA's Mercury astronauts, for instance, had no real design models; one such firm visited The Tower of London to examine the elbow and knee joints of suits of armor. Although your reader will expect that you know enough of your proposed methods to justify their use, he will understand that certain particulars of those methods cannot be known until the project is underway.

3.3 schedule

Offer dates for beginning and ending the project, and a schedule for the completion of various stages of the project. Consider including a timeline. Because the audience will want evidence that you can complete the project in due course, the schedule must not only be realistic; it must be demonstrably realistic. Cite previous projects completed on similar schedules. Explain and justify any peculiarities in the schedule -- an aspect of the project which might seem excessively slow or fast, for instance.

The contracting agent may base his decision in part upon who claims to be able to complete the project soonest; but he will also be suspicious of unusual speed, especially if it is unsupported. Accordingly, you must balance this estimate between your quite natural desire to hurry the project, and a realistic estimate of likely progress. The "artificial recharge" project itself is given an estimate of two years, with this qualification:

It is suggested that the project hydrologists be available for a 3-month period prior to beginning the 2-year period of field investigations. This will allow them to accomplish some necessary preliminary work in both office and field and become thoroughly familiar with the project area.

3.4 discussion of alternatives

You may present those alternatives in any way, so long as it is systematic. You may wish to discuss them, for instance, chronologically -- that is, to offer a history of what has been tried in the order it was tried. Or, you may move from the alternative which presents the most problems to the alternative which presents the fewest -- and so prepare the way to present your alternative -- which has fewer faults than any, or no faults at all. Whichever presentation you use, be certain to explain the inadequacy of each alternative not your own. Your audience will be reading to be certain you understand them.

The "artificial recharge" proposal intelligently discusses -- and dismisses -- an alternative to recharge in general, and then argues the advantages of a particular recharge site.

The simplest scheme for use of desalinated water would be to make it directly available via pipeline from the desalination plant(s) to the points of necessary irrigation application. However this is the least practical scheme because volumes of available water from the desalination plant probably would not match those volumes needed for irrigation. Because need for irrigation water will vary widely (on seasonal, daily, and even hourly basis) a large storage element must be available in the distribution system because the source volume will likely be either fixed or, in any event, not adaptable to the wide fluctuations in irrigation demands. Storage of large volumes of water in northern Qatar would appear to best be done by injection into the Rus and Umm er Radhuma aquifers. These units are capable of accepting and storing large volumes of water by well-injection for recovery and use in irrigation.

. . . .

The optimum location for the artificial recharge is in the interior of northern Qatar ... This is the area where the largest reserves of freshwater now occur, and the area where agricultural extractions are presently occurring and moving toward. Concentration of artificial recharge within this area would have maximum effectiveness in maintaining (even possibly expanding) the freshwater reserves that now occur there. Another reason for concentrating recharge in inland areas is that land surface altitudes are higher; thus the unsaturated zone is thicker and there is less possibility of water logging the land by rise of the water table in response to artificial recharge.

. . . .

Artificial recharge by use of injection wells in northern Qatar should be to the Umm er Radhuma aquifer which is separated from the overlying Rus aquifer by an aquitard. The Umm er Radhuma aquifer is a much better injection zone from a quantitative standpoint; its average transmissivity is considered an order of magnitude greater than that of the Rus aquifer (I. Harhash, oral commun., 1984).

4. Description of Available Facilities

A proposal author whose organization is modestly equipped is obviously at some disadvantage in this section, and should be warned against inflating or misrepresenting the equipment available. If your laboratory consists of a kitchen sink and a Bunsen burner, better to say so than be contracted for work requiring more sophisticated equipment -- and/or be charged by the contracting agent with fraud.

4.1 detailed description of equipment

Identifying equipment by brand name is common and accepted practice; praising equipment is unprofessional.

4.2 list of materials

As with instructions materials are separated from equipment in that materials may be used up. Again, you may use brand names.

5. Personnel

5.1 names, positions and relevant backgrounds of payrolled employees

Many proposals offer here paragraph-long descriptions of most important personnel -- i.e., managers, chief scientists, etc. Descriptions should be relevant to the subject of the proposal. In other words, if the proposal concerns testing disease-resistant barley strains, the reader does not care that your chief scientist happens to have recently published an article on a problem in fluid mechanics; the reader does care, however, that he has five years experience managing a greenhouse.

The "artificial recharge" proposal describes qualifications of essential personnel.

Successful completion of this hydrogeologic appraisal will require a 2-year period of field investigations and the full-time services of two hydrogeologists, or ground-water hydrogeologists. One of these project hydrogeologists should have at least 5 years experience in ground-water investigations, and a significant part of this experience should be in the quantitative aspects of hydrology of carbonate aquifers. The other project hydrologist may be a less experienced individual, but should have a minimum of 2 years experience in ground-water investigations. These project hydrologists will require full logistics support for their office and field activities (i.e., supplies, vehicles, field assistance, etc.) throughout the entire period of investigation.

The project hydrologists will also require the continuing availability, in advisory capacity, of a consultant in the area of artificial recharge, and periodic assignment of specialists in the areas of hydraulics and geochemistry of carbonate aquifers. These advisors and specialists may be senior technical personnel of the Government of Qatar; or they may be consultants on loan from other agencies, as appropriate.

5.2 names and positions of remaining staff

Some reports include this section in an appendix.

