Printed Page 435-442

Sample Internal Proposal

The following example of an internal proposal has been formatted as a memo rather than as a formal proposal. (See Chapter 17 for the progress report written after this project was under way and Chapter 18 for the recommendation report.)

In most professional settings, writers use letterhead stationery for memos.

Proposals can be presented as memos or as reports. Memos are more popular for brief documents (fewer than five pages), whereas reports are more popular for longer documents.

The writers include their titles and that of their primary reader. This way, future readers will be able to readily identify the reader and writers.

The subject heading indicates the subject of the memo (the tablet study at Rawlings Regional Medical Center) and the purpose of the memo (proposal).

As discussed in Ch. 14, memos of more than one page should begin with a clear statement of purpose. Here, the writers communicate the primary purpose of the document in one sentence.

Memos of more than one page should contain a summary to serve as an advance organizer or to help readers who want only an overview of the document.

Although the writers are writing to Dr. Bremerton, they refer to her in the third person to suggest the formality of their relationship.

The background of the problem. Don’t assume that your reader knows what you are discussing, even if it was the reader who suggested the project in the first place.

The problem at the heart of the project.

The proposal. The writers have already begun to plan what they will do if the proposal is accepted, but they use the conditional tense (“would”) because they cannot assume that their proposal will be approved.

A summary of the schedule and the credentials of the writers. Because the reader will likely want to read this entire proposal, the summary functions as an advance organizer.

A brief statement of the context for the proposal.

An explanation of the problem: the current situation is inadequate because the medical center is not taking full advantage of tablets and because IT is spending a lot of time ensuring that the tablets in use are in compliance with federal requirements.

This same paragraph appeared in the “Summary” section of the proposal. In technical communication, writers often present the same information several times because some readers will read only selected portions of the document.

The writers paraphrase text from a memo Dr. Bremerton had written to them. Often in technical communication, you will quote or paraphrase your reader’s words to remind him or her of the context and to show that you are carrying out your tasks professionally—and to give the reader the opportunity to change the direction of the study before it officially begins.

The introduction concludes with an advance organizer for the rest of the proposal.

By presenting the project as a set of tasks, the writers show that they are well organized. This organization by tasks will be used in the progress report and the recommendation report.

The proposal sounds credible because the writers have already begun their secondary research. Readers are reluctant to approve proposals unless they are sure that the writers have at least begun their research.

Following the recommendation from Dr. Bremerton, the writers start by outlining the secondary research they plan to do. The logic is obvious: if they are to present sensible recommendations, they need to understand their subject.

By stating that they know that their sources are a mixture of different kinds of information, not all of which are equally useful for every kind of question that needs to be answered, the writers suggest that they are careful analysts.

The writers show that they have applied the insights they gathered from their secondary research. Now they propose doing primary research to determine whether the RRMC clinical staff share the attitudes of clinical staff across the country. The logic is clear: if they do, the hospital administrators will know that they can rely on the national data.

The writers cite their sources throughout the proposal.

Often you will begin your project with a cost criterion: your recommended solution must not cost more than a certain amount.

Preparing the recommendation report is part of the project because the report is the deliverable.

Organizing the project by tasks makes it easy for the writers to present a Gantt chart. In addition, the task organization will help the writers stay on track if the proposal is approved and they continue their research.

Each task is presented with parallel grammar, which shows that the writers are careful and professional.

Some tasks overlap in time: researchers often work on several tasks simultaneously.

See this Tech Tip on creating Gantt charts.

The writers summarize their credentials. Strong credentials help reinforce the writers’ professionalism.

This list of references follows the APA documentation style, which is discussed in Appendix, Part B, "Documenting Your Sources." The APA documentation system calls for References to begin on a new page. Check with your instructor.