5.3 relevant publications of payrolled employees

This section appears as a standard "works cited" page. Smaller firms, and firms competing for a certain type of project for the first time may have no relevant publications. In such a case, simply omit this section.

6. Budget

Although the proposal whose budget is lowest does not necessarily win, the proposal which promises the most savings over the long run has a better chance. This section appears as a table or series of tables, with any unusual figure explained in an accompanying narrative. Many organizations require separate budget tables for the entire project and for each year of the project.

The "artificial recharge" proposal outlines all costs on a single page ("QR" is local currency -- the Qatar riyal):

Successful completion of all work items above will require a 2-year period of investigation and the full-time assignments of two hydrogeologists (or ground-water hydrologists). Estimated costs for the hydrogeologists appraisal are:

1. Testhole Drilling

(4 holes, 30 cm diameter) (200 m/hole) at 720,000 QR. 900/meter

2. Geophysical Logging:

(4 holes) at QR. 8,000/hole 32,000

3. Converting Boreholes:

(a) Casing - (4 holes) (50 m/hole) at QR. 300/meter 60,000
(b) Grouting - (4 holes) (140 m/hole) at QR. 50/meter 28,000

4. Piezometers:

(12 holes, 15 cm diameter) (60 m/hole) at QR. 96,000 600 meter

5. Piezometers:

(12 holes, 15 cm diameter) (60 m/hole) at QR.432,000 600 meter

6. Aquifer Tests:

(4 wells) (7 days/well) at QR. 4,500/day 126,000

7. Recharge-Recovery Tests:

(4 wells) (90 days/well) at QR. 4,800/day 1,728,000

8. Project Hydrologists:

(2) (24 months) at QR. 30,000/month 1,440,000

Subtotal 4,662,000
Contingency allowance 700,000(15 percent)

Total 5,362,000

Proposals for larger projects are likely to devote several pages to their budget, and may separate it into subsections.

6.1 salaries of payrolled employees

Salaries should be determined by dividing the employee's normal salary by the percentage of time at work on the project. For instance, if an employee earns $40,000 per year and is expected to spend 33% of her time on the project during its first year, she will be listed as earning $13,200 from the project.

6.2 cost of reusable equipment purchased to service the proposed work

Estimates for costs should use current market prices. If the project is expected to last more than one calendar year, estimates should make adjustment for inflation: most proposals assume five or six percent. When (and if) the contract is signed, the attorneys for both parties include a section detailing what equipment becomes property of which party at the project's completion. As in the "artificial recharge" proposal, costs may be expressed in local currency.

6.3 costs of expendable equipment

As with reusable equipment costs, estimates should use current market prices and make adjustments for inflation. How detailed is an author expected to get? Do you count reams of paper? boxes of paper clips? a printer cartridge? In general, such materials are included in specialized sub-sections like "stationary" and "copying costs." If you have specific questions about details, examine previous reports.

6.4 remaining expenses, e.g., clerical salaries, travel, distributing reports

First-time authors of proposals are likely to underestimate these costs -- and likely to omit certain of them. It is prudent to use another proposal on a similar project as a model, and to consult with superiors.

7. Summary

In discussing résumés, we invoked the standard counsel of writing teachers: "Don't tell -- show." The same advice applies here. Your reader will not be persuaded when you tell him that your work is superior to the competition. He will be persuaded only if you can demonstrate that such is the case. Accordingly, the proposal summary is divided into sections that demand specificity.

7.1 benefits to contracting agent

What may be obvious to you may be less than obvious to the reader of your proposal. Delineate every advantage -- those which are obvious as well as those which are indirect or "hidden."

7.2 comparison of your proposal to likely competition

Demonstrate a knowledge of the competition and present your candid evaluation of it. Your readers are likely to be reading the competition's proposals shortly before or after they read yours: they will have a working knowledge of your competition, and they will evaluate your proposal against it. Do not deprecate the competition. Such practice is unprofessional and unethical; and it may open you to charges of libel -- a defamatory statement that injures a reputation.

7.3 reassertion of seriousness of problem

The reader may not fully appreciate the import of the problem before him. Recount the problem, and if your work will prevent subsequent or related problems, describe them as well.

Ground-water extractions for agriculture in northern Qatar are greatly in excess of natural recharge. It was estimated, in 1980, that quality of ground water (in terms of dissolved solids) was declining at a rate of 5 percent per year. Extractions for irrigation have increased by almost 20 percent from 1980 to 1984. The only means of indefinitely maintaining even the present level of agriculture is the availability of some additional source of freshwater for irrigation.

7.4 reassertion of selling points, and urge to action

Consider the order in which you present these points. You may want to re-order them, moving from least persuasive to most persuasive and so building to a kind of rhetorical crescendo. Most proposals, though (including the "artificial recharge" proposal), repeat them in the order they appeared earlier in the text, thus reinforcing mental tracks already laid:

Use of desalinated seawater for artificial recharge on a large scale has been proposed. This scheme appears feasible from present knowledge. Artificial recharge would offer the advantages of stabilization or retardation of deterioration in quality of ground water; aquifer storage and transmission of desalinated seawater; and maintenance of a standby supply of potable water.

Proposals
Chapter 11: Part 1

David M. Toomey with James H. Collier

Book Contents

Chapter 11: Part 1

Proposals Chapter 11: Part 1

David M. Toomey with James H. Collier

Book Contents

Chapter 11: Part 1

Proposals
Chapter 11: Part 